Harsh Reality..The World is Better!
Confirmation bias, idealogical/doctrinaire policy “imperatives” or good-old special interests are all part of what contributes to our sense of progress in the human condition.
Max Roser is a James Martin Fellow researching income inequality and inclusive growth at the Institute for New Economic Thinking, Oxford Martin School. Roser asks the question:
Is it actually true that we are building a better world? Or are those who claim that things are always getting worse the ones in the right? Whether we’re discussing the way of the world over a pint in the pub or dissecting the issues at an academic conference, it’s a topic that lingers constantly: how is the world changing?
Roser points out in a series of research that:
- incomes are growing in all parts of the world,
- world poverty is declining rapidly
- and that the poorest countries now have the highest growth!
Roser’s response in unequivocal.
The answers to my initial questions are very clear. The evidence shows that we are becoming less violent and increasingly more tolerant, that we are leading healthier lives, are better fed, and that poverty around the world is declining rapidly. Taking these facts into account paints a very positive picture of how the world is changing.
