Global security - Academic essay 世界是否比以前安全

Global security: Safer or more dangerous?

Global security is a hot topic for discussion because it is closely related to people’s daily life. Some people consider that the place we live in is more dangerous than before. Why these people have such feelings? To a large extent, it’s because the awful news is easier and faster to spread around the world than before with the rapid development of technology, and some irresponsible media tend to exaggerate the seriousness of some problems in order to attract people’s attentions and boost their commercial profits, which make people have an illusion of that we are living in a world filled with violence and crime, even destructive disaster. Do we really live in a dangerous environment like that? Of course not. However, there is evidence to prove that the world we live in today is safer than before.

To begin with, today people are living in a relatively stable and peaceful political

environment. Although the news of wars has never disappeared in some countries, the amount of wars and arms deals has decreased by a large margin. According to the Human Security Report, a project funded by five nations and published by Oxford University Press, armed

conflicts declined by more than 40% since the early 1990s, and international arms transfers, in real dollar values, have fallen by 33 percent between 1990 and 2003. It accompanied with a sharp decline in military expenditure and troop numbers. In the meantime, the number of

people who have died as a result of war, civil war and terrorism, has dropped by 50 percent this decade from the 1990s. Based on the conclusion of this report, the period from World War II to today is the longest interval of uninterrupted peace between major powers for hundreds of years. The richest countries of the world are not wild about fighting wars, arms races or “cold wars” as before. Therefore, it is clearly to see that we live in a relative era of peace and don’t need to be afraid of being threatened by wars.

In addition, the diseases cause less harm to people. No one can deny that with the

increasingly complete medical system, there are a lot of prevention measures to keep people away from some diseases. In the past, due to the lack of medical knowledge, people were easier to get sick, and even died from it. For example, before centuries ago, when people still did not find out the importance of vitamin C, scurvy was popular among people who joined the long distance voyage because they couldn’t be able to absorb enough vitamin C due to the lack of fresh fruits and vegetables in a long time, and many people died from it. However, today people can prevent from scurvy not only by eating fruits and vegetables but also by taking some vitamin pills. Besides, with the rapid development of medical science, a multitude of injuries have been easier to fix. For example, Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of the United States, as we know, was assassinated by shooting. Some medical scientists point out that if President Lincoln were born in the new era, it is totally possible to save Lincoln’s life with modern medical technology. What’s more, people pay more attention than before to pursue a healthy lifestyle

to take care of their health, so people are able to live a longer life than before. According to the research, life expectancy around the world has risen dramatically, by 11 years for men and 12 years for women over the last four decades.

Moreover, people have better social security today. The occurrence and development of insurance helps people to get financial support when they encounter difficulties. For example, if one man is unemployed or suffers from accident in his work unfortunately, he can receive

financial support from insurance, which may relieve his economical stress. Also, peoples’ sense of self-protection has been promoted. With the power of education and advertisement, people are better at dealing with some emergency situation and protecting themselves. For example, schools plan and organize fire drills to promote student’s awareness of fire prevention and educate them how to save themselves when facing with emergency situation. Meanwhile, there is a dropping tendency in the crime rate. According to the criminologist James Alan Fox, the crime rate for serious crimes, including murder, rape, and assault, has dropped significantly since the early 1990s in part because of improved law and policing. Obviously, the social security is much better than before.

In brief, we do live in a relatively safer world. People suffer less from wars, diseases and get better social security to protect themselves to some extent. What the world will develop into is unforeseen and uncertain, but what should be made sure is that we have to keep confidence to the world we live in.

Kevin Feng

2013-02-03

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