A quick thought experiment. Let’s suppose that scientific experiments conclusively show that people of Blue descent are much more aggressive, violent and less intelligent than people of Red or Green descent.
Don’t you think that upon knowing this that Reds and Greens wouldn’t, at the very least, self-discriminate against Blues in intellectual and cooperative activities? Wouldn’t they avoid Blues on the street, pull students out of schools full of Blues, move out of neighborhoods full of Blues en masse?
Do you really think the Blues would just accept the scientific conclusions, and essentially accept racism, with them on the lowest tier? It would also set the precedent for more troubling experiments characterizing intellectual, social and creative fitness.
What if then, it was then conclusively shown that people of Light Red descent were superior to those of Dark Red descent? That people of Magnenta descent were extremely likely to give birth to children who were disabled or intellectually and socially inferior?
We’ve been down this road before. It didn’t turn out too well last time.
No, we haven't. 19th century and Nazi theories of race were not based on good science. They were based on atrocious science. Which doesn't mean that it is impossible to do good science on the subject.
It didn’t turn out too well last time.
Quite right. I agree 100% it is a dangerous area.
But research on genetics is not going to stop. Far too many potential benefits. Whether it is the intent of the research or not, data is going to be acquired on whether real differences between "races" exist. That data is going to be available for analysis.
IOW, it's like the issue of cloning humans. I think it's a really dangerous area. But research on it WILL continue, in China or elsewhere if we outlaw it here.
Science is a (one) way of determining the truth about the world around us. Resolutely ignoring the monster under the bed won't make it go away if it's really there.
We're heading for an Emperor's New Clothes world. It is possible that at some point the evidence of racial differences will become so overwhelming that moral and ideological qualms will be crushed. IOW, the world is as it is, not as we wish it was. Ignoring the truth because we don't like it will normally just make things worse in the long run.
But if something is true, should it be suppressed just because some people might react badly to it?
Besides, I don’t think most people would react badly. We all know there are differences between men and women, for instance, and most people accept this and don’t have a fit over it. It’s political correctness that’s pitting people against each other and telling some groups they’re being oppressed by other groups.