Race, Crime, Genes, Culture, Capitalism, Urbanization: Some Puzzles

A commenter notes that genes provide a range of behaviors, and culture may not be able to move group performance much outside of that range. The suggestion by that commenter was that genes will predispose some populations to relatively high crime, and culture can only make it lower or higher, but it’s never going to be all that low. Allow me to differ on that for a moment. Check out my post on the Moriori. In a nutshell, the Polynesians are widely regarded as extremely violent people. They were violent as Hell on contact, and their oral histories indicated a culture of extreme violence dating back as far as we can tell. They seem to have been some of the most violent folks on Earth. The Maori were some of the most violent of all of the Polynesians. To this day, they have very high rates of general instability, drug abuse, domestic violence, and all sorts of crime, including violent crime. They are are regarded as having hair trigger tempers and for being highly aggressive. They have all of the social pathologies of US Blacks, though their IQ’s seem to be higher. (IQ = 91). The Moriori were a Maori subgroup that colonized the Chatham Islands in the 1600’s. They started out being typically maniacal Maoris, but after a while of that, it become clear that they were going to massacre each other. A leader came unto them and saw God. He became a religious leader, and all of the people followed him. He ordered them to renounce all violence. For the next 300 years, they were possibly one of the least violent people on Earth. Homicide was basically unheard of, and so was rape. Conflict was settled by a twig as wide as your index finger. At the first blood it was over and done with, and the conflict was buried. Around the 1830’s, the Maori came to the Chatham Islands. They attacked the Moriori and the Moriori were so pacifist they would not even fight back. They were quickly massacred, enslaved and cannibalized. Few survived. Now, how does the most violent tribe on Earth become the most pacifist tribe on Earth? It’s clear to me that Polynesians are genetically primed for violence and aggression, but it’s also clear that a strong culture can completely overcome that. Genes provide the clay, culture is the sculptor. Now, the question is, how can these profound gene-warping cultures work? Sadly, I think they work best in small tribes and villages. In large cities and big societies, I don’t think these super-cultures can take hold. They just get washed out by the genes. So in large cities and with huge populations, genes will predominate, and maybe culture has limited effects. In very small populations, culture can be a super-warper. There is also the possibility that some races are more “plastic” than other races. Polynesians may be a “plastic race” that is highly susceptible to cultural effects. Amerindians may be another one. There are Amazonian tribes right near the “most violent people on Earth”, the Yanomamo, that, like the Moriori, are some of the pacifist people on Earth. A problem with Blacks is that they seem to commit lots of crime just about everywhere. I am willing to entertain the possibility that Blacks may not be as “plastic” or as effected by super-culture, as, say, Polynesians and Amerindians are. The Dyula are an exception, and they are Blacker than people error3

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33 thoughts on “Race, Crime, Genes, Culture, Capitalism, Urbanization: Some Puzzles”

  1. Re. the Moriori — from your previous post on them (another very interesting group I never heard about!):
    “Moriori legend has it that initially, widespread tribal warfare, headhunting and cannibalism was practiced as the normative cruel Maori culture. On such a small island, this savagery was disastrous, and soon the population plummeted to near extinction. A leader arose among the Moriori, Nunuku-whenua, who preached a new doctrine of extreme pacifism, Nunuku’s Law. Nunuku’s Law was strictly adhered to 300 years.
    Sounds like a good deal of the “aggressive genes” (like the MAOA gene that is found in rather high frequencies in the Maori people) were deselected out of the Moriori population.
    They battled out a “hawk vs. hawk” game in which most of the aggressive folks killed each other off, and what the population was left with was low-aggressive people.
    Human culture arises out of our biology. The Moriori became cultural pacifists after becoming genetic ones.

    1. Oh, I doubt it. The survivors could well have been the most evil and murderous of them all. The most pacifistic ones were probably the first to go.
      Interesting theory though. Ultimately, it is probably unprovable one way or the other, really.

  2. “The Dyula are an exception, and they are Blacker than people say they are.”
    But, they are less Black than indigenous West Africans because they are part of a broad ethnic group that originated further north (in Central Sahara).

    1. Search for “A Little Black in All of US” on the blog. I think it’s in there. Berbers can be either almost totally White or almost totally Black. They really vary.

  3. “Dominica, with a 99% Black population has a homicide rate 40% that of the US, which has a 13% Black population.”
    Dominica’s population is 86.8% Black and 8.9% mixed (acc’d. to the CIA) plus others. But I take your point: the vast majority of the population is Black.
    Their per capita murder rate is more like 68% of the U.S. rate (U.S. = 0.042802 per 1,000 people; Dominica = 0.0289733 per 1,000 people) rather than 40%. Still lower than the U.S., but not as low as you suggest.

  4. “Genes provide the clay, culture is the sculptor.”
    As far as I can see (and admittedly I haven’t read your blog until tonight), you don’t explain where culture comes from. Any ideas on that?
    (Hint: it arises out of our biology. 😉 )

    1. It’s clear that human activity of any kind arises from human biology. But human biology alone does not explain the culture of any group.
      Groups have to contend with the environment they find themselves in. They have to work out how group members are going to have basic needs met and how the group itself will maintain cohesiveness and have its needs met–in the face of what the environment is demanding of them.

  5. “If the standard way of getting rich doesn’t pan out, many will just say fuck it and turn to the easy cash of crime. This is my explanation for high Black crime rates in modern capitalist societies.”
    I think you’re probably right — given their average IQ and (I think one of the most important personality traits) lesser ability to delay gratification, Blacks have a harder time fitting into modern capitalist societies and Black crime rates will be inevitably high in such a society.
    Perhaps a socialist society is a better environment for them (or some traditional African society that, presumably, they worked out for themselves before interference by Europeans).
    Only thing is, I don’t want to live in a socialist society! We need some other solution for the U.S. 😉 (I wouldn’t mind the “one block, one Black” solution provided I get a higher IQ Black on my block.)
    Whatever is to be done, the problems that Blacks face in our society — and cause in our society — need to be dealt with seriously. And, most importantly, we need to quit importing hordes of people who most directly compete for jobs with African Americans (i.e. Mexicans and other Latin Americans). African Americans are our fellow citizens and they deserve that much at least.

  6. “I don’t really believe this, and I can show you some other examples if you wish. It’s true to a point though.”
    Where does culture come from then?

  7. “Oh, I doubt it. The survivors could well have been the most evil and murderous of them all. The most pacifistic ones were probably the first to go.”
    No. Too many hawks mean that hawks battle it out with other hawks. Pacifists (or “doves”) actually start to prosper in such a scenario and their numbers increase.
    Classic game theory concepts.

  8. Dear Robert
    If American culture stigmatizes 80% of the population as losers and if this stigmatization explains the high black crime rate, as you say, then the majority of whites also belong to this large group of losers and they shold have a high crime rate as well. That, however, is not the case.
    I agree with you that we should not become biological reductionists. If we look at Cuba, the Dominican Republic and Haiti, we find that the Dominicans are much more violent than the Cubans, who are racially the same as they are, and also much more violent than the Haitians, who are much blacker than they are.
    I have a cousin who lived many years in Haiti, and he tells me that, although Haiti is corrupt and basically lawless, it is not a violent country. The murder rate there is far lower than in Jamaica.
    Have a good day. James

  9. R – Ya, not the last either. The only crap you write is your Mao and Stalin worshipping stuff. But I know why you do it – sometimes intelligent people take a ridiculous viewpoint, not because it’s right, but because it’s more of an intellectual challenge to defend it.

    1. Yeah I know. Most of them really, really hate my guts. It’s not even funny. They all call me RACIST. They refuse to link to me, refuse to discuss my name in print, etc.

  10. So blacks score poorly on test because whites believe they are inherently inferior and blacks commit more violent crimes because of capitalism.
    Physcobabble baloney!
    Since you’re so wise and all knowing, why do affluent blacks commit more violent crimes than affluent whites? Why do affluent blacks commit more violent crimes than middle class whites? Why do blacks commit more violent crimes today than they did 80 years ago? Why do African blacks commit more violent crimes than European whites even ?
    Given the FACT that Americans send significantly more of their education tax dollars to predominately black inner city public, where is this inequities you speak of? You wrote “This blog takes no position on what is causing the deficit” yet in the very same sentence you wrote “the gap is caused by racism.” Well I call that a clearly defined position don’t you moron!
    In America, blacks commit 7-8 times as many violent crimes against whites as whites do against blacks yet whites are more often accused of racial hate crimes. I’m sure your twisted liberal logic will attempt to explain this as yet another example of racism!
    How boring you liberals have become. If blacks can’t control themselves, blame the rich white guys and capitalism! Global Warming – which is a hoax – blame the rich white guys and capitalism! African blacks slaughtering other African blacks, blame the rich white guys and capitalism LVING ON ANOTHER CONTINENT!
    It stated with AIDs. If someone dies and they test positive for HIV then blame their death on AIDs! No matter what the disease, chalk one up for AIDs and get more money. That scam worked so well, they took it a step further with Global Warming. No matter what “NATURAL” disaster occurs, blame it on Global Warming. Earth quake — must be Global Warming. Tiger Woods losses the U.S. Open — must be Global Warming. To think some people believe Madoff is the greatest fraudster! Follow the money folks, follow the money!
    I did find some value in your Polynesian story though. Pacifist get slaughtered !

  11. What a waste of time discussing this. I knew a Negro with 125 IQ who flunked his second semester of college and sold drugs (“sit back and just chill!”). The higher IQ just makes for more effective criminals (ie, Capone). Testosterone and laziness are still the same as always.

  12. Hi Robert, regarding your post about white culture I would like to stress a point by Mr. Jackson above (no, not that much above, I mean from the link above):
    “Blacks break down the intimacy that can be achieved in the classroom, and leave you convinced that that intimacy is really a form of kinship. Without intending to, they destroy what is most beautiful—whether it be your belief in human equality, your daughter’s innocence, or even the state of the hallway.”
    Sometimes things are better defined by their absence than by their presence. So it is with white culture. You cannot say what it is, but you know when it is absent.

  13. It’s possible that living in a more traditional society can require more delay of gratification and control over one’s emotions than living in an advanced capitalist society.
    Does this seem reasonable? In these types of societies, the needs and demands of the group tend to predominate.

    1. I think that is correct. It goes along with my theory that supercultures might not work so well in an advanced capitalist society either. They are going to be hard to institute, for one thing.

  14. That word super culture. I don’t think it should be used to describe Islam…….I don’t even think Islam is a culture. In fact, Islam is anti culture. Think about it. All the demands muslims make around the world in non muslim countries they live in…….which actually have culture……..are subtractive. They are against dance, music, mixing of genders, fashion, women, gays, sex, alcohol, etc, etc etc…….the offer no replacement for the things they want to subtract…….except pray and boring lifeless existence. They are anti culture……..and culture can not survive Islam…….at least not without going underground.
    I don’t think Islam is a religion either…….not as much as it is a regimented way of life and control……..those are it’s key elements…….with fear of violent punishments for the slighest desent………thats why in black Islamic communities blacks can not be voilent and criminal…….because the consequences are basically……..death.
    Yes it’s a gene warping thing…….un-natural selection…….sticking to the system without deviating one inch……ensures survival and breeding……making each next generation more genetic fanatical religious. Gradually the power of rational thinking and logic and ability to question dogma is bread out altogether.

  15. Im halfway reading your post, but this came to mind.
    Posts like these are why I read your blog. They are quite insightful.

    1. Thx, I really enjoy having you as a commenter on here. You’re funny and smart and you’re a pretty good writer too. Your comments are some of the best of all, wack just like me LOL.

  16. Death squads and terrorists in the Iraq, under whom suproirty are they operating ?
    At the very earlier time of the invasion of Iraq, the death squads were
    operating under the suproirty of U.S invaders and groups which were empowered as Coalition Provisional Authority by the U.S invaders. Since then the premeditated massive genocides and assassinations had begun.
    The appearance of death squads was first highlighted in May this year, when over a 10-day period dozens of bodies were found casually disposed of in rubbish dumps and vacant areas around Baghdad. All of the victims had been handcuffed, blindfolded and shot in the head and many of them also showed signs of having been brutally tortured. On 5 May 15 bodies were discovered in an industrial area.
    A New Death Squad in Iraq
    “All these guys want to do is go out and kill bad guys all day,” he says,
    laughing. “These guys are shit hot. They are just as good as we are. We trained ’em. They are just like us. They use the same weapons. They walk like Americans.” Although the force is officially controlled by the Iraqi government, popular
    perception in Baghdad is that the ISOF–the dirty brigade–is a covert,
    all-Iraqi branch of the US military.
    Bowden says those “local allies” are often used for covert operations. “The
    United States Special Operations Command cultivates relationships with special forces in other countries because it gives the United States the opportunity of intervening militarily in a covert way,” he says. “The ideal covert op is one that is actually carried out by local forces.”
    Terrorism is led by CIA agent Allawi !
    Ayad Allawi led organization that sent agents into Baghdad in the early 1990’s to plant bombs and sabotage government facilities under the direction of the C.I.A., several former intelligence officials say.The bombing and sabotage campaign, the former senior intelligence official said, “was a test more than anything else, to demonstrate capability.”Allawi is not believed to have ever spoken in public about the bombing campaign. But one Iraqi National Accord officer did. In 1996, Amneh al-Khadami, who described himself as the chief bomb maker for the Iraqi Na-tional Accord and as being based in Sulaimaniya, in northern Iraq, recorded a videotape in which he talked of the bombing campaign and complained that he was being shortchanged money and supplies. Two former intelligence officers confirmed the existence of the videotape.
    reference;
    Death Squads in Iraq
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VdbOjT4MW8M&feature=related
    Ex-C.I.A. Aides Say Iraq Leader Helped Agency in 90’s Attacks
    http://www.commondreams.org/headlines04/0609-02.htm
    Media Disinformation and Death Squads in Occupied Iraq
    http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=1230
    Iraq’s New Death Squad
    http://www.thenation.com/article/iraqs-new-death-squad

  17. You are utterly, ridiculously, totally wrong. The average IQ is 100. IQ tests are designed, and adapted, to be culture specific and statistically normed so that the average is 100. Furthermore, if a measure developed for North America is used in Melanesia, it is not valid as a measure of intelligence.
    Having just discovered this site, I can’t quite figure out if you’re ignorant of the facts or just a racist.

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