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"Warrior Gene" Predicts Gang Membership
A new
report in the journal Comprehensive Psychiatry by
Florida State University biosocial criminologist Kevin Beaver finds
that males who carry a specific "low activity" allele of a gene for
monoamine oxidase a (MAOA) tend to be more violent and are more
likely to join gangs. As the press release for the study
reports:
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...
"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...
"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.
But having this version of MAOA gene does not predestine a guy to a life of ultraviolence. I as reported a while back, research in New Zealand found a big contribution comes from the environment in which MAOA low activity carriers grow up. If such males are reared in good homes with no abuse, they are no more likely to commit crimes than males who have the higher activity (low crime) version of the MAOA gene.
But here's the question: Once genetic screening becomes widely available, should such young males be subject to greater scrutiny and perhaps be offered a drug treatment that reduces their risk of becoming violent?
Cabeza de Vaca|6.9.09 @ 10:56AM|#
"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,"
What bunch of BS.
|6.9.09 @ 10:57AM|#
Do they include military and police in their definition of "gangs" in the study? I'd be interested to see how many boys in blue are genetic "warriors"...
|6.9.09 @ 11:05AM|#
...should such young males be subject to greater scrutiny and perhaps be offered a drug treatment that reduces their risk of becoming violent?
Better to give them economics and finance training, and have them
trade for hedge funds. Teach them Sweedo Ultracapitalist Pirates a
thing or three!
Abdul|6.9.09 @ 11:06AM|#
Once genetic screening becomes widely available, should such
young males be subject to greater scrutiny and perhaps be offered a
drug treatment that reduces their risk of becoming
violent?
the question presumes that medical marijuana will be decriminalized
by then.
I love Big Bro|6.9.09 @ 11:07AM|#
But here's the question: Once genetic screening becomes widely
available, should such young males be subject to greater scrutiny
and perhaps be offered a drug treatment that reduces their risk of
becoming violent?
Screening, euthanasia, preventive detention - YES!
I, Kahn O\'Clast|6.9.09 @ 11:21AM|#
The answer to the question is: abort these fetuses... or we
could fast track them into military service.
I kid.
Scott66|6.9.09 @ 11:26AM|#
"Once genetic screening becomes widely available, should such
young males be subject to greater scrutiny and perhaps be offered a
drug treatment that reduces their risk of becoming violent?"
Or how about we screen women who might pass the genetic trait and
tell them they cannot have children outside of a stable
marriage.
fyodor|6.9.09 @ 11:37AM|#
Ron,
I believe "I as" S.B. "As I".
I'd keep an eye on this creeping dyslexia!
|6.9.09 @ 11:44AM|#
Appypolly loggies to the baboochkas in this mesto, but the occasional bitva might grow some of you grazhny bratchnies a set of dorogoy yarbles.
|6.9.09 @ 11:46AM|#
Once genetic screening becomes widely available, should such
young males be subject to greater scrutiny and perhaps be offered a
drug treatment that reduces their risk of becoming
violent?
Well of course. It's literally For the children.
|6.9.09 @ 11:52AM|#
All: Forget about pre-crime treatment - what about offering guys who have committed crimes and whose genetic tests show that they have the low activity MAOA gene the option of jail or treatment?
|6.9.09 @ 11:54AM|#
Well of course, we should investigate the behavioural differences of people and their relationship to physical traits, and then deal with these "defective units" in an appropriate manner.
|6.9.09 @ 11:57AM|#
But here's the question: Once genetic screening becomes
widely available, should such young males be subject to greater
scrutiny ...
NONBFN!
...and perhaps be offered a drug treatment that reduces their
risk of becoming violent?
Assuming the testing was completely voluntary and not paid for by
government and further assuming that the drug treatment option is
left to, and paid for by, the parents themselves (or the individual
after reaching the age of majority) and even further assuming that
our all digital medical records are not available to government
officials for any reason, even after conviction of a violent act,
I'm not gonna bitch about it.
|6.9.09 @ 11:58AM|#
If only they could identify and eliminate/correct the gene that
makes people want the things they didn't work for. I'd call it the
"gimme" gene. That could be a disaster for people of one particular
major political party.
If it can be shown the violent antisocial behavior is not a matter
of choice, then it would be wrong to discriminate against those
people with prison terms. Crimnals need to get on board with the
highly successful gay strategy.
|6.9.09 @ 11:59AM|#
Do they include military and police in their definition of
"gangs" in the study? I'd be interested to see how many boys in
blue are genetic "warriors"...
It's probably a good idea to have a few Pattons or Enders
available. Just in case.
|6.9.09 @ 12:05PM|#
All: Forget about pre-crime treatment - what about offering
guys who have committed crimes and whose genetic tests show that
they have the low activity MAOA gene the option of jail or
treatment?
Still the answer is "Not only no, but fuck no".
One - It's mandatory testing with the government having access to
the results (see my previous).
Two - Genetics ≠ Destiny.
fyodor|6.9.09 @ 12:06PM|#
"If it can be shown the violent antisocial behavior is not a
matter of choice, then it would be wrong to discriminate against
those people with prison terms. Crimnals need to get on board with
the highly successful gay strategy."
Except being gay doesn't hurt anyone, unless you count their
sensitivities. Not that private discrimination based on such
shouldn't be legalized, but it's still a far cry from violent
behavior.
Ron, I'll bite. Fine with me! But isn't there any precedence for
that yet? Couldn't we already give criminals a choice of a lobotomy
or something?
fyodor|6.9.09 @ 12:13PM|#
J sub D,
"One - It's mandatory testing with the government having access to
the results (see my previous)."
Slippery slopes notwithstanding, how about just for criminals? And
just for criminals who opt for treatment if deemded treatable?
I.e., even they would have a choice. (Though per my own previous, I
do wonder if all criminals are already lobotomizable.)
"Two - Genetics ≠ Destiny."
What's your point? Are you worried about the moral implications or
do you simply not believe the treatment would be effective at
making recidivism unlikely? Naturally, I would think we'd be
looking at a pilot program before any sort of widespread
adoption.
Suzie|6.9.09 @ 12:13PM|#
Two - Genetics ≠ Destiny
But, I know for a fact that the presence of a Y chromosome
automatically makes the bearer of said chromosome a rapist.
|6.9.09 @ 12:14PM|#
Ron, I'll bite. Fine with me! But isn't there any precedence
for that yet? Couldn't we already give criminals a choice of a
lobotomy or something?
Oooh, ooh! We could offer castration to pedophiles and rapists! Cut
off peoples arms who assault others as an option! Crush the knees
of purse snatchers! The possibilities are endless.
Xeones|6.9.09 @ 12:18PM|#
Forget about pre-crime treatment - what about offering guys
who have committed crimes and whose genetic tests show that they
have the low activity MAOA gene the option of jail or
treatment?
Who determines when a person undergoing treatment is "cured?" No
thanks. How about, if you commit violence on another person and
it's not self defense, you go to jail, period?
Genetics ≠ Destiny.
Exactly.
|6.9.09 @ 12:18PM|#
If it can be shown the violent antisocial behavior is not a
matter of choice,
Its always a matter of choice. Just because choosing not to be
violent and antisocial is harder for some people doesn't mean they
aren't responsible for their choices.
|6.9.09 @ 12:20PM|#
J sub D,
Damn. I always mis-spell his name.
Here is Patton on the KFC Bowls:
"Stop right there! Can you pile all of those items into a single bowl and just kinda make them into a wet mound of starch that I can eat with a spoon like I'm a death-row prisoner on suicide watch? … Is there a way that the bowl can play This Mortal Coil's It'll End in Tears album while I'm eating it at 2:00 in the morning in my darkened apartment, just kind of staring into the distance? … If you could put my lunch in a blender and liquefy it and put it into a caulking gun and then inject it right into my femoral artery, even better. But until you invent the lunch gun, I would like a failure pile in a sadness bowl."
|6.9.09 @ 12:21PM|#
fyodor,
Look at how well we've done with the scarlet letter for "sex
offenders". I fear what pandering politicians will do with
"genetically predisposed violent criminals".
We can't ensure that dignosed schizophrenics take their meds, why
add low activity MAOA treatment to the list of failures?
fyodor|6.9.09 @ 12:22PM|#
"Oooh, ooh! We could offer castration to pedophiles and rapists!
Cut off peoples arms who assault others as an option! Crush the
knees of purse snatchers! The possibilities are endless."
Well, mate, you've expounded on my own point that this new
technology doesn't exactly make this a new concept or option. And
so maybe there's an obvious reason why the wisdom of the ages has
forsaken it that Ron and I are missing. Despite the razor sharp
analysis contained in your snark, I'm still missing it!
|6.9.09 @ 12:27PM|#
An article
on the near-forgotten Limbo by Bernard Wolfe.
War and violence is finally put to an end when the government
replaces everyone's arms and legs with cybernetic limbs incapable
of doing violence.
fyodor|6.9.09 @ 12:31PM|#
Look at how well we've done with the scarlet letter for "sex
offenders". I fear what pandering politicians will do with
"genetically predisposed violent criminals".
You mean sex offender registries? Well, again, if you fear slippery
slopes, that's another matter. But I don't see how offering this
choice to criminals would make it any more likely that the
government will force screening on the unwilling and make the
records public. Whatever the chances of the latter happening, I
don't see how the former affects that likelihood.
We can't ensure that dignosed schizophrenics take their meds,
why add low activity MAOA treatment to the list of
failures?
Well, I'm not familiar with the nature of low activity MAOA
treatment. Obviously any treatment that requires ongoing compliance
is circumspect to say the least, and I think any option like this
would only be something that's offered only once. Repeat offenders
need not apply.
|6.9.09 @ 12:36PM|#
fyodor -
I do not believe that choosing a lobotomy over imprisonment can
ever be a free choice in our justice system. It's is not difficult
at all for me to envision District Attorney Gung Ho piling up the
charges in order to convince the inner-city youth Tyrone Angry that
his only option is to accept chemical alteration of his being, his
"soul" or "self" as it were, as part of a plea bargain.
I guess I'm just a conservative at heart.
|6.9.09 @ 12:42PM|#
Well, again, if you fear slippery slopes, that's another
matter.
If you don't, you're a fool.
|6.9.09 @ 12:43PM|#
All: Before implied comparisons with Mengele multiply, let me point you to my column on Prozac Justice: Does neuroscience require a therapeutic state?
I love Big Bro|6.9.09 @ 12:46PM|#
In 1939 Margaret Sanger began "The Negro Project"and to bring
people along willingly she enlisted black preachers to support
sterilization. She outlined the deceitful plan in a letter to
Clarence Gamble of the Procter and Gamble Empire,
"We should hire three or four colored ministers, preferably with
social-service backgrounds, and with engaging personalities. The
most successful educational approach to the Negro is through a
religious appeal. We don't want the word to go out that we want to
exterminate the Negro population."
DHS THinks I\'m a Terrorist|6.9.09 @ 12:47PM|#
"It's is not difficult at all for me to envision District
Attorney Gung Ho piling up the charges in order to convince the
inner-city youth Tyrone Angry that his only option is to accept
chemical alteration of his being, his "soul" or "self" as it were,
as part of a plea bargain."
Isn't this a good description of "Ritalin". Replace District
Attorney Gung Ho with Principal Gung Ho.
|6.9.09 @ 12:49PM|#
All: Before implied comparisons with Mengele multiply, let
me point you to my column on Prozac Justice: Does neuroscience
require a therapeutic state?
Like you didn't know that this thread was just begging to be
Godwined. ;-)
|6.9.09 @ 12:54PM|#
It's is not difficult at all for me to envision District Attorney Gung Ho piling up the charges in order to convince the inner-city youth Tyrone Angry that his only option is to accept chemical alteration of his being, his "soul" or "self" as it were, as part of a plea bargain.
Isn't this a good description of "Ritalin". Replace District Attorney Gung Ho with Principal Gung Ho.
Noting the important difference that Principal Ho can't put student
Angry in prison, I see the comparison.
|6.9.09 @ 1:33PM|#
Except being gay doesn't hurt anyone, unless you count their
sensitivities. Not that private discrimination based on such
shouldn't be legalized, but it's still a far cry from violent
behavior.
I didn't mean to imply anything at all negative about teh gays -
just that they found the right way to dismiss the bigotry. If there
were a criminal behavior gene, it would seem to me that such a
thing should be considered during sentencing. You can't fault a cat
for chasing a mouse. Well, you could, but human nature ought to be
considered as well.
zoltan|6.9.09 @ 1:50PM|#
How much does poverty "predict" gang membership in comparison to this gene?
|6.9.09 @ 1:57PM|#
" I fear what pandering politicians will do with "genetically
predisposed violent criminals"."
What if we find out there is a higher incidence of this gene in one
group as opposed to another?
|6.9.09 @ 2:05PM|#
"But I don't see how offering this choice to criminals would
make it any more likely that the government will force screening on
the unwilling and make the records public. Whatever the chances of
the latter happening, I don't see how the former affects that
likelihood."
Beginning tomorrow, in Minnesota, the cops can pull you over for
not having your seatbelt buckled. I remember years ago when the law
was passed allowing the cops to ticket you for not wearing the
belt. It had to be discovered after you were pulled over for
something else. Back then, critics of the bill said, that may be
true for now but in time, we envisage a day when the state will
make it an offense on its own. "Never happen." said the bill's
proponents. "Never happen."
|6.9.09 @ 4:33PM|#
Richard Hoste | June 9, 2009, 1:19pm | #
Eugenics is so cool, like always.
The alternative is worse.
Yo, fuck your white supremacist bullshit.
|6.10.09 @ 12:07PM|#
Beginning tomorrow, in Minnesota, the cops can pull you over
for not having your seatbelt buckled.
Yeah as soon as I saw that on an electric sign over 35 on my way
home from work yesterday I took my seatbelt off. Talk about some
ridiculous crap.
|6.11.09 @ 3:33PM|#
Ergo, people taking MAO inhibitors must be joining gangs, right? What a load of horse-pucky!
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