Vrijbuiter
07-31-2010, 03:14 PM
A documentary about gene doping has just been aired on french-german channel ARTE. For those who don't know it, it's a channel that airs the same programs simultaneously in France and Germany, when it's french-speaking documentary or debates, Germans have german dubbing or subtitles, and vice versa, when it's german-speaking programs, French may view it with dubbing or subtitles in french.
Well anyway, this channel released a documentary called "Gendoping - Die Mutanten greifen an / Dopage génétique - Les mutants attaquent", about gene doping and scientifical studies about the influence of genetics on athletic performances, and also the recent experiments based on those studies to try to create specific proteins to improve the athletes' performances, and bioethical questioning about this.
There's only a german and a french-speaking version
Respectively at http://videos.arte.tv/de/videos/gendoping-3341920.html
and
http://www.arte.tv/fr/Comprendre-le-monde/Dopage-genetique/3343656.html
From 10:00 on they talk about racial differences.
For those who can't get any german of french, I'll give below a synopsis of the part about races. It starts with a quick review of world records in running competitions from these last decades.
"We just have to pay a look at the annals of sports to ascertain how important are genes for the physical potential. The Olympic winners of 100 metres -men all have a common point besides their gold medal : the colour of their skin. Usain Bolt in Beijing, Justin Gatlin in Athens, Maurice Greene in 2000, Donovan Bailely in 1996... Linford Christie, Ben Johnson in Seoul (disqualified for doping), Carl Lewis in L.A, with an exception in 1980 : Allen Wells [white], who owed his victory only to the absence of serious opponents because of the boycott on the Moscow Games.
The victory of the last real white Olympic winner goes back to the Munich games 38 years ago : it was the russian Walerij Borsow.
This is even more striking for the World Records. The current holder of the record is Usain Bolt, with 9s58. Earlier, we meet the names of Asafa Powell, Carl Lewis, Calvin Smith or Jim Hines. We have to go back 50 years ago to find a white recordman (the german Armin Hary, 1960, Zürich).
We could therefore ascertain that having a black skin equals to be able to run fast. The explanation that was given for a long time was the "ghetto theory". It was thought that sports were the only possibility of social promotion for the Blacks, and that they were thus more motivated than the Whites.
But it's false. Genes makes the difference. This is scientifically proven. In the University of Maryland in Washington, studies go on towards this direction. Professor Stephen Roth is on the trail of genes who have an influence on sportive performances.
"We work with different profiles. We measure their muscular, cardiovascular performances, we take DNA samples, and we try to identify the specific genes that contribute to those performances."
Similar studies are led by other universities in other countries. Together, they establish a list of the "sportive genes". These genes that matter for strength, endurance, rapidity, consumption of oxygen and so on."
The rest goes deeper in the questions of gene doping and bioethical implications. It's certainly most interesting (didn't watch it entirely yet), but what mattered to me more was the part about races.
What's amazing is not the informations given, I believe everyone here knew at least as much, and many even much more.
What's unbelievable is that on a french public channel, they release a documentary where racial differences. This is a first.
Especially since this channel, ARTE, is the most well-thinking, politically correct channel from all. To realize, one should know that almost every week they release a documentary about the Holocaust, the third Reich or extreme right, and twice or thrice a week when elections are approaching, in order to remind Europeans their guilt and how they should be afraid of the return of nationalisms.
Every program they release seems to be cautiously thought to influence Europeans towards ethnic guilt and mixophilia.
If even them resign to stop hiding scientifical facts about racial differences (which is the golden rule in french medias, channels, papers, french politics...) I tell you, it's a big step forward in the direction of the recognition of the existence of human races at a large scale.
Because it means that even the most stubborn race-deniers, in front of the last discoveries in genetics, can't credibly pretend any longer.
Will scientifical facts begin to get the upper hand above ideology ?
Well anyway, this channel released a documentary called "Gendoping - Die Mutanten greifen an / Dopage génétique - Les mutants attaquent", about gene doping and scientifical studies about the influence of genetics on athletic performances, and also the recent experiments based on those studies to try to create specific proteins to improve the athletes' performances, and bioethical questioning about this.
There's only a german and a french-speaking version
Respectively at http://videos.arte.tv/de/videos/gendoping-3341920.html
and
http://www.arte.tv/fr/Comprendre-le-monde/Dopage-genetique/3343656.html
From 10:00 on they talk about racial differences.
For those who can't get any german of french, I'll give below a synopsis of the part about races. It starts with a quick review of world records in running competitions from these last decades.
"We just have to pay a look at the annals of sports to ascertain how important are genes for the physical potential. The Olympic winners of 100 metres -men all have a common point besides their gold medal : the colour of their skin. Usain Bolt in Beijing, Justin Gatlin in Athens, Maurice Greene in 2000, Donovan Bailely in 1996... Linford Christie, Ben Johnson in Seoul (disqualified for doping), Carl Lewis in L.A, with an exception in 1980 : Allen Wells [white], who owed his victory only to the absence of serious opponents because of the boycott on the Moscow Games.
The victory of the last real white Olympic winner goes back to the Munich games 38 years ago : it was the russian Walerij Borsow.
This is even more striking for the World Records. The current holder of the record is Usain Bolt, with 9s58. Earlier, we meet the names of Asafa Powell, Carl Lewis, Calvin Smith or Jim Hines. We have to go back 50 years ago to find a white recordman (the german Armin Hary, 1960, Zürich).
We could therefore ascertain that having a black skin equals to be able to run fast. The explanation that was given for a long time was the "ghetto theory". It was thought that sports were the only possibility of social promotion for the Blacks, and that they were thus more motivated than the Whites.
But it's false. Genes makes the difference. This is scientifically proven. In the University of Maryland in Washington, studies go on towards this direction. Professor Stephen Roth is on the trail of genes who have an influence on sportive performances.
"We work with different profiles. We measure their muscular, cardiovascular performances, we take DNA samples, and we try to identify the specific genes that contribute to those performances."
Similar studies are led by other universities in other countries. Together, they establish a list of the "sportive genes". These genes that matter for strength, endurance, rapidity, consumption of oxygen and so on."
The rest goes deeper in the questions of gene doping and bioethical implications. It's certainly most interesting (didn't watch it entirely yet), but what mattered to me more was the part about races.
What's amazing is not the informations given, I believe everyone here knew at least as much, and many even much more.
What's unbelievable is that on a french public channel, they release a documentary where racial differences. This is a first.
Especially since this channel, ARTE, is the most well-thinking, politically correct channel from all. To realize, one should know that almost every week they release a documentary about the Holocaust, the third Reich or extreme right, and twice or thrice a week when elections are approaching, in order to remind Europeans their guilt and how they should be afraid of the return of nationalisms.
Every program they release seems to be cautiously thought to influence Europeans towards ethnic guilt and mixophilia.
If even them resign to stop hiding scientifical facts about racial differences (which is the golden rule in french medias, channels, papers, french politics...) I tell you, it's a big step forward in the direction of the recognition of the existence of human races at a large scale.
Because it means that even the most stubborn race-deniers, in front of the last discoveries in genetics, can't credibly pretend any longer.
Will scientifical facts begin to get the upper hand above ideology ?