In a blog entry at Atlantic magazine, Ta-Nehisi Coates examines the debate surrounding racist letters allegedly written by GOP presidential candidate Ron Paul. Coates says that is hard to believe that Paul didn’t write them because he defended them when he was initially asked about them. The Times notes that Ron Paul’s racism newsletters are,…

In a blog entry at Atlantic magazine, Ta-Nehisi Coates writes about his fascination with and acceptance of the Civil War. He says that more African Americans might take ownership of the war once they learn that it is the genesis of modern black America. … For realists, the true story of the Civil War illuminates…

In a blog entry at Atlantic magazine, Ta-Nehisi Coates, responds to an article by Andrew Sullivan at the Daily Beast that examines The Bell Curve. Sullivan argues that the distribution of IQ is slightly different among different racial populations. Coates says the notion that blacks are intellectually inferior to whites is a thinly veiled justification…

In a blog entry at Atlantic magazine, Ta-Nehisi Coates explores why conservative hoaxers consistently insert hard right-wing views into Bill Cosby’s mouth. The discussion comes about after an email supposedly written by Cosby attacks welfare recipients. … Cosby seems about the age of someone who’d have these views. Moreover, Cosby is fondly remembered as “America’s…

In a blog entry at the Atlantic, Ta-Nehisi Coates writes that while he is certain Chelsea Clinton is intelligent and talented, he is also certain that there are a lot of aspiring journalists dying to be offered a job by NBC News President Steve Capus. Clinton reportedly landed a job at NBC after Capus asked…

In a blog entry at the Atlantic, Ta-Nehisi Coates tries to understand student outrage over the firing of Penn State coach Joe Paterno in the wake of sex-abuse allegations against an assistant coach. They have shown an utter lack of compassion for the victims, he says. … Can anyone here try to get into the…

Ta-Nehisi Coates writes in his blog at the Atlantic about some cases of wrongdoing by the NYPD, including the recent conviction of a police officer for planting drugs on a woman and her boyfriend. The police chief encourages us to see the transgressors as a small minority, but they’re still members of a force that…

Ta-Nehisi Coates writes in his blog at the Atlantic that while he can understand why Sean Bell’s killers didn’t go to jail, he is not convinced that an officer who made such a grave mistake should continue in his chosen line of work. On the eve of his wedding Sean Bell was killed by the…

Atlantic magazine blogger Ta-Nehisi Coates weighs in on President Obama’s argument against focusing on the black community’s economic struggles. Coates agrees that a black agenda wouldn’t necessarily help the most vulnerable African Americans, but he also says it’s worth reviewing how interest groups influence policy in America. …I think it’s worth noting, in point of…