HBD Books

Richard Lynn received his PhD from the University of Cambridge and since then has worked as a lecturer of psychology at the University of Exeter and a professor of psychology at the University of Ulster and the Economic and Social Research Institute, Dublin.  He continues a productive career after five decades and more than eleven books.  Lynn is credited with discovering the five point IQ difference between East Asians and Europeans, the Flynn Effect and sex differences in intelligence.  I asked him a few questions about his books Eugenics and Dysgenics, reviewed here and here.

First of all, I think it’s important that your ideas be out there.  Why are Eugenics and Dysgenics over $100 on Amazon? 

The price is the publisher’s decision and seems barmy to me but I suppose they reckon they will sell a few hundred copies to libraries and make the most money this way

In Dysgenics you wrote that Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Fiji and Indonesia are the only countries looked at that seemed to break the dysgenic pattern and that research was needed to see why.  In the 13 years since the book was published has there been research and if so, what has it shown?

I haven’t followed this up.

In Eugenics you talk a lot about China and the Eugenic Law but surprisingly not much about the one-child policy.  I’ve heard that it was actually dysgenic because it mostly or totally applied to the high IQ Han (92% of the population) and city dwellers.  Can you tell us what you know about the policy and its implementation?

It may be eugenic because the effect has been a 20% or so surplus of males in their twenties, so females can be more choosey about mates and they will likely chose the more intelligent and successful. Conversely the less intelligent and successful will be less able to reproduce.

It’s been eight years since Eugenics was published.  Your theory about the end of history was fascinating and the most exciting instrument for human improvement looked at was embryo selection.  Have there been any notable advances in that area since your book came out?

Not yet so far as I know.

Has anything happened to change your mind about future being ruled by what I call the Chinese Superstate?

No.

Do you know if Singapore’s current leaders are as sympathetic to eugenics as Lee Kuan Yew was?

No.

The only thing I found myself disagreeing with in either of your great works was the idea that beauty shouldn’t be selected for.  You argue that we should select against dwarfism, based partly on psychological distress that dwarfs suffer from.  Can’t we say the same about people who suffer from extreme ugliness?  In the environmentalist movement it’s considered reasonable to preserve a landscape or race of foxes because it’s aesthetically pleasing; why not with humans, especially considering the phenotypic uniqueness of those of Nordic descent? 

You make an interesting point. When embryo selection comes into use, no doubt many couples will opt for beauty as well as other desirable characteristics.

"I think the main hope for the survival of the European peoples is Eastern Europe including Russia"-Richard Lynn

Here in the US the Hispanic population is going to increase by 15% over the next few decades.  That’ll surly hurt the gene pool more than a few generations of dysgenic breeding.  Europe is in a similar situation.  Do you think the whole argument against dysgenics is mute if we don’t stop immigration?

Yes this is a problem I ducked in Dysgenics and Eugenics because I did not want to antagonize readers. I hope to write new editions and cover immigration.

You try to explain continuing immigration to the West in political terms, saying that politicians don’t want to antagonize minorities.  With anti-immigration parties popping up and winning elections all over Europe that argument really doesn’t hold.  It seems a better strategy to appeal to the majority that don’t want to lose their civilization.  Purely political considerations don’t explain why anti-immigration politicians are persecuted by law either; on all other topics (save maybe homosexuality) debate is allowed.  Do you think you missed the ideological component of why the elites like immigration?

Yes, the relaxed attitude of political elites to continuing immigration is certainly partly attributable to political correctness ideology.

Has your pessimism about the West (see this lecture) subsided at all with the recent electoral success of the UKIP and BNP in Britain and other anti-immigration parties across the rest of Europe?

I remain pessimistic about the probability of curtailing immigration in North America and Western Europe. I think the main hope for the survival of the European peoples is Eastern Europe including Russia

Are you working on any new books or projects that would be of interest to readers of this site?

My next book will be on the IQ and achievements of the Jews.

Do you have an approximate release date?

Say around April, 2010.

Once again, I’d like to thank Richard Lynn for taking the time to answer my questions.