acan related that when i run these programmes or help design these programmes, and so i don't run them, but i help design a lot of these programmes. One day i met this gang leader and standing, you know, we jumped out of the car with one of these outreach workers beause we're tracking down somebody else for the programme,. And the gang the leader happened to be there. I'm always curious at, likewha is it? What's their narrative for convincing themselves that what they do is the right thing? ' So he told me: "I'm just trying o we're just trying to keep busy" He was talking in front of an ice cream and no
Shermer and Blattman discuss: Putin, Russia, and Ukraine • game theory and violent conflict • 5 Reasons for conflict and war • common elements of conflict in Medellin, Chicago, Sudan, Somalia, etc. • U.S. foreign policy in Iraq, Afghanistan, Ukraine, and elsewhere, and its consequences • human nature and conflict: are we wired to fight or do environments push us into conflicts? • cooperation vs. competition / selfish genes vs. collection action problems • inner demons and better angels • violence and wars in our paleolithic ancestors • why violence has declined over the centuries • Chicago as a test case for theories of conflict and peace • why gangs, groups, and even nations mostly avoid conflict and war because of its consequences • and whether international aid and economic development attenuate violence.
Dr. Christopher Blattman is the Ramalee E. Pearson Professor of Global Conflict Studies (University of Chicago), where he coleads the Development Economics Center and directs the Obama Foundation Scholars program. His work on violence, crime, and poverty has been widely covered by the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Forbes, Slate, Vox, and NPR.