On Dr. James Watson

There are so many issues raised by Dr. James Watson's recent

(and more recently retracted) remarks that people of African

descent are genetically less intelligent than others. In rough

order of importance:



(1) The pain and humiliation that the remarks caused to black

people. If it were true that black people were genetically less

intelligent than others no public policy would be changed as a

result. For example, governments would not forbid racial

intermarriage to reduce the number of intellectually-

challenged children, employers would not stop hiring

black people, etc. Nothing would change. So the only result of

proof that black people were genetically less intelligent would

be the pain and humiliation that it causes black people. That is

bad.



(2) It is particularly bad that these statements were made by a

Nobel laureate. If I made them or some other non-scientist had

made them they would be dismissed as unimportant racist

ramblings. When a Nobel laureate, and one who won the prize

in the relevant field of biology, makes them, they are

devastating because they assume the imprimatur of expertise.



(3) Intelligence, either in individuals or in races, is not the most


important quality in human beings. Goodness is. No one argues

that one race is superior or inferior to the others in morality.

My race and Dr. Watson's race, Caucasians, have produced in

just the last century the most murderous behavior that the

world with all of its races, has ever known. This was at a time

when the fruits of our supposedly superior intellect--science

and technology--was at its most advanced. I get angry and

defensive when I read others, such as Jared Diamond, claim

that Caucasians are less intelligent than other races. As I have

written here before I am proud to be white, male, living in the

northern and western hemispheres, and American. But I am

not proud of what my race did in the 20th century.



(4) Although I know not what public policy it informs, research

into and discussion of inherent racial differences should not be

suppressed. As a non-scientist I don't know if Dr. Watson's

initial claims are true. I read and I've never read of any

credible scientific reports that substantiate his initial claims.

If I'm wrong I would like to see the studies widely published

and discussed by the experts. If I'm right, and as Dr. Watson

has said in subsequent comments, that there is no such

evidence then his initial statements are both mean-spirited

as well as unintelligent. And I would like to see research into

racial differences in goodness as well. I don't know why

intelligence get so much attention.



(5) I do share Dr. Watson's bleak view of Africa. As has been

written here before, "It is hard to stay positive" when a head

of state believes he can cure AIDS by reading the Koran,

sprinkling magic water and chanting over victims. That was

just one example recently in the news. High officials in or

formerly a part of the government of South Africa have made

similar, floridly ignorant comments about AIDS. And then

there's Robert Mugabe. However, I don't think it's Robert

Mugabe's race that has made him such a tyrant any more than

I think it's race that made Hitler, Stalin and Mao such tyrants.



(6) I mean this sincerely and not meanly, does Dr. Watson

suffer from any mental problem, such as Alzheimer's? He is

aged and his initial statements seem to me so ridiculous and

his retraction so immediate and categorical that I wondered

if he didn't suffer from some mental impairment, although I

have read that he has made similar statements in the past.

Perhaps he's just a mean man.



I am Benjamin Harris