New Zealand Declared the World’s Most Peaceful Country

Considering all the time I have spent in New Zealand I’m not surprised in the least by this news:

Americans pining for a peaceful existence might consider moving to New
Zealand, the most peaceful nation on Earth, according to the 2009
Global Peace Index released Tuesday by an Australian-based research
group that counts former President Jimmy Carter, Ted Turner and the
Dalai Lama among its endorsers.

The U.S. is 83rd on the roster, according to the Institute for
Economics and Peace that rated the relative tranquility of 144 nations
according to 23 “indicators” – including gun sales, the number of
homicides, the size of the military, the potential for terrorism and
the number of people in jail.

The index defined peace as “the absence of violence,” and so
far, things are a little dicey. Violence and instability have
increased, respect for human rights has decreased. The reearchers also
calculated that the world’s nations have collectively lost close to $8
trillion due to the complications of widespread violence.  [Washington Times]

I do think it helps to have a country that is an island nation that the nearest nation is hundreds of miles away.  Thus New Zealand has little external national security threats eliminating the need for a large military which is one of the major factors in this survey.