I'm Genetically Superior! Yay!

Now, the problem with this, of course, is that genetically designed superior intellect is something that's directly ripped off from Star Trek Episode #22, Production #24 - "Space Seed." So, if that's true, I'm kind of screwed, because I'm going to be marooned on Ceti Alpha V until Chekov discovers me and I commandeer his ship, the Reliant, to get the Genesis device.

If you didn't get that reference, that's because yours is not a superior intellect. Or you're just not a big dork.

Anyway, call me old fashioned, but I still believe all people are created equal. None of us are more genetically predisposed to be smarter or dumber. I don't have my "Who's Who in History's Greatest Thinkers" handy, but I feel fairly confident in saying that Jews aren't overwhelmingly dominant in that list.

Yet, there is a certain perception that Jews are more intellectual, or possibly smarter, than society at large. It's a funny thing, because it is part of what makes Jewish people somewhat appealing to gentiles in America these days. If you don't believe me, read some of the articles about how gentiles are flooding sites like JDate.com to find Jewish people to hook up with and marry. Yet, at the same time, the flip side of that perception of us being so smart is what led to six million of us being slaughtered in the Holocaust.

So, I wouldn't be surprised if many people put some credence in Murray's theorizing, because there's this perception that Jews are smarter, and always has been.

Here's the secret of it, though. We question everything. We're brought up to question everything. We disagree with people just because a silent dinner table is like death to us. We're not smarter, but our culture and religion definitely encourages rigorous exercise of the mind. To many, especially those brought up in dogmatic religious institutions and authoritarian homes, that might look like smarts.

As some proof that this isn't something genetic, however, take a look at the sect of Catholicism that's often considered the base of the religion's greatest thinkers, the Jesuits. Jesuit training (which I'm obviously no expert on, by the way) is based in a strong grounding in philosophy and intellectual pursuits. As such, questions and debates are encouraged. I know one Jesuit priest who had some vigorous debates as a student, and then went on to encourage his students to debate and question. That's not at all like the stories I hear from my non-Jesuit friends who attended Catholic high schools, where a question was met with a slap on the wrist from a yardstick with a nun attached at the end of it. So, the questioning part of the religion is "smarter" than the rest.

So, there you have it. If you want to have smart kids, you don't need to sex up a Jew like Murray might make you think (though this Jew certainly wouldn't complain if you wanted to). All you need to do is encourage your kids to ask questions, to debate, and even sometimes mock. Anyone can do it - Jew, Gentile, Black, White, yadda yadda yadda.

And if I'm wrong, I'll see you at the science lab on Regula One (Cripes, I'm such a dork).