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India-Pakistan
Pakistan among 10 least peaceful countries
2007-05-31
Pakistan is among 10 least peaceful countries in the world, according to a study released on Wednesday.
Nu-uhh!
Norway is the most peaceful country in the world and Iraq the least, according to the study, which notably puts Japan near the top and Russia and Israel close to the bottom.

The Global Peace Index, published a week before a Group of Eight (G8) summit in Germany, rates 121 countries from Algeria to Zimbabwe on factors including levels of violence, organised crime and military expenditure. While most European countries including Britain rank in the top, more peaceful, half of the league table, the United States is nearer the bottom in 96th place, while Russia is fifth from last on 118th. “This is a wake-up call for leaders around the globe,” said Steve Killelea, who commissioned the study from the Economist Intelligence Unit, which is linked to the weekly The Economist.

The index is backed by international figures including the Dalai Lama, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, former US president Jimmy Carter and US economist Joseph Stiglitz, all winners of the Nobel peace prize.
That'd make the results suspect in the minds of lots of us, but I'm guessing the very top and very bottom of the list is pretty easy to put together -- hardest part is probably the detailed rankings, which won't mean much.
Overall the study found that small, stable countries which are part of regional blocs such as the 27-nation European Union are most likely to be more peaceful. Income and education are crucial in promoting peace, it said. “I believe there is a link between the peacefulness and the wealth of nations and therefore business has a key role to play in peace,” said Killelea.

Top 10: Norway is number one in the index, New Zealand number two, Denmark number three, Ireland number four, Japan number five, Finland number six, Sweden number seven, Canada number eight, Portugal number nine and Austria number 10.

Bottom 10: Angola is number 112, Ivory Coast 113, Lebanon 114, Pakistan 115, Colombia 116, Nigeria 117, Russia 118, Israel 119, Sudan 120 and Iraq 121.
Posted by:Fred

#5  Hitler's Germany was very peaceful vis a vis "crime" 1933-1945....
Posted by: borgboy2001   2007-05-31 21:14  

#4  The Global Peace Index, published a week before a Group of Eight (G8) summit in Germany, rates 121 countries from Algeria to Zimbabwe on factors including levels of violence, organised crime and military expenditure.

I'm sure that one of the reasons the US is so close to the bottom is its level of military spending, not levels of violence or orgnized crime. The open border to the south is also responsible for much of the violence and organized crime. I'd like to see a side-by-side comparison between all countries, listing number of murders, robberies, rapes, assaults, arrests per 100,000, convictions per 100,000, number of estimated organized crime networks (Russia would have to have a separate annex for that), amount per capita spent for police and fire protection, and amount per capita spent for military preparedness and operations. Then we could compare apples with apples, and oranges with oranges, instead of this giant fruit salad "approved by the Dalai Lama, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, former US president Jimmy Carter and US economist Joseph Stiglitz".
Posted by: Old Patriot   2007-05-31 18:03  

#3  Top 10: Norway is number one in the index, New Zealand number two, Denmark number three, Ireland number four, Japan number five, Finland number six, Sweden number seven, Canada number eight, Portugal number nine and Austria number 10.

Bottom 10: Angola is number 112, Ivory Coast 113, Lebanon 114, Pakistan 115, Colombia 116, Nigeria 117, Russia 118, Israel 119, Sudan 120 and Iraq 121.

So, let's do the math and see where Muslims are causing a majority of the grief (see bolded countries above). Wotta big effin' surprise! Nearly half of these twenty countries are being assailed by Islamic terrorism and violence. Go figure.
Posted by: Zenster   2007-05-31 16:04  

#2  Wonder how the new Tourism Minister is reconciling this ? Islamabad, the paradise you can't afford to pass up !
Posted by: Woozle Elmeter2970   2007-05-31 15:23  

#1  So where's Gaza on this list, or can't they count that high?
Posted by: tu3031   2007-05-31 14:40  

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