A letter to the Editor today:
IN CLEAR violation of the tradition of academic freedom, the
vice-chancellor of Leeds University has suspended Dr Frank Ellis and
instituted disciplinary proceedings against him for presenting the
research, published in peer-reviewed academic journals and scholarly
books which demonstrates that blacks have, on average, lower IQ scores
and poorer academic achievement than do whites (Profile, last week).
Much solid research also makes it more likely than not that there is a
genetic contribution to this (and other) group IQ differences. Dr
Ellis, then, has done no more than restate what has been said for half
century by a number of eminent psychologists and anthropologists at
leading universities.
These include the late John Baker (Oxford), Hans Eysenck (London),
Philip Vernon (London), Richard Herrnstein (Harvard), and Henry Garrett
(Columbia).
A number of behavioural scientists, including ourselves, have
reached the same conclusion. Others have put much of this on the
record. Many more agree but have been reluctant to put this on the
record for fear of the kind of intimidation that Dr Ellis is receiving
from the University of Leeds.
There is an important and legitimate debate going on on
intelligence and genetics, as there is on climate change and foreign
policy. It is a sad day when British universities muzzle their academic
staff and threaten them with dismissal for taking part in one of these
controversies.
Professor Richard Lynn
University of Ulster
Professor Philippe Rushton
University of Western Ontario
Canada
Professor Arthur Jensen
University of California
Dr Charles Murray
American Enterprise Institute
Washington
Christopher Brand
University of Edinburgh
(1970-97)
Professor Helmuth Nyborg
Aarhus University, Denmark
Professor Linda Gottfredson
University of Delaware
Professor (Retired) Donald Templer
Alliant International University (1978-2005), Fresno, California
The thing that absolutely gobsmacks me about the reaction to such research is that very reaction. There’s two extremely interesting scientific questions here:
1) Is there actually a difference in such group IQs?
2) Why?
I’ve already written at length here on things like variation within the groups being higher than between them, that malnutrition is a known cause of such problems etc etc so won’t repeat myself. But why are people so afraid of actually looking at the problems?
If the answer to question 1 is no then there’s an end to the whole thing. If, as seems likely, it’s actually yes, then question 2 becomes extremely important. Is it nature or nuture? Is it some immutable law of the universe or is it simply a reflection of circumstances to do with upbringing?
I’ll freely admit to a prejudice that it’s the latter…one story (told with relish by D2) that makes me think so is that the central European (and largely Jewish) immigrants into America through Ellis Island were held to be a great deal more stupid than those already in the US. It is their grandchildren, of course, who now outperform most other US groups.
But seriously, this is a matter of science, so obviously it should be studied. The political implications of that study should in fact be of most interest to exactly those liberal types who decry the basic research. If there is something, whether malnutrition, the collective culture, teaching methods, institutionalised racism, whatever it is, that prevents children from certain groups from reaching their full potential, well, I thought that was the whole damn point of liberalism, to correct such failures?
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