Re: To protest or not to protest

A simple observation:

I think it would be a good idea, should WSN members consider that protest
be an appropriate strategy, to develop a clear social scientific critique
of the work, along the lines of the criticisms Steve Rosenthal makes in his
review of _The Bell Curve_.  

This is as opposed to relying too heavily on arguments attacking the
apparent racist connections of the people who funded the book.  Such
connections are by no means irrelevant, but simply calling studies
"tainted" because of the identity of the people funding them is not likely
to be convincing to social scientists.  Indeed, with no puns intended, such
an argument is a "genetic fallacy" from the point of view of informal 
logic.  

The crucial questions therefore, are whether or not Rushton's conclusions
follow from the "research" he's actually done?  Is he properly interpreting
his data?  Is he confusing correlation with causation?  Are there
alternative explanations for whatever observed empirical relationships he
claims to have found?




--
Jeffrey L. Beatty
Doctoral Student
Department of Political Science
The Ohio State University
2140 Derby Hall
154 North Oval Mall
Columbus, Ohio 43210

(o) 614/292-2880
(h) 614/688-0567
Email:  Beatty.4@osu.edu
______________________________________________
If the world were rational, nothing would ever
happen--Feodor Dostoevsky