There is a lot to criticize of Nassim Taleb, but your statement in unkind, as he did excellent work. I would say 1/3 of his audience, can't stand him because they don't like his style, but it's ultimately their loss. The other 1/3 don't like he is somewhat external to academic circles.
I think [1] is a balanced evaluation.
"...In short, Taleb resists categorization. If I had to pigeonhole him, I'd call him an anti-guru guru. That is, he mercilessly bashes other gurus, pundits and prophets and warns you not to fall for them. He depicts himself as a brave, lonely truth-teller in a world of fools and frauds. In so doing, he becomes a guru himself, with a cult-like following...
...even if you question what Taleb is saying—and you certainly should—he forces you to examine your own biases and assumptions. Yes, he can be irritating, but so are many of our most original thinkers..."
I think he's a manipulative asshole. He's a one trick pony who picks a random group, makes false claims about what they believe, which are obviously wrong, and then invites the reader to feel smarter than his target group by pointing out why the obviously wrong idea is wrong.
Bullshit along the lines of: Did you know statisticians believe the normal distribution curve is infallible and perfectly describe real world scenarios? This actually false. Therefore, statisticians are stupid, and you're smarter than them for understanding otherwise. And I am smarter than everyone for having pointed it out.
He doesn't force you to examine your own biases and assumptions. He tricks you into believing that you have done so and have come out wiser. He's just yet another fool and fraud in a pit of fools and fraud.
