“I am sometimes asked, "How do you know there won't be a war tomorrow (or a genocide, or an act of terrorism) that will refute your whole thesis?" The question misses the point of this book. The point is not that we have entered an Age of Aquarius in which every last earthling has been pacified forever. It is that substantial reductions in violence have taken place, and it is important to understand them. Declines in violence are caused by political, economic, and ideological conditions that take hold in particular cultures at particular times. If the conditions reverse, violence could go right back up.”

“We are all artificial and have been unnaturally changed by violence and unwholesome conditioning.”

“I believe every act of violence is also a message that needs to be understood. Violence should not be answered just by greater violence but by real understanding. We must ask: 'Where is the violence coming from? What is its meaning?”

“We have been trained by a culture of violence and we are all agents of passive violence.”

“What does War, Murder, Genocide, Violence, Abuse, Rape, Domestic Violence, Violence Against Women & Children Have In Common? Everything...they all help destroy precious lives!”

“terrorism n.Violence for political purposes or the politically motivated threat of violence which, either intentionally or unintentionally, challenges the state's monopoly on political violence.”