I really appreciated this article, “Of Jordan Peterson and Cultural Action Heroes.”
I recently discovered Jordan Peterson and set out to give him a proper stalking and find out what he was all about. What I discovered left me vaguely unsettled, quite a few red flags flying about that I was unable to pin down. Right on schedule, along comes Cameron McAllister’s article saying all the things hovering around chaotically in my mind.
I really enjoy cultural action heroes, our radicals and rebels who challenge the status quo, BUT, I have very refined tastes, meaning you need to be a rebel with a clue, a purpose, a mission, and it must have integrity. No rebels just for the sake of rebelling. No Occupy Everything just because We Can.
Our modern cultural exchange goes something like this, dehumanize the enemy, and then make a video of yourself slaying the dragon, so we can all vicariously enjoy the battle without ever having to get our own hands dirty. You’ll sell a lot of books that way, too. Bonus.
Conflict sells, perhaps even better than sex sells. Manufactured conflict. Man the battle stations, we have an imaginary threat here, everybody grab their game controller, chose your sides, and let’s kill us some avatars, some labels, slay the designated enemy du jour. It’s exciting, it plays off our desire for dominance, conquest. For winning.
But is it truth? What are we actually “winning?”
Extra credit points if you can slay women, especially loud and obnoxious reporters or activists. The visual of manly verbal conquest adds a sexual element to what is already quite an enticing game. Why are we slaying relatively unknown female reporters? Because the king of the hill gets all the women, which is the whole point of conquest and battle in the first place. Watch her surrender to me…
Now we’ve got sex and conflict going on, which is very, very marketable. I’ve even got my own credit card at the ready…..
There comes a time when we need to put away such childish things and work together cooperatively. We should be less interested in winning any arguments, and more interested in being kind. Rather than whacking people over the head with what we believe is “right,” we should be listening more, and in the very process of listening, we can inadvertently help others discover what is “right” for their own selves.
That time was…..many days ago. Maybe even a few moons have now passed….
But of course, such behavior does not sell books, products, seminars, politics, nor does it make you a marketable brand. Jordan Peterson is building his brand and while blessed be the meek may be a bit of biblical truth, in the people world, we have little use for the meek, falsely perceiving them to be ineffective, weak, and certainly incredibly boring.
Here, buy this book, it will teach you how to submit more graciously towards one another, how to bless those who curse you, how to live in community with a cooperative spirit, showing kindness and mercy towards one another…….…Uh yeah, not going to be a bestseller. Even I am groaning. How totally……unexciting.
Who exactly tried to brand those crazy ideas, anyway? Bet the Guy got no likes on facebook and His Amazon reviews were probably terrible. Yeah, uh, the “Christian brand” is really not a best seller, not like mindlessly shooting at a lap top with a shotgun would be.
So what does all this ideological conflict produce? Book sales. You tube hits. Political favor. It does absolutely nothing to embiggen the conversation, it does not create, cooperate, innovate, and build something amazing in the world. It does not Get Things Done. All it does is to create imaginary divisions, build disunity, cast aside the outliers, invigorate the opposition, and eventually produce more radicals and rebels……for you to fight against.
We can become addicted to our own brain chemistry. Our own biology is powerful stuff and before you know it, we have gone all tribalistic, defending our territory, playing capture the flag as if ideas and ideologies are a tangible thing that can be claimed and owned, having far more worth and value than people themselves.
I get it. It is really tough to set aside your own instincts and to “refuse to buy into this pugilistic script,” as the article states. In all relationships however, we have to ask ourselves what is more important to me here, being kind or being right?
Don’t let the world subliminally sell you brands, marketing, and a way of being in the world that you did not sign up for. Pull back the curtain and see the wizard for what he is, this small elderly man playing a game. Toss out the script and refuse to be played.
The real cultural action heroes are a silent majority, mostly invisible to the mainstream, hundreds of thousands of people just walking out their faith in a million tiny ways. When the bible says, “Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth,” in many ways we need to realize that we have inherited it. It is ours already. We are the salt of the earth, walking out our inheritance, being about the Father’s business, in a myriad of ways. As one we are nothing, but as many serving the King of Kings, we have inherited the world.
That is what it means to truly be a Cultural Action Hero.
See, there's this thing called biology... 
Brilliant ❤️
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Thanks for this. I’m going to give some serious thought about how to approach “the others” in dialogue.
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Hm. Do the meek really inherit the earth? I like the idea. Yet, if I look at my own country, I see the meek being turned into blind, witless people
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IB, I’m absolutely convinced that you have a split personality.
Let me introduce you to your other half. The half that doesn’t assert she has “very refined taste”.
“I tend to really, really dislike elitism. High society. Snobbery. The self-righteous, the high and mighty. Elitists. The badger comment above was a bit of satire and I was still thinking, hubby, run and go fetch the potato gun, we got some city folks here speaking bad about badgers…..”
Peterson has not dehumanized anyone. He is the metaphorical potato gun against the smugly arrogant ivory tower lunacy PC crowd.
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Ha! I actually live in paradoxes, not a split personality. To have refined tastes is not about elitism and snobbery. It’s about exercising some discernment and not simply shooting at everything that moves.
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I have no idea how you could interpret Peterson as an undiscerning person who “shoots at everything that moves”.
For that matter, he isn’t even “shooting” at all.
He is responding directly to questions and seems to be quite precise and elegant in the way he goes about it.
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blown away. I can’t wait to read more of your posts
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Brilliant paragraph: “We can become addicted to our own brain chemistry. Our own biology is powerful stuff and before you know it, we have gone all tribalistic, defending our territory, playing capture the flag as if ideas and ideologies are a tangible thing that can be claimed and owned, having far more worth and value than people themselves.” We are addicted to our own brain chemistry! Well said IB, well said!
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IB you’ve hit upon a very relevant topic for our times, which is the politics of demonization whereas a person is deemed evil (or insane) based on the political party/positions they ascribe to. People from across the spectrum are guilty of this, but the Left has pushed this toxic narrative about those they disagree for so long and through so many channels (MSM, movies, academia, etc…), that I think it’s far past time for a comeuppance.
I’d rather see this done via a Jordan Peterson or Ben Shapiro who I find to be reasonable and intelligent, than say a scribe from WND or Breitbart. I do agree though there has to be a point to it all and that kindness and respect for others needs to be put first.
Much to think upon with your post and the one you linked to, thank you!
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Well said, IB. Actually, brilliant!
“The real cultural action heroes are a silent majority, mostly invisible to the mainstream, hundreds of thousands of people just walking out their faith in a million tiny ways.”
Amen. Bandwagons often become angry mobs, slinking down to the lowest common denominator of primal fear and loathing. Rarely ever known for good communication and mutual understanding.
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I’m cautious with Jordan Peterson. I see his popularity largely as a phenomenon that’s a backlash against the extreme of the Left
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Freakin’ Schweet 🤙
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SIlly me. I watched the Peterson / Newman video (neither of whom I had known before) thinking that I was watching an interview. The video had been recommended to me and I had some vague idea that he had a book for sale. I assumed the interview would be about him trying to sell his book and the interviewer would try to help him sell it as well. So I interpreted all of her questions as her trying to ask questions her audience might ask if they were not familiar with the subjects he addresses in the book. I came away impressed by both. I thought she did an excellent job of drawing out of him more detail about his points that her audience might want to know. Because she continually sought clarification from Peterson, I came away better informed than I otherwise wouldhave.
So I was quite surprised and confused when everyone started yayying about “he won”, “he kicked her butt”. “But it wasn’t a debate”, I countered. “It was an interview”. So how can there be a winner and a loser in an interview?
Nope. Can’t do that. Gotta pretend that it was a debate and that he kicked her butt.
Yeah, right.
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Seems I need to be sent away to reeducation camp because I didn’t interpret the video in the “right” way. Which I think is sort of what IB is speaking out against.
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Yes. I am arguing against the very notion of re-education camp, against the idea that we are allowing hyperbole to dominate the cultural narrative. Then we cast out those who don’t conform? Right,left, makes no difference to me, its the very notion of re-education camp and of mandated political correctness that is all wrongheaded.
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Excuse me, but this post tickles my funny bone. Never heard of Jordan Peterson, but I agree that conflict for its own sake is pointless. I just find the hit job on the man sort of ironic. I am not certain I know how to avoid this irony and complain about “cultural action heroes”, but we do sometimes risk becoming what we condemn.
If we are going to fight over something, the the object of our contention should be significant. There are some such items. So we fight. I prefer debate over violence, but sometimes violence is not optional. So I am sympathetic to your verbal assault, but also amused.
Matthew 5:1-12 does not seem to advocate violence, but Jesus did not exclude that option. The Bible describes Moses meek (see https://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/meekness/). What that means is that he humbled himself before God. Yet Moses led the Hebrews in conflict. I suppose that make Moses an authentic cultural action hero, just one who made certain God picked his adversaries.
So I like your ending.
When we exert whatever power we have, we must make certain we put it under His control. For although Jesus did bless the peacemakers, it is amazing how often peacemaking stirs up conflict.
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“I just find the hit job on the man sort of ironic. I am not certain I know how to avoid this irony and complain about “cultural action heroes”, but we do sometimes risk becoming what we condemn.”
Here’s something I find interesting Tom, kind of an irony within an irony. Who is attacking Jordan? Where’s the hit piece? The guy is simply selling books. I’m not certain he’s doing anything wrong at all, but why try to cloak it all in virtue? Why invent a crown for him, name him a cultural action hero, and insist he’s out slaying the “smugly arrogant ivory tower lunacy PC crowd,” and “melting special snow flakes?”
The truth here is kind of unavoidable.The guy is simply playing off our desire to live vicariously through his dragon slaying, but has he actually killed any dragons? Any special snowflakes suddenly deciding to submit to his superior wisdom? I think not.
You keep mentioning “violence,” too. That’s what worries me. We’re now dehumanizing the enemy and the next step is always rationalizing violence towards them. But I didn’t hear any violence in his words, nor any violence in my post. The alleged “verbal violence” is the narrative people are selling,the hyperbole that declares this guy just “killed” a reporter. The problem being you can’t “kill” ideas, ideologies, and attempting to murder the souls of those who hold such ideas simply makes us vicarious murderers. The futility of it all really is a bit comical.
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“Who is attacking Jordan? Where’s the hit piece? The guy is simply selling books. I’m not certain he’s doing anything wrong at all, but why try to cloak it all in virtue? Why invent a crown for him, name him a cultural action hero, and insist he’s out slaying the “smugly arrogant ivory tower lunacy PC crowd,” and “melting special snow flakes?”
Since you’ve used my statement here, I’d like to clarify I don’t consider Peterson to be a “cultural action hero”.
The author of the article in the link was the one who named him that (and you seem to agree).
I consider him to be more like Christopher Hitchens or William F Buckley (my first television love. I was about eight. I’m sure only about 0.05 percent of eight year olds preferred watching Firing Line to cartoons, but that was me. I do still miss that man).
In the age of the internet I suppose more people are empowered to throw their opinions into intelligent discussion. If they like what the person is saying, they’ll throw in their “attaboys” and links. That’s what…I suppose, the writer is referring to. But you, and he, are doing the same. That’s the irony here.
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Link to two “cultural warriors” being “cultural warriorly”:
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@insanitybytes22
Were you trying to say good things about Jordan Peterson? Must we pursue that vein of thought? You know better, and you know quite well what I meant by hit job. Which of us wants to be used as an example of what not to do? Are people are going to buy Peterson’s books because they provide an example of what not to do?
Is Peterson doing something wrong? I have no idea. I suppose I did not make it clear, but I am amused by our dilemma. I am not laughing at you. I don’t have an answer. Laughter is just another way of crying. It is what we do when in our heart we have given our tears to God.
Imagine the problem the ancient Jews faced. The Pharisees put on a good show of righteousness, but as Jesus observed what many of the Pharisees did was mostly for show. Yet we all need heroes and heroines to provide us an example. Whose example should we follow? How do we choose wisely?
The Apostle Paul began as a Pharisee. He persecuted Christians. Eventually Paul recognized his sinfulness and thanked God for His mercy in forgiving him. Eventually, Paul held himself up as a model for those he had discipled. At one point Paul would have been the worst of examples. Latter, Paul would have been among the best. Yet at each point in his life Saul and latter Paul had his critics.
Whenever we point to someone we think is wrong, we set out out to slay a dragon, a knight in shining armor, or, depending upon our wisdom, a windmill. Which are you trying to slay, a dragon, a knight, or a windmlll? I don’t know.
Consider what it means to slay a dragon. The devil, a dragon, is a creature of immense power. Here I think you meant the term “dragon” to be derisive, but dragons are real (and so are windmills).
What did Cameron McAllister do in his article? Did he hold up such as Jordan Peterson as self-serving Pharisees, dragons of a sort? Did McAllister allude to violence? Consider McAllister’s point when he brought up names like Ben Shapiro or Milo Yiannopoulos. When we discuss moral issues, the topic can easily encompass the possibility of violence and blistering attacks upon our opponent’s and our own reputation. Once we bring up the subject government (Ben Shapiro or Milo Yiannopoulos are political pundits), we are now talking about the use of force to get our way, or we are seeking to deny the opposition the use of force. That is, we are talking about violence. Government exists to be violent. People usually acquiesce “peacefully” only because they dread facing the alternative.
Generally, what the government requires of us is good. Still, many martyrs loss their lives because those in power required evil from them. These knew the power of the dragon and meekly (meaning they feared God more than man) lost their lives assailing it so that others might live.
Do I have a marvelous suggestion? Not really. We like personalizing our discussions, using certain people as examples. However, because that puts us in the position of judging the behavior of others, it is risky. When possible, it is probably better to focus on the behavior we don’t like and to use our own foolishness as the bad example. Rodney Dangerfield made a good living doing that, and it is a good bet we all have plenty of material (dirty laundry) to work with. Few of us, however, want to air it in public.
😆
Anyway, as you say real cultural action heroes are a silent majority. Just keep in mind that meekness is not about being a pushover. It is about who we choose as our God. Do we humble ourselves before our Creator or the dragons of this world?
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“Which of us wants to be used as an example of what not to do? ”
Well, the example of what not to do is actually “us.” Don’t buy the script. That is kind of the point of this post. We are the ones who should not be doing this. So Jordan is not being held up as a bad example, we are. True, nobody likes to hear that, but it is what it is.
I’m not trying to pick on Jordan, I’m calling “us” out. who should be shaping our world view? Jesus Christ, not an author, not a Canadian psychologist who has stated a few times that he doesn’t even believe in God.
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insanitybytes22
There is truth and grace. Just as Jesus was full of both, we are called to be perfect and full of both. We never quite succeed.
We live in an era when religion and politics are packaged as entertainment. Nothing particularly new about that. It is what it is. Ideally, when someone speaks we should hear the absolute truth lavished with grace. Never happens.
So what should we do? Well, I can’t tell you the number of times we have shot the messenger for bringing us the truth. When we don’t like the truth, it does not matter how gracefully the messenger presents it, it gets our back up. On the other hand, we love lies when they are charmingly presented.
It is what it is. So as you suggest, we need to turn to the Father and be about His business. However we can learn the truth, let us learn it, and let us pray for God’s grace to make good use of what He helps us to learn.
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I think you’d like Mencius. He certainly expounds a lot of the virtues you mention here.
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