18h ago

What would happen if the eugenesists had their way?

I personally believe there is no way for them to succeed. If they were acting in good faith the actual incease in the number of intelligent people, who would recognize cruelty when they see it, would tear it down. If they acted in bad faith, which they most definitely would, they would fill the world with these idiots.

39 comments

Intelligence doesn't make you more ethical. If they "won," the future intelligent people they created would still be raised by parents who believed in eugenics, and so they too would likely regard it as good.
- So the ideas that their parents instilled are stupid and the "intelligent" person is stupid. So you didnt achieve a more intelligent society.
  
  No, you're missing the point: don't conflate intelligence and morality. Eugenics isn't a bad idea because it's unwise (although, it is); it's a bad idea because it's unfair and takes people's fundamental human rights away.

Which eugenicists?
There a big difference between "kill everyone of a certain race" and "you don't get to reproduce if you have a horrifying heritable disease".
- Both are unjustifiable. Governments should never get to decide who's allowed to reproduce.
  
  Eugenics isn't just done by government. The world has been limiting the reproduction of the disabled through social pressure for ages. Look at the stigma interracial relationships used to have. Examples are everywhere.
  Why does everyone think eugenics only means the way the Nazis did it?
  It's a broad term people. The government is the most heavy handed way to implement it but social pressure is arguably more effective and harder to end.
- Im not playing that game. They can try to rebrand but to me they are the same.
  
  Well, once involves mass murder and the other doesn't, so I think the people being impacted by that would see a difference.
  But if your worldview needs overgeneralizations to survive, you do you I guess.

Intelligent people don't always come to the same conclusions.
If the entire society has been based on eugenics from the beginning, that IS their moral compass. Much like how most of us hold Democracy with such high regard. Our last election now has me wondering if letting 100 million ignorant people choose a rapist felon for our leader is actually the BEST way, but giving every person a voice and a vote is our political morality.
I suspect a eugenics based society would recognize the "inconveniences" that some people face, but their idea of "greater good for society" will outweigh a lot of that.
Definitely not supporting the idea of eugenics, but I do think that people who were raised on it, would see it in a more positive light than we do now.
- Youre not supporting the idea of eugenics because you know it to be lunacy. If they were acting in good faith, the more intelligent society would recognize the lunacy as well. If not they would remain dumb.
  
  Science is consistent. If mankind started over from scratch, they would eventually come to the same scientific conclusions as us.
  Society and morality is VERY abstract and every society has their own unique spin on it. We have no idea what societal structures would exist after a hypothetical human reset.
  Democracy revolves around "every body has value", and in that light, elimination of "inferior" people is horrific.
  But eugenics is more of a "sacrifice some for the greater good" kind of belief, and they would believe that their actions are morally superior to the "selfishness of having unauthorized offspring".

Probably some pretty fucked up shit like forced sterilization and genocides

There would be a lot less creativity and innovation if Eugenisists had their way. Think about it. If everyone was the same, where would new and innovative ideas https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/diversity-and-inclusion/diversity-matters-even-more-the-case-for-holistic-impact)? Even worse how many ideas would die with their people? Who are the people we are getting rid of?
Racially motivated eugenisists have been around for ever and kill civilization not help it (genocides). Gender related eugenics happen and it's usually women that pay (https://www.investopedia.com/terms/o/one-child-policy.asp). How do messure disability and the impact on ones life? IQ tests messure the ability to regurgitate facts not actual intelligence (https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6927908/).
I'm sure I'm missing some, but this os more than enough to show if Eugenisists have any say we all will suffer.
- IQ measures the likelihood of someone being successful based on an age category. It has little to do with actual critical thinking. In a society that only values IQ it becomes meaningless because its only feeding off itself.

Honestly? Nothing except a lot of pointless suffering. Eugenics isn't just immoral; it literally does not work. The nazis did their damnedest to kill all people with schizophrenia during the Holocaust. Schizophrenia numbers were back up to normal within a couple decades.
See this video (linked to the correct timestamp) for more on why eugenics doesn't actually do anything.