Re: oops

Brian D Harper (harper.10@osu.edu)
Thu, 22 May 1997 16:38:22 -0400

At 03:15 PM 5/22/97 -0500, Thom wrote:
>I never said that men were better...just different.
>Thom

Yes I know, that was part of the joke. My mis-characterization
of your statement is similar in nature to the mis-characterization
that evolution supports racism. One might be able to scientifically
support the notion that races are different, but not that one is
"better" than another.

I was intrigued by your argument that races cannot be distinguished
either biologically or genetically. Would you happen to have any
references (preferrably reviews for laymen) that discuss these
ideas.

I find this very much supported by my own experiences. I have had
the good fortune of knowing a great many people from different
races and nationalities. My wife is chinese (race) of Indonesian
nationality. Also, spending most of my adult life at a University
has brought me into contact with a wide variety of people. I
have also taught English as a second language classes and a
Bible study for internationals for many years. One of the most
striking things for me is the "sameness" of people. I have
felt for some time that the differences between races is on
about the same order as the differences between individuals
within a race. In other words, I don't find the results you
discussed in the least surprising.

Brian Harper
Associate Professor
Applied Mechanics
The Ohio State University

"God forbid that we should give out a dream of
our own imagination for a pattern of the world"
-- Francis Bacon