I don't understand the point of the image of the meth seizure when discussing this study [1]. The last name is the same, but if you understand Mexican surnames, it is strongly unlikely that the two different people are in any way closely related. I like reading Scott's writing, but this really detracts from the overall quality of the article, because it seems like a vaguely racist dig without any relevance.
It can be poor writing, intentional obfuscation, misdirection, or a lot of other things, but to jump to racism just because the subject is from a different country than the author is pretty unfair.
I also think it's humor. Scott probably just came across it while searching the name. When you search something on twitter, it is bolded in the results just like in the image.
The caption is an example of irony I think: incongruity between what is expected and what is presented, mixed with saying the opposite of what you mean. Quite clear from context. I laughed when I saw it.
Posting like this will get you banned here, regardless of how wrong someone is or you feel they are. Please review the site guidelines and don't post like this again. It's enough to respectfully provide correct information.
I'm aware of the demographics in Bakersfield. I live in a city with a larger proportion of the population being Hispanic than Bakersfield, hence why I am aware of how Mexican culture utilizes hyphenated surnames.
Your link to demographic statistics does nothing to change my mind that this was vaguely racist (culturist?). I don't think Scott is racist, I just think this was a non sequitur that had no place within what was an otherwise fantastic piece of writing. It adds nothing and takes something away, and could have been better for doing without.
It was clearly a joke. A questionable study ended up having a result from a google/twitter search of the same name made for a humorous reference. Did you take the same racist conclusion from the photo of the guy who had the 7 month PhD? This is a blog entry, not a professional scholarly work, and so it was written to be enjoyed.
> Did you take the same racist conclusion from the photo of the guy who had the 7 month PhD?
No, because the quip there wasn't based upon the person's name (which originates from their culture) and a stereotype about their place of origin. It's amazing how context is important.
The seizure was in the US, despite being a Hispanic name. I don’t understand why you’re jumping to conclusions about place of origin. It’s easy to imagine the name could have been Smith and the same content could have been written and fit right in.
Please don’t be snarky about context — not only is it against HN guidelines, it’s not giving full faith to me or anyone else who might read this and the blog entry in its entirety.
[1]: https://www.biomedres.info/biomedical-research/effects-of-iv...