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The Druid Way

Power vs Kindness: Russell Brand interviews Jordan Peterson

February 17th, 2018

I was researching humanity’s quest for meaning a few weeks back, and came across the work of a Canadian psychologist who is keen on Jung, and who has written in depth about the search for meaning and the role religion plays in this. I soon discovered that he is a controversial figure, ever since he spoke out against legislation being planned for the mandatory use of gender-neutral pronouns for trans people, like ‘ze’ and ‘zir’ for ‘she’ and ‘he’. This BBC article explains this. 

Whether or not you agree with Peterson, his thoughts on the problems of inequality and human suffering, how we should conduct ourselves and what the purpose of life is, are well worth listening to, and Russell Brand has just released a great and thought-provoking interview with him, which I’ll paste in here:

7 Responses to “Power vs Kindness: Russell Brand interviews Jordan Peterson”

  1. Just a note about Peterson.. there is no plan for a law to make people use gender neutral pronouns. This is his invention. There is a law in Canada that prevents hateful behaviour towards people who do not conform to gender norms, since there is a lot of aggressive and deceptive persecution in the USA of such people. Peterson is oblivious to his level of privilege and prejudice and aggressively promotes his “right” to demean others he chooses not to understand. As such his is a darling of fascists and Trump lover, He is an example of abuse of academic power that makes me feel dejected at his success at finding willing platforms to entertain his wordy justification of prejudice so people can say pretend they have some nobility as defenders of “free speech”. I know the people he hurt and I despise him for it.

    • «Just a note about Peterson.. there is no plan for a law to make people use gender neutral pronouns. This is his invention.»

      Sorry, but this is you own invention and your commentary is just a chain of progressive buzzwords, in fact Bill C-16 is real, and you commentary full of PC is there to prove it..

  2. Thanks for this link Philip. Great stuff. Re comment above, Peterson says he is not out to hurt anybody by refusing to use gender neutral language; what he is against is the manipulation of language by the radical left for their own political purposes which, he says, don’t represent anyone but themselves. He also mentions he has received a number of correspondences from transgender people who are saying pretty much the same thing as he is! Tara did you watch the video? I think if you had you would be a lot better disposed towards Peterson who comes across as open-minded and empathic. I would be extremely surprised to learn he is a Trump lover as he appears quite unaffiliated poltically, more interested in the psychology that produces political affiliation.

  3. Thanks Tara and Dirk – good to have your responses. Tara, I agree with Dirk that he comes across in this interview as empathic and open-minded. I’m still trying to understand everything he says, and come to some sort of discernment around that. The trouble is there’s masses of his stuff out there and it’ll take a while. It would help me enormously if you could point me to a text or video where we read or hear him being offensive or demeaning to transgender people. You kindly sent through a link on email to an article critical of him, but I think to really judge someone or understand them one needs to read/hear exactly what it is they are saying, rather than what other people say.

  4. Thank you very much Philip for posting the link to this YouTube video. I enjoyed the discussion very much indeed. Particularly important is Peterson’s point that you can only change the world one person at a time, and that action has most effect at the level of the individual. I find his arguments very clear and compelling in this chaotic world we live in, where people seem to lose their way in a morass of contradictory arguments and opinions all the time. Peterson is a beacon of intellectual light in a dark night. On a personal note, his focus on Jung caused me to remember the importance of the Inner Child, and I have begun work on my own inner child to resolve issues I carry with me since before birth. A beautiful example of synchronicity! Thank you again. I have been pondering joining OBOD since I was ordained as Druidess Ardhuinna des Monts d’Arree by a Druid friend of mine here in Brittany a couple of years ago, and would appreciate your comments on the course you offer. I have no website as yet, but I do have a Facebook page called Ardhuinna des Monts d’Arree.
    Peace to you and your extended family.
    Ardhuinna

    • Many thanks Diane – I’m glad it was helpful. When you ask for my comments on the course, I think I can’t really add anything more to the information available on th link I’ll give below. If after reading the material there, listening to the audio samples, and checking the FAQs there’s something still not clear, by all means contact me at pa@druidry.org All the best! Philip
      PS With this page, note there are further pages shown on a menu to the right: “More Information
      What Others Say Course FAQs Listen to Audio Samples”
      https://www.druidry.org/join/membership-orders-training-course

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