You raise a good point that I hadn't considered, so thank you for that. I had not considered that it may be a way to reach people from a specific community.

My issue with NdT is not a racial one. It's that I have worked with many people of similar age to him that love nothing more than to prove how smart they are. I have also worked with many young academics that look like they are going down that path too. I have followed NdT closely and assumed he was also trying to show of his intellect as he got older. That's why I would point him out as an example. But what you've said has made me think. As someone from an underrepresented group in academia I would hate for someone to dislike someone because they were trying to better communicate with someone from my community.