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The Intelligence Paradox: Why the Intelligent Choice Isn't Always the Smart One
Satoshi Kanazawa
Wiley, 2012
Satoshi Kanazawa of the London School of Economics and Political Science writes a book that is sure to provoke deep reflection on the nature of intelligence, its influence on individual values and preferences and its effect on modern civilization. While intelligence is a highly valued asset in today's complex, high tech-centered society, even casual observation points out that highly intelligent people are prone to particular values and behaviors that appear to conflict with their high intelligence. Favoring out-group altruism, the values of liberal-high-IQ individuals greatly diverge from those of individuals with lower IQ, and in order to justify an all-encompassing altruism that goes beyond the kin group. Thus, "the Standard Social Science Model" as taught by liberal academics argues, that human beings are all essentially similar, and that differences in ability are primarily due to differences in education, socialization and general environmental conditions, rather than being significantly heritable. Some even argue that group differences in intelligence and other behaviors are entirely due to racism and socioeconomic status. Fortunately, Kanazawa is not an ordinary social scientist, and does not suffer fools gladly. In fact, he strongly opposes the egalitarian viewpoint, pressing the fact that reseach indicaes that intelligence differs between individuals and between breeding populations, and condemning egalitarian "political correctness" in academia.