I thought that a recent podcast called Destroyer of Worlds by Dan Carlin explained really well the transformation of state and society between the development of the atomic bomb and the Cuban Missle Crisis. Warning, its six hours long, but it does a great job looking at this question from the war side.

In terms of what you claim about peace, I have my hopes that the human spirit is awakening, enlightening to the extent that we realize how important it is to fit in to the natural cycles of peace and abundance. We cannot just be at peace between humans and continue our war on Mother Nature.