- Re: Zizek presses Peterson. " where are the Marxists"?? A thought or two,,,, Archived Message
Posted by John Monro
on April 24, 2019, 7:06 am, in reply to "Zizek presses Peterson. " where are the Marxists"??"
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I think, for no expert reason, as I've never read him, or seen more than a fragment of his talks, but I just know Peterson's a fraud. When a man with intellect tells us that he's a man of intellect, which is basically what he says when he self promotes the way he does, the obvious glory he gets in his notoriety and popularity, and his moniker as the popular philosopher, then he's a quack. Betrand Russell, a true intellectual and ethical giant, was a quiet but assertive man, and who famously noted this: The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, but wiser people so full of doubts. The problem with Peterson is that there appears to be no self doubt, this is what disturbs me, and makes me sure he's a poseur - he gets angry when challenged and there's a preachiness and dogmatism about his line of talking which is not that of a true intellect, but what you see in the mind of the rigid. . The only time I did listen to him was when he was answering a question about our attitude to global warming. He became visibly angry and emotional, and seriously downplayed global warming and the science, and told in the audience in a hectoring manner that he preferred to believe Bjorn Lomborg, a proven scientific fraud. So on the one thing I actually know something about, he was demonstrably factually and logically wrong, and in the circumstance we now find ourself, dangerously so. . There's a simple description of Peterson's social theories, and that is he's a supporter of theory and the practice of social Darwinism. When people use the competitive nature of the animal kingdom to support their social theories, it's difficult to come to any other conclusion. Heirachies may indeed mimic nature, and heirachies may not always arise from one person disadvantaging another person, but they inevitably end up doing so. Heirachies are also very grateful for any intellectual support they receive that suggests that heirachies are useful or moral, however much the evidence is to the contrary. God used be useful this way, now it's Peterson's turn. |