The education crisis in the black community has its twin in white America. There are different reasons for the failure to educate in both communities. But the end result has been the same -- a generation of children who leave school knowing less and with weaker skill-sets than I had when I left school many decades ago. For the black community it's social and family decay. For the white community the fault lays with parents and a teaching profession that elevated self-esteem above academic achievement.

The article tours through the African-American psyche and both the resonance and dissonance with the Cosby call outs. An interesting tour; not sure what destination I might have reached.

To me this is an interesting, well written and persuasive article -- that said as a self-described white social liberal. I judge it to be fair in quoting arguments from both sides then ultimately rejecting an either-or view of racism vs. black culture as the cause (or the cure) of today's racially related issues in the US. However, while I have some experience as an employer, I'm not qualified to judge whether the article's conclusions are accurate.

A great story about the agreement and disagreement in the African-American community about who's responsible for the status of African-American youth.

Great story.. It shows a full perspective of an important subject for both black and white youth. Although the picture was not the happiest painting, the author chose words and examples that drew a brilliant picture for the reader.