Sawfish <sawfish666@gmail.com> Wrote in message:r

I'm going to broach a topic that I've played
around with in my head for maybe the last 10 years. I've not
come to a conclusion yet, but the concept is intriguing to me.
It might be seen as an attempt at provocation, but
I mean it seriously and without intent to start a polemic flame
war.
First, it's my position that race, in terms of
stereotypical phenotypes, exists. There are remarkable
differences when races are compared to each other (intra-species
comparisons, like Corgis vs Great Danes), but if one makes the
comparison between mankind and another species (inter-species,
like felines vs canines), these same "remarkable" differences
look a lot less pronounced.
But we're focusing on intra-species comparisons,
only, for this discussion.
So in my mind race exists and there are
objectively observable differences and also ones that can be
tested against an objective standard, such as tendencies toward
perfect pitch, IQ test, 100m sprint times, etc. Based on this I
feel comfortable in concluding that the overwhelming odds are
that a male with at least some west African genes will win every
medal in the 100m sprint at the Olympics, and also at every
major internal competition, for the foreseeable future.
Similarly, international student math competitions
are very, very likely to be won by east Asian or SE Asian kids,
also for the foreseeable future.
All this seems glaringly evident and I'd question
the objectivity and integrity of those who seek to deny these
observable facts.
I have also had similar ideas of smaller, less
consistent differences between cultures, and even less so
between ethnicities, especially within a cosmopolitan context.
So it might be possible to form generalized stereotypes about
cultures and ethnicities, just as about races, although these
differences are much less distinct and pervasive, and they are
much harder to objectify, and so are open to the criticism that
observed differences between ethnicities might be primarily
subjective.
So that's the set of assumptions: there are
objectively verifiable differences between races that can lead
to justifiable stereotypes. I take this to be a proven fact.
If true, might there also be other stereotypical
differences between races that are harder to measure
objectively, and yet still seem to exist frequently enough to
justify stereotyping? E.g., what seems to be a tendency to
readily feel and emote openly and exuberantly among those of
sub-Saharan ancestry, as opposed to those of Han ancestry? That
the tendency toward remarkable perseverance in difficult
situations of uncertain--but potential--benefit found in western
European sub-groups and to a lesser degree in east Asian
sub-groups is a stereotype not found in sub-Saharan Africans or
Oceania groups is indeed a racially-based significant tendency?
There is the compounding factor that humans
evolved to living in self-selected groups of people who looked,
and to a degree, acted like themselves, and around these things
in common, *cultural* norms were formed, so that people of X
ethnicity--who are highly likely to be of the same race--living
together over time, encouraged certain social responses and
inhibited others, based in part on hard-coded tendencies carried
within their specific phenotype? E.g., are Japanese in Canada
less publicly demonstrative of emotion than black Africans in
Jamaica *because* they simply have a tendency to a bodily
chemistry that has less hormonal reaction to
stress/excitement/danger than west Africans? And that given this
*physical* difference, they evolved cultural norms against
openly displaying emotions? Similarly, if sub-Saharan Africans
had a greater *physical* response to external stimuli, might
their culture tend to create norms that allowed and even exalted
displays of emotion?
Is there such a thing as "hot blood" and "cold
blood" represented in differing percentages between racial, and
perhaps cultural, groups? Is there such a stereotype where a
race and/or ethnicity has a greater craving for public attention
than other groups?

Is this a realistic possibility? If it exists,
what might it account for when varied groups meet?

-- ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "Doncha know,
That it's a shame and a pity
You were raised
Up in the city
And you never learned nothin'
'bout country ways."

--Not So Sweet Martha Lorraine ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Can you ask just one question for starters, I'm drunk I can't concentrate on long posts.


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