In the news

^^^

It’s one thing to deplore eugenics on ideological, political, moral
grounds. It’s quite another to conclude that it wouldn’t work in
practice. Of course it would. It works for cows, horses, pigs, dogs &
roses. Why on earth wouldn’t it work for humans? Facts ignore
ideology.

https://twitter.com/cmclymer/status/1228995403837837313

That summed it up perfectly, putting Mr Bond in the end add to the absurdity of his opinion.

Same

Lol, Dawkins is publicly soiling himself on twitter again. His handlers took his login away after he had that stroke, but he’s obvs got himself back in to stoke that sweet high blood pressure again.

Same, but beginning to get the situation under control

Am I missing something here? Isn't he just saying that selective breeding for a particular trait is theoretically possible in any species (including us), but we don't do it because it's morally deplorable?

I think there are a number of things wrong with it, the biggest being the use of "works".

It worked for the Nazi's when they tried it (which is why the tweet is getting so much flack). So without defining what he means by "works" its an entirely empty statement which is pointless at best, and potentially pretty harmful since it can embolden and legitimize people who think maybe the Nazi's had the right idea actually.

Saying it "works" for animals is also misleading - since as often as not it doesn't, almost every example of selective breeding for specific traits in animals comes with pretty negative consequences for the well-being of the animals, since it turns out that we actually don't know as much about what works as we'd like to imagine.

Semantics. He's a SpAd for the Tories. Let's just go with 'massive cunt'

almost every example of selective breeding for specific traits in animals comes with pretty negative consequences for the well-being of the animals, since it turns out that we actually don't know as much about what works as we'd like to imagine.

Very true, and that alone is a good counterargument. I think a lot of people are reading it in the worst possible way (i.e., eugenics = optimisation), whereas it could be read as eugenics = genetic drift/selective breeding. It's a bit worrying if people don't believe that human genes aren't mutable.

it can embolden and legitimize people who think maybe the Nazi's had the right idea actually.

Well, he does go on to say that he deplores it and it's bad. Denying that human genetics theoretically could change would be such a step that it could embolden those people in a "look at the libs denying obvious facts" type way.

I think there are a number of things wrong with it, the biggest being the use of "works".

This. Even at the best interpretation of his words, he's been very careless with them. And loftily scornful of anybody who doesn't get precisely what he so sloppily said.

Eugenic is wrong, full stop,

It’s a huge issues amongst disabled people, as they’re usually the first to be targeted (like during the Nazi regime).

This. Even at the best interpretation of his words, he's been very careless with them.

And exactly that, he know he doing this on purpose.

Well, he does go on to say that he deplores it and it's bad. Denying that human genetics theoretically could change would be such a step that it could embolden those people in a "look at the libs denying obvious facts" type way.

Killing babies would solve Climate Change by reducing the demand on the planets resources.

But wait, I'm not saying we should actually kill all babies. I'm just stating a fact.

No one here is denying the fact that genetics can change, they are questioning his interpretation/application of the phrase "work", and anyone who thinks this equates to"look at the libs denying facts" is willfully misinterpreting things, and is unlikely to actually change their opinion

(note I'm not saying you are thinking that - just that modifying your behavior to try and limit that interpretation will never lead anywhere because the people who hold that view fundamentally don't want to change it)

This is bonkers - in a good way

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/feb/17/womans-ring-lost-47-years-ago-in-us-is-unearthed-in-a-forest-in-finland

just that modifying your behavior to try and limit that interpretation will never lead anywhere because the people who hold that view fundamentally don't want to change it

Yeah, ultimately (in a small group of people) Nazis gonna Nazi. I guess I just find it bizarre that the gut reaction of many non-Nazis is also to read that tweet as support for Eugenics.

Longer thread that you may find more informative.

https://mobile.twitter.com/AdamRutherford/status/1229310805189054464

I think the bigger trains are two smaller ones joined together, so the system won't let you put bikes in a different carriage to the person. When I googled it said the new trains have two (small) bike spaces per train anyway, so that's my theory. Either way, booking more than two spaces on a train to Bristol is impossible via the website.

This is bonkers - in a good way

The school´s mascot name is Shipbuilders and the bloke who found the ring is a welder at a nearby shipyard.

There are conflicting accounts of how the ring was lost though. Ilta-Sanomat, a Finnish tabloid, had quoted the welder as quoting alumni as first saying via Facebook that the ring´s owner had lost it while travelling in Finland and Russia. Reportedly he was then told that the ring´s owner had left it in a public bathroom in Portland in 1974 whereas US media quoted the wife as saying she had left it there. Hmm... ;)

Good thread, thanks. I'd assumed that the original tweet was just a pedantic part of a run-of-the-mill scientific squabble. If Dawkins has been attending dodgy conferences frequented by racist wonks, that puts a different spin on it (although it's not clear whether it's him or someone else that's being referred to in that thread).

Killing babies would solve Climate Change by reducing the demand on the planets resources.

Lacks ambition. https://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2019/feb/great-dying-americas-disturbed-earths-climate

This clusterfuck is laughable...

https://reddit.com/r/ukpolitics/comments/f59ejg/_/fhxaib7/?context=1

Good line of questioning.

🤦‍♂️

This makes me sad

Jesus, fucking Christ, just horrific.

Does this PM's Deputy Official Spokesman have a name ?

Apple Store staff win payout after long legal battle.

Apple's justifications for their behaviour were rank and the judges couldn't hide their contempt in the ruling.

Every time there's a major new iPhone model out, Apple Store staff are required to applaud and cheer for first-day buyers each time one is sold. It would be nice if the kind of cunts who like their consumerism that conspicuous heard about this and reconsidered come the next upgrade (order online, wait a day, at least). But they're cunts so that won't happen.