To wonder what Black athletes have....

[CrispyCod]

......that make them so superior in performance. It has to be genetic. I am in awe of them as they appear to glide effortlessly around the track. The Jamaican athletes are just wow! Their speed is just amazing.

exactly creighton

(a) why pick on black people especially?
(b) the fucking steroetypng on here is making my teeth itch
(c) and the casual stereotyping passed off as.... "How dare you call me racist, I am SCIENTIFIC"

its patronising as fuck, and better kept in someones head IMO

here we go....hysterical, chip on shoulder, too sensitive, looking for reasons to be offended... what a surprise! are there any more cliches you want to add to this tiresome list of cliches?

Since I thought your reply was just to me, yes, I thought it hysterical because you were talking about things i hadn't mentioned. I never said that you were looking to be offended or any of the other things you said.

I think why people find this sort of line offensive is similar to the women are better than men arguments.

For example. Some of the biggest fish caught have been caught by women. The reason is because these women are better anglers than men. The theories were about fish being attracted to pheromones because it wasn't ok to think women could just be better there had to be a scientific reason.

The same with black athletes, it seems to me people can't accept that they might be better because they train harder, more committed etc there has to be a scientific reason why black people are better than white people.

I think it is racist, but as its not Skinhead BNP racism people don't see it.

exactly changz!!!!! nail on head

Changelingsz As I said before, I really don't have an opinion on the subject either way (Who's better than who) I'm just curious to know where people got their points of view from.

The Political Correcness in me thought at first "Is this not racist?" and then I thought, "Well maybe the OP knows as little as me and I can't go around calling those talking about the slave trade liars when, since I don't know anything about it, I've no business to do that. So I just asked for reading to clue up on it all.

I have rudementaryy knowledge of what happened during the slave trade from Higher History at school. That's it.

The stuff about fishing is interesting too. I never knew people thought that. But I suppose if I were to ask why people thought that it would lead to people jumping over it too....

I can totally accept that black people are simply superior athletes than white people, I just think it's natural to ask if there are particular reasons for it. I was also interested in why women are better anglers than men and I have no problem with accepting that there is no reason, now that the subject has been investigated and it is found that that's the case.

I think 'you like your ignorance' is unfair. Here are a group of people who are interested in a subject and asking questions and therefore it is a chance for people to be educated, for opinions to be changed. Why is that so terrible?

From what I read, genetic engineering is big business. From designer babies to hereditary conditions cures.

Scientists will pick apart every type of human to isolate genes for the supposed good of mankind. Natural curiosity to want to know what makes someone so special.

That isn't racism.

Again creighton wildly assumptive that everyone is white and British. Plenty of races, creeds, colours including what were subjugated ex colonials frequent these boards.

I still want to know why it's OK for Michael Johnson to front up a documentary on black physical superiority but it's not ok for anyone else to talk about it. Someone give me a rational answer to that please.

I just think it's natural to ask if there are particular reasons for it.

Waterlego, I agree with this completely. As I said before, it's VERY hard to find people to talk to about this so most remain ignorant through fear of name calling and will stay uneducated in the subject. All that trying to stifle the discussion does is KEEP people ignorant.

blacks should be grateful that anyone condescends to speak about them like they are lab rats. why don't you get some of your friendly (non racist) scientists to cut a few open to find out what is in the subject races, oh wait, that has already been done.

^^This- can people really not see why this type of discussion can be offensive to black people? This type of discussion and the way it is concentrating on "what makes blacks different" is giving the impression that being white is the default for being human.

choochoo Why does asking why black people are different give the impression that white is default? Do ou think if I asked what makes a man different to a woman that I was asking because I think that being female is the default? No. Because that sounds ridiculous actually. I think it's just as silly to apply that to white people asking questions about black people or any other race of people.

Incidentally, I'm mixed race. Since what race we all are seems to have cropped up in this discussion as something of import. Like you have to be a certain colour to have the right to aska certain question.

The question was about black people because it related to the sprinting events.

If most of the sprinters were Chinese or Hispanic, I imagine the same questions would have been asked. Out of interest, not racism. The reason most people haven't asked similar questions about events dominated by white-skinned people is presumably because most people realise that white people have historically been privileged and so therefore it is (depressingly) par for the course that white people are over-represented in most fields.

As for stealing...I for one am ashamed and outraged by colonialism, even though I had no part in it.

Seriously depressing thread. The level of stupidity is stunning.

Perfectly reasonable question, some very interesting replies.

As always the MN professionally offended brigade will jump up and down, which is frustrating as it makes discussion of these areas harder than it should be.

One of the girls in the school I teach at is an amazing runner-both distance and sprinting. Her mum is black and her dad is white; I have no idea of their genetic heritage. We were in a lesson and one of her classmates said 'Oh, X is good at running because she's black.' Before I could even open my mouth the girl had rolled her eyes and replied, 'Nope, I'm good at running because I practise, you're not because you don't.' I didn't know whether to be sad for her that she's obviously already had to deal with a load of stereotypes (and she's only 13) or proud of her for firing back a sensible retort so quickly!

whatmeworry

My thoughts exactly.

Do you understand what we are saying?

That colour of skin has nothing to do with sporting success apart from the fact that it is an 'acceptable' way for those human beings who have inherited darker coloured skin to achieve.

None of you have remarked on whether white people are genetically predisposed to swimming/ cycling/ show jumping/ diving, why is that?

aboutlastnight I actually have remarked on that. see the last page. i said that if someone wanted to discuss people's thoughts on white people then I would be just as interested in finding out about that too. The OP only asked one question. Was she supposed to qualify that by asking a whole bunch of unrelated questions just to stop people hanging on the fact that she and otheres weren't discussiong those things too?

It's like me saying that someone who donates to one charoty must not care about an other and, if I'm honest, just seems like an attempt to stop the discussion all together because folks don't like that people are interested in this stuff.

I did ask about white people and cycling actually, a few pages back. No-one answered.

*charity (Is there a spell check on this site? I only joined yesterday)

We discussed swimming pages and pages back.

I didn't see the Michael Johnson documentary but I've read the articles on it.

Isn't there a possibility with this theory again of not being able to appreciate why black athletes are successful and having to find a scientific reason?

The only reason they're successful is because we made them so, did them a favour really sort of thing.

I would have said the success of the Black sprinters was due to lack of opportunity, poverty and encouragement to take up particular sports.

Sport was the way out.

Yes, that makes sense Changlingz re poverty, lack of opportunity, encouragement toward certain sports. Basketball teams (particularly the US ones) also have predominantly black players.

My question is WHY Michael Johnson can front up a documentary on supposed black physical superiority BUT no one else can talk about it?

Does Michael Johnson have exclusivity on taboo subjects? if so, why?

WFIW I've seen many obscure documentaries over the years including why Jews and native Americans have virtually no tolerance to alcohol (same gene variation, bringing into play theories on human migration and land mass); why Innuits eat exorbitant amounts of fatty meat yet heart disease is almost unheard of; and so on.

Changlingz - I think your post at 8.40 is spot on.

Waterlego I refer you to my earlier post on all the greatest male Javelin throwers are white males of European origin why is no one questioning that? Is it because white males of European origin are expected to do well or is because they are genetically superior?