Watson and Bush
James Watson reminds me of someone else who speaks with his own--often misguided--conviction. Just because he's famous doesn't make him right. Even in his own speech, during which he stated that Africans are inferior intellectually and that genetics data support this, Watson says that it will be 15 years before we identify intelligence genes. So what is his statement based on?
It's obvious that readers (probably including me) see only specific pieces of the article. I appreciate The Register's attaching quotes to sources--speech vs. recent book. I also appreciate the final comment on taking Rosalind's data and using it. I don't dispute the Nobel committee's restriction of the prize to living people--the intent is for recipients to use the money they receive for further research. However, since the prize is limited to three people--very often US people--I doubt that Watson's assertion that Rosalind would have received the prize had she been alive is accurate. She would have never received the prize--another example of bias in this world.
Way to go, Jim, you've got people talking about genetics again. I only wish you had chosen some reasonable science to back up your assertions.
Marie Godfrey, blogger for www.geneforum.org
Biting the hand that feeds IT
