I am at a loss about how to give proper credit to my sister, Katharine S. O'Keefe. It is an exaggeration to say that the sentence structure is mine, and the ideas are hers. But 95 percent of the original thought in this book is hers, not mine; it would be easier to footnote the new ideas that are mine than to note hers.
I am indebted to the insights offered by the members of the Maryland Eugenics Seminar.
I am also indebted to many people who offered insights, criticism, support and encouragement as I wrote, including Katherine Adams, Jack Ames, William and Jane Applegate, Elsie Bergamini, Rachel Bohlin, Matthew Bowman and Will Goodman, Laura Carroll, James and Ann Creegan, Mary Daly, John DeLozier, Diane Duhig, Cathy Fagerstrom, Olga Fairfax, Thomas Furtado, Jeanne and David Gaetano, Nancy Gerdes, David and Nancy Graham, Don Greger, C. Lawrence Hamm, Lucy Hancock, Ph.D., Harry and Nancy Hand, Diane Hess, Doug and Kris Johncox, Connie Kneisly, Lianne Laurence, John Leonard, Barry and Diane Levy, John Marcus, Christopher and Patricia McKenna, Arthur McKnew, Rebecca Messall, Jane Meyerhofer, Nash and Catherine Monsour, Jack and Pat O'Brien, John and Martha O'Keefe, Cathy and Gerry Roth, Dian Schlosser, Charles Suraci, Mary Kay Truckenmiller, James Vittitow, Sherrie Wade, Joseph P. Wall, John Walton, Juli Loesch Wiley and John Wysong. I am especially grateful to Suzanne Abdalla for her research and suggestions, but also for her faith that the work would make a difference.
My wife made heroic sacrifices cheerfully for months as I wrote.
Finally, I am keenly aware that my friend James Miller worked his heart out on the issues addressed in this book. The book is dedicated, with respect and affection, to his memory.
