Research inquiry

[Jan Klimkowski]

A fundamental problem with deep black covert science is that the Jolly Wests and Ewen Camerons and Robert Heaths and their successors conduct very limited peer review. Indeed, more accurately, any review is conducted only by those with the relevant security clearances who often share the same core beliefs - eg in a genetic predisposition towards homicide, or in the creation of chemical imbalances in the brain tending towards extreme violence.

In short, peer review is conducted in a fool's echo chamber inside a hollowed-out volcano on a deep black R&R fest....

However, some of this research occasionally slips through the veil.

Eg Monoamine oxidase A - the so-called "WARRIOR GENE".

Violence is blamed on 'warrior gene' in the Maoris

Maori leaders reacted furiously yesterday after a scientist said their race carried a "warrior gene" that predisposed them to violence and criminal behaviour.

Dr Rod Lea, a genetic epidemiologist, told the International Conference of Human Genetics in Brisbane that Maori men were twice as likely as Europeans to bear monoamine oxidase, a gene that is also connected with risk-taking behaviour such as smoking and gambling

He was reported as saying the discovery went "a long way to explaining some of the problems" Maoris had in New Zealand.

Dr Lea's findings come at a sensitive time after a series of high-profile cases of deaths and assaults of children in Maori families.

Outraged critics accused him of reinforcing a "cultural stereotype" portrayed in the 1994 film Once Were Warriors, with its violent character Jake Heke.

Tariana Turia, a co-leader of the Maori party, said the findings were incredible. "I have never felt criminally inclined," he said. "And I'm very pleased to say that the majority of Maori people don't feel criminally inclined.

"Once were warriors? Once were gardeners, once were astronomers, once were philosophers, once were lovers.

"The over-representation of monoamine oxidase… has suddenly turned into a recipe for producing clones of Jake Heke."

Brian Dickson, a respected Maori elder, said: "I could wrap all his words up in one - colonisation."

Dr Lea, who works at the government-owned Institute of Environmental Science and Research in Wellington, said before his presentation: "It is controversial because it has implications suggesting links with criminality among Maori people. Obviously, this means they are going to be more aggressive and violent."

He said that the gene could also explain the Maoris' successful historical migration from islands in the Pacific when they first peopled New Zealand.

Dr Lea said lifestyle and upbringing were also "relevant" to whether violent traits developed. As the storm of controversy broke around him last night he appeared to back-pedal somewhat, insisting that he was interested only in the genetic basis for disease among Maoris.

Recent cases of child abuse have highlighted a problem of domestic violence in New Zealand that a government report described as "endemic" and "shameful".

A Maori family in Auckland, whose three-month-old twins died after suffering head injuries, were described by Helen Clark, the prime minister, as a "Once Were Warriors-type family". Relatives refused to co-operate with police.

In wider statistics, Maoris are convicted of more than 65 per cent of all offences despite making up only 15 per cent of the population.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/1526042/...aoris.html

'Warrior Gene' Linked To Gang Membership, Weapon Use
ScienceDaily (June 8, 2009) — Boys who carry a particular variation of the gene Monoamine oxidase A (MAOA), sometimes called the "warrior gene," are more likely not only to join gangs but also to be among the most violent members and to use weapons, according to a new study from The Florida State University that is the first to confirm an MAOA link specifically to gangs and guns.

Findings apply only to males. Girls with the same variant of the MAOA gene seem resistant to its potentially violent effects on gang membership and weapon use.

Led by noted biosocial criminologist Kevin M. Beaver at FSU's College of Criminology and Criminal Justice, the study sheds new light on the interplay of genetics and environment that produces some of society's most serious violent offenders.

"While gangs typically have been regarded as a sociological phenomenon, our investigation shows that variants of a specific MAOA gene, known as a 'low-activity 3-repeat allele,' play a significant role," said Beaver, an award-winning researcher who has co-authored more than 50 published papers on the biosocial underpinnings of criminal behavior.

"Previous research has linked low-activity MAOA variants to a wide range of antisocial, even violent, behavior, but our study confirms that these variants can predict gang membership," he said. "Moreover, we found that variants of this gene could distinguish gang members who were markedly more likely to behave violently and use weapons from members who were less likely to do either."

The MAOA gene affects levels of neurotransmitters such as dopamine and serotonin that are related to mood and behavior, and those variants that are related to violence are hereditary. Some previous studies have found the "warrior gene" to be more prevalent in cultures that are typified by warfare and aggression.

"What's interesting about the MAOA gene is its location on the X-chromosome," Beaver said. "As a result, males, who have one X-chromosome and one Y-chromosome, possess only one copy of this gene, while females, who have two X-chromosomes, carry two. Thus, if a male has an allele (variant) for the MAOA gene that is linked to violence, there isn't another copy to counteract it. Females, in contrast, have two copies, so even if they have one risk allele, they have another that could compensate for it. That's why most MAOA research has focused on males, and probably why the MAOA effect has, for the most part, only been detected in males."

The new study examined DNA data and lifestyle information drawn from more than 2,500 respondents to the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. Beaver and colleagues from Florida State, Iowa State and Saint Louis universities detailed their findings in a paper in the journal Comprehensive Psychiatry.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/200...123237.htm