Puncturing a gasbag …

… The University Bookman: The Heritage of Ta-Nehisi Coates. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)

In his book, Coates cavalierly attributes “white flight” to “self-generated fears that compelled the people who think they are white to flee the cities and into the Dream.” The fears that sent the Pearlmans running from their home on Kerwin Street were not self-generated, nor did they come from the scare tactics of real-estate blockbusters. They came from experiences like being trussed up for hours while intruders with hunting knives ransacked their home for nonexistent valuables, and from hearing their kindhearted black neighbour say, “You’re older, Jewish, and vulnerable. It’s over for you here.”