First there was Cassie Jaye and her documentary the Red Pill.

Now Jordan B Peterson has emerged from academia to become the latest sensation, boost by the interview by Cathy Newman.

What is significant but being missed if that Cassie Jaye when she undertook her research into MRA's is that she was told that this is a career killer.

Peterson is extremely aware that it all can go very wrong in an instance.

<i>I have been walking a very thin tightrope. I only have to say one thing, in all the things that I have said since September, and I have come close!

<i>I think it’s unlikely that it will continue in a positive direction but you never know,” he says, pausing. “It’s too much, eh? It’s been too much for a long time. But so far so good and I’ll ride it out as long as I can. I’m surfing a hundred-foot wave and generally what happens if you do that is you drown.”

A fad.

Peterson fits the social media mind set of instant gratification.

(That is the 100 foot wave).

Is he a positive influence? Yes.

Why?

He focuses on questioning our world around us.

Will he remain just another media sensation?

Yes, until the next one comes along.

The putried fruit of Planned Parenthood should convince any rational unbigotted person that the outcomes of feminism and sick narratives like those pushed by the abc is plain evil.

Is it a fad, or is the tide turning?

I guess only time will tell.

Peterson is a clever man, and a conservative - what a nice change. Of course he is going to be rubbished by the Left. But, as dd said, he will run his course and someone else will come along. I did enjoy watching him make mincemeat of Newman, though.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0zZ-2sU4DpU

Jordan Peterson on the #metoo movement.

What a shame there is not a transcript of this discussion.

Dear Wolly B,

I don't mind him at all. There is something typically Canadian about him which is always nice, John Raulston Saul being another favourite of mine, and he is prepared to work hard on the words and framing he uses.

One does get the sense that some of his arguments are there to drive book sales and he will sometimes sound a little unconvincing when he tries to back those particular points up, but on the whole I think he has a positive demeanor and some relevant things to say in the debate.

I'm not sure he qualifies fully as a right winger, although that side of the divide seem to have embraced him warmly.

I feel if he maintains a relatively calm approach without getting bombastic and aggressively argumentative he will remain relevant and can hope for a decent length of time in the spotlight.

He could do worse than see how Chomsky has conducted himself over his career.

My impression is that he is not a "conservative". I don't think terms like Left and Right or Conservative really serve much purpose in regard to political leanings the current period. Perhaps way out at the edges.

The bigger issue in my view is the divide between the authoritarians and those supporting individual freedom (with the latter covering a very wide range).

There are many who consider themselves Left who are very concerned about how authoritarian the public face of the Left and Progressives has become.

Peterson appears to be well accepted by many who in the US frame consider themselves liberals (which normally would be Left leaning). Not all of the left has bought into the extremes of the SJW class however those who have not seem to be regularly called Alt-right, literally Hitler and a variety of terms designed to isolate them.

Peterson already had a profile in Canada which escalated to a much larger audience when he took a public stand against mandated requirements to address people by their preferred pronouns. Drawing a line between restrictions on what we may say and compelled speech.

I think that he has a lot of good stuff to say and is well worth watching/listening to however his notoriety is in part driven by the extreme reactions to him by the far left.

R0bert

The meme between Peterson and Newman,

Peterson; "I like eggs and bacon."

Newman; "So you are saying kill all vegans!"