16 The EconomistNovember 14th 2020
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The sporting life
The problem of ensuring fair
competition in women’s sport
goes wider and deeper than the
question of whether trans
women should compete as
females (“Scrum down”, Octo-
ber 17th). There really are big
differences between men and
women in genes and gene
activity, size and strength,
although there is a lot of varia-
tion and some overlap in any
trait you can measure. These
differences are largely, but not
entirely, the result of androgen
action during development,
and are not obviated by anti-
androgen treatment.
It is clear that athletes who
were born and developed as
males have the advantage of
higher stature, more lean
muscle and a bigger heart and
lungs. But so, too, do female
athletes with naturally high
testosterone levels. It seems
nonsensical to apply arbitrary
limits to testosterone levels in
sport, unless you were to ban
athletes with unusually long
legs, big hearts or lungs as well.
Elite athletes are usually on the
very edge of distributions of all
sorts of qualities that enhance
performance.
jenny graves
MelbourneFew aspiring trans athletes will
be tempted to compete as
women, given the massive
disadvantages they face. In the
United States, trans women are
twice as likely to live below the
poverty line. Trans women of
colour face higher risks of
murder and other violence.
That’s a poor swap for a leg up
in the 100-metre sprint.
peter johnston
San FranciscoA bizarre fixation on sport
dominates the conversation on
trans rights. The only real
advantage possessed by a trans
woman would be that of testos-
terone if she has not begun
hormone treatment. The Inter-
national Olympic Committee
suggests changing results
based on testosterone levels.
Given that these levels can vary
among cis women, should this
be imposed on them also? Oronmenwithdifferenttestos-
teronelevels?
Thesupposedriskthat
womenfacefromtransrights
isasmucha mirageaswasthe
fearofhomosexualindoctrina-
tioninthe1980s,whichledto
oppressivelegislation,suchas
Britain’sSection28.
thomasrobertson
OxfordDiplomaticdispatches
Thankyouforintroducinga
newblackhumoursectionin
youreditionofOctober24th.It
isregrettable,though,thatyou
hadtosacrificeovertwo
columnsofyourLetterspageto
a responsefromtheChinese
embassytoyourarticlesonthe
Uyghurstodoso.
iancartwright
IsleofLewis,OuterHebridesFilteroutthenoise
Schumpetermisseda trick
withregardtoannoying
advertisementsandnews
feedsonFacebook(October
24th).Notonlyareadblockers
available,manyotheranti-
spywareandtracker-blocking
appscaneasilybeinstalled.In
particular,anappknownasfb
PurityintegrateswithFace-
bookandenablesmetoblock
outnotjustannoyingnews-
feedsandadverts,butalso
irritatingspamthanksto
keyword-basedtextfiltering.
nicholascoote
Devizes,WiltshireArmy training
Bartleby’s column on what the
armed forces can teach busi-
ness scratched the surface of
much deeper opportunities
(October 24th). In the 1980s the
strategy for the defence of
western Europe was changed
from positional defence to
fighting a mobile defensive
battle. This meant a high
degree of uncertainty with the
need for increased agility, a
latter-day buzzword in busi-
ness. As a battlefield com-
mander I pushed the decisions
I would normally take down to
the lowest possible level. Some
things that would take 30
minutes to accomplish couldbedoneinanastonishing 30
seconds.Thekeyisforleader-
shiptomovebeyondbeinga
role,positionorcompetence
(whicharetypicallystatic)toa
vibrantdynamic.Thisachieves
agileself-organisationthatcan
navigateuncertaintybetter,
fasterandwithlessstress.
Variouscompaniesaround
theworldhavesinceusedthis
approachtogoodeffect.In
China,a teamatDowChemical
achieveda 25%increasein
projectproductivity.InAmeri-
catwoseniorleadersofNokia
achievedsixtimesina few
weekswhathadtakena previ-
ousteammanymonths.
Sadly,manyseethearmed
forcesinlightofthemovies,
strictly“commandandcon-
trol”.Thetruthisfarfromthat.
major(ret’d)prince
nicholasobolensky
Founder
ComplexAdaptiveLeadership
BathArmenia responds
Your article on the fighting in
Nagorno-Karabakh provided a
distorted picture of the conflict
(“The wheel turns, this time”,
October 31st). The reality is that
Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh)
has always been populated
overwhelmingly by Armenians
and it has never been a part of
independent Azerbaijan. In
1991 Nagorno-Karabakh voted
for its independence based on
the same legal framework as
Azerbaijan.
Armenia has been consis-
tent in its intentions for peace,
by pushing for a compromise
acceptable to the people of all
parties: Artsakh, Armenia and
Azerbaijan. This message has
never been reciprocated, thus
making it clear that Azerbai-
jan’s intention is neither nego-
tiations nor peace, but war.
In the month of this latest
conflict Azerbaijan, compre-
hensively backed by Turkey
and with the use of interna-
tional terrorist fighters, has
consistently shelled Artsakh’s
towns and villages. Civilian
infrastructure, hospitals,
schools and even kinder-
gartens have been bombed and
war crimes committed by the
Azerbaijani armed forces.The only alternative is a
peaceful resolution, in which
the security of Armenians of
Artsakh finds its expression
and their legitimate right for
self-determination will be
delivered.
aram araratyan
Press officer
Embassy of Armenia
LondonHow might you feel?
Technology Quarterly reported
on virtual realities (October
3rd), noting that in virtual
worlds “users will often co-opt
the avatars as almost real ex-
tensions of their own bodies”.
One interesting experiment
would be to use avatars to
implement the veil of igno-
rance as set out by John Rawls
in his “A Theory of Justice”. Let
the subjects of the experiments
make decisions about fairness
and equity while inhabiting
avatars with characteristics
other than their own.
How might evangelical
Christians feel about abortion
if their avatars were rape vic-
tims? How might supporters of
Black Lives Matter feel about
police intervening in riots if
their avatars were Korean
grocery-store owners? How
might rich people feel about
tax reform if their avatars were
poorer citizens?
christopher bruce
Calgary, CanadaReaching the bottom of a case
I was intrigued to read in The
world this week (October 24th)
that Brazilian police had raided
a senator’s home and discov-
ered about $5,000 wedged
between his buttocks. He has
denied diverting funds that
were meant for the pandemic.
If he is innocent then this is a
most unfortunate case of a
bum rap.
david roessler
Hazel Park, Michigan