I must admit that I don't pay much attention to the annual Nobel Peace Prize process. I know that Martin Luther King, Jr won the prize back in the day. Of course, Al Gore was a big winner this year.
So, it is no surprise that I didn't know that an American profes
sor named James Watson won the Nobel prize back in 1962. Obviously, the guy has some book smarts to do the things he did with DNA research back in the 1950s and 1960s.
However, the downside for white guys living as adults in America back in the 1950s and 1960s is that they have some whack ideas about race. So, it was also not a surprise to know that Dr. James Watson harbors racist thoughts. I am surprised that the old guy allowed his inner demons out in public. The old boy was quoted as saying that he is "inherently gloomy about the prospect of Africa" because "all our social policies are based on the fact that their intelligence is the same as ours, whereas all the testing says not really."
Watson also asserted there was no reason to believe different races separated by geography should have evolved identically, and he said that while he hoped everyone was equal, "people who have to deal with Black employees find this is not true."
Of course, he is apologizing all over himself now. Not because he thought the racist thoughts ... but, because he got so comfortable that he said them out loud. His cozy position at a New York university is gone as they suspended him immediately upon reading the article. I imagine that Dr. Watson was feeling good about all the nooses showing up in Noose York and elsewhere in the country ... so he thought it was OK for him to let on that Black folks are less intelligent than whites.
Just goes to show that a Nobel Peace Prize doesn't make you a good person.
So, it is no surprise that I didn't know that an American profes
sor named James Watson won the Nobel prize back in 1962. Obviously, the guy has some book smarts to do the things he did with DNA research back in the 1950s and 1960s.However, the downside for white guys living as adults in America back in the 1950s and 1960s is that they have some whack ideas about race. So, it was also not a surprise to know that Dr. James Watson harbors racist thoughts. I am surprised that the old guy allowed his inner demons out in public. The old boy was quoted as saying that he is "inherently gloomy about the prospect of Africa" because "all our social policies are based on the fact that their intelligence is the same as ours, whereas all the testing says not really."
Watson also asserted there was no reason to believe different races separated by geography should have evolved identically, and he said that while he hoped everyone was equal, "people who have to deal with Black employees find this is not true."
Of course, he is apologizing all over himself now. Not because he thought the racist thoughts ... but, because he got so comfortable that he said them out loud. His cozy position at a New York university is gone as they suspended him immediately upon reading the article. I imagine that Dr. Watson was feeling good about all the nooses showing up in Noose York and elsewhere in the country ... so he thought it was OK for him to let on that Black folks are less intelligent than whites.
Just goes to show that a Nobel Peace Prize doesn't make you a good person.
6 comments:
Hi bro,we've all received watson's good news;it clearly shows who is more intelligent,especially in this case.Could we put it this way?peace!!
The intellect is overated, especially in cultures who define truth as purely rational. As far as Dr. Watson is concerned, Hey Doc, "I'm goin down ta Louisiana, gonna buy me a mojo hand.."
You know Nobel the guy who the Peace Prize was named after was the inventor of dynamite. I am definitely rethinking the esteem the prize should have.
Felix and Anon - Thanks for sharing your village voice with us.
Danielle - I didn't know the history of Mr. Nobel. Thanx for sharing that historical tidbit!
Although Mr Nobel did invent the destructive material dynamite, it was used to blast through rocks which enabled them to build streets and railroads. We shouldn't put down other peoples achievements because of one bad egg. I think intelligence is too broad to measure. One person may be a wizz in business and the other have no business smarts at all, but have the ability build a car engine from scratch.
Anon - Whether your are a savant in business or building a car engine ... you are subject to public derision if you still think that people of African descent are inferior simply because they have more melanin than caucasions. Do we agree on this point?
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