"The Kind of Explanation That Could Only Be Offered by Someone Oblivious to His Own Advantages"

"For Brooks, the problem with poor people is that they’re immoral. It's not because they're structurally disadvantaged, or because their local economies have collapsed, or because jobs have been shipped overseas, or because they attended chaotic schools, or because their parents worked multiple jobs for unlivable wages, or because the material demands of existence occupy the bulk of their time. Nope, it's because of poor 'social psychology.'"


Sean Illing in Slate criticizes David Brooks's writing about Baltimore.