Baker Doesn't Back Down From Comments

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS ^ | July 8, 2003

[presidio9]

Cubs manager Dusty Baker didn't back down Monday when asked about his recent comments that black and Latin players were better suited to play in the heat than white players.

``I meant what I said. ... I try to be as honest as possible, and if that's how I feel, then that's how I feel.'' he told reporters before Monday's game, a 6-3 win by the Cubs over Florida.

On Saturday, in another pregame talk with reporters, Baker said: ``We were brought over here for the heat. Isn't that history? Your skin color is more conducive to heat than it is to the lighter-skinned people. I don't see brothers running around burnt.''

Those comments have since prompted debate on radio shows and in newspaper columns across the country.

``It doesn't really matter to me because that's what I said. I'm not going to take it back,'' Baker said. ``What I said to you guys is what I said to my team. I told my other teammates this a long time ago, too. When we talk about how hot it is, I told them that's why my ancestors were brought over here, for that reason, and that's history.

``My mother was a black-American history teacher in Sacramento,'' he said. ``... A lot of people don't know history, that's what it sounds like to me. If they take it as reverse racism ... then they can take it wherever they want to take it.''

[presidio9]

In a related story: White men can't jump.

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[TomServo]

Already posted here.

[The Hon. Galahad Threepwood]

I dunno, lighter colors reflect heat better than darker colors; that's why people wear lighter colors on hot days. Darker skin might be better-protected from sunburn (and long-term, from skin cancer), but I don't see why it would be better against the effects of heat.

[dwilli]

I would imagine after generations of enduring the heat
of Africa, the body would adapt to heat more than the body
of a Scandinavian who just arrived there.

[Steve_Seattle]

I don't know if there's any scientific basis for Baker's comments, but if a white manager said this he would be fired, no doubt about it. Jesse Jackson would be en route.

[Tallguy]

``We were brought over here for the heat. Isn't that history? Your skin color is more conducive to heat than it is to the lighter-skinned people. I don't see brothers running around burnt.''

Part of it.

My understanding is that the early colonists needed labor in large quantities -- especially the kind that came from populations with a previous exposure to smallpox. Africans, by virtue of close-proximity to Europeans, were more resistant to the disease, whereas the American native populations were not.

[bandleader]

Hey,out there,whether you agree with Dusty Baker or not,The First Amendment also guarantees individual(and collective)rights to say stupid things!Besides,The "R"word can't be applied to minorities!!Only "The Powerful"(us whiteys)can be tarred and feathered with"The R Word".Just ask The Reveeeeeeeeeeeeerend Jaaaaaaaaaaaaaaackson!!!

[mhking]

And he damn well shouldn't.

How long before the "soul patrol" starts to get upset with him for being an "uncle tom?"

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[johnb838]

He should be fired. The standard ought to be "would whitey be fired if he said it?" and if the answer is "yes", then Baker's got to go.

[Russ]

It isn't right for a white to be fired for his speaking his mind nor is it right for Baker to be fired either. That's his opinion, right or wrong, but it sure isn't a firing offense.

[BADROTOFINGER]

Science reflects a 180 of what Baker said. See the currently repeating SportsCenter for details...JFK

[sheik yerbouty]

Then there was Ted Danson some years before he married..."White men can't see.."

[onedoug]

Nah. A stint in that reeducation camp they threw John Rocker into will "correct" his thinking.

[zook]

Bravo to this guy. I might even become a Cubs fan because of this (and since the Tigers are so lame). Had it been a white guy saying this and had he been attacked we'd all jump to his defense. We should do the same now.

As for whether he's right or not, that's nearly beside the point. But I do know, having spent the last year in a tropical climate, that people living in hot regions adapt to the heat. I'd be sweating like crazy while my friends would say how comfortable it was.

[KellyAdmirer]

He just sounds ignorant. Some fools should just learn to keep their mouths shut rather than spouting off their bizarre biases. A little knowledge is a dangerous thing - and he has precious little accurate knowledge on the subject regardless of what his mama taught in high school.

[joesnuffy]

Jimmy the Greek knew it a long time ago

[Sicon]

It isn't so much a question or matter of skin color, it has to do with the environment in which the various races evolved. I think its fair to say that someone who is a descendant of people who have lived for thousands of years within a stone's throw of the equator might, MIGHT, be better equipped to handle high temperatures than say, someone who is descended from people who have lived for thousands of years on or near the arctic circle. Most "white" people (which can include a lot of different groups) are descended from people who have lived for a very long time in more northerly and higher altitude areas, where temperatures tend to be considerably lower on average than they do near the equator. Over time, people living in places where it is very hot will develop a greater ability to radiate excess body heat, whereas those living in places where its fairly cold will develop a greater ability to retain and conserve body heat. Consequently, the "cooling" systems of one group is very likely much more efficient than those of another group.

I hope this doesn't make me another "Jimmy the Greek" or anything!

[em2vn]

"Bravo to this guy. I might even become a Cubs fan because of this (and since the Tigers are so lame). Had it been a white guy saying this and had he been attacked we'd all jump to his defense. We should do the same now."
No we would not be defending a white person saying this. We certainly should not be defending Baker's uneducated utterings. His mother may have taught history. He simply failed to learn history.

[qwertyz]

Body type is more relevant than skin color. For example, artic bears/wolves have greater muscle mass than related species further south. The ratio of muscle mass to exposed skin area (as well as overall physical condition) is the key to withstanding heat or cold.