Jordan Peterson: Gender Pronouns and Free Speech War

[luc]

What that brings up then are thoughts around our living mechanically, or living with conscious intention/attention, also Castaneda’s descriptions of ‘impeccability’ comes to mind here too. The same act can have meaning for us or no meaning depending on what we bring to it, what the aim is.

Thinking about meaning some more, maybe there also is a very pragmatic aspect to it with which Peterson might agree: basically, keeping evolution in mind, it's about finding out "what works" in life. How do I provide for myself? What works and what doesn't? How do I survive - and how do I evolve? (Assuming that in order to survive, I *need* to evolve, that's how evolution works, no?)

Now, there seem to be two ways. You can feed yourself directly, "go for the gold" so to speak. You will find out quickly what works on this path: lying, manipulating others, scheming, screwing others over etc. There is no doubt that this works, and you can become good at it if you practice this and see what is efficient. It's the STS toolbox if you will, the STS path.

Then, there is the other way: to provide for yourself indirectly, as in "serving self through serving others". This path requires a leap of faith and the quest for truth. You don't "go for the gold", you go for truth and the best way you can think of "goodness" as you understand it, or "the highest possible aim you can conceptualize". You get rid of all thoughts of directly getting what you want, but instead try your best to live according to higher principles and trust the universe to provide in its own ways. You "walk with god".

So, these are the two pragmatic ways that "work", the two basic toolboxes, one of which you have to choose and learn how to refine. "Meaning" in this sense is evolution. Those who don't get it and don't refine their "toolboxes" will die off - a failed experiment, a dead end of the tree of life.

Now the Cs said that there is a limit to evolution on the STS path, if you can call it that. You will either switch to the STO "toolbox" or you will eventually implode. If you can see the wrongness and danger of the STS mode of being, there is only one meaning of life left: walk with the universe and learn the dance.

FWIW

 

[Oxajil]

[...] the municipality of Amsterdam has started to use gender neutral language.

- Dear ladies and gentlemen will not be used in the beginning of a speech/talk. They'll use "Dear people of Amsterdam" instead.
- They're thinking about changing the opening of their letters (probably remove Mrs/Mr).
- A spokesperson said it's not a regulation: "We're not going to forbid anything, but we do want that officials will be thoughtful of their language use. Gender neutral alternatives can be found in the rainbow language guide. You can think about that when you give a speech or write a letter."

Today an article was published saying that 'the principal passenger railway operator in the Netherlands' (NS or Dutch Railways), will stop saying "Ladies and gentlemen" and will say "Dear travellers" instead in their announcements. I think that it won't be long until similar changes will be made on schools, universities, hospitals, etc. :/

 

[Palinurus]

Information in English about this here:

http://nltimes.nl/2017/07/26/amsterdam-municipality-goes-gender-neutral-speeches-letters
http://www.dutchnews.nl/news/archives/2017/07/beste-amsterdammer-local-council-goes-gender-neutral/

http://nltimes.nl/2017/07/28/ns-also-drops-ladies-gentlemen-announcements
http://www.dutchnews.nl/news/archives/2017/07/dear-traveller-your-train-will-now-be-departing-from/

Also interesting in this context is a campaign recently launched by an idealistic advertisement agency named SIRE to allow boys "to be boys" and to give them more room for typical boyish behavior:

http://nltimes.nl/2017/07/25/dutch-foundation-launches-campaign-let-boys-boys
http://www.dutchnews.nl/news/archives/2017/07/let-boys-be-boys-campaign-sparks-heated-debate/

 

[mabar]

[...] the municipality of Amsterdam has started to use gender neutral language.

- Dear ladies and gentlemen will not be used in the beginning of a speech/talk. They'll use "Dear people of Amsterdam" instead.
- They're thinking about changing the opening of their letters (probably remove Mrs/Mr).
- A spokesperson said it's not a regulation: "We're not going to forbid anything, but we do want that officials will be thoughtful of their language use. Gender neutral alternatives can be found in the rainbow language guide. You can think about that when you give a speech or write a letter."

Today an article was published saying that 'the principal passenger railway operator in the Netherlands' (NS or Dutch Railways), will stop saying "Ladies and gentlemen" and will say "Dear travellers" instead in their announcements. I think that it won't be long until similar changes will be made on schools, universities, hospitals, etc. :/

It seems, this gender theory is still in diapers in my social environment? because, I had not noticed around people talking about, perhaps it is a ta-bu theme? people avoid to talk about it ...but I noticed last week that in at least 3 different TV nationwide stations used the transsexual theme in Mexican TV programs, and it got my attention, as if, since it has not had made major impact, it needs a little impulse? Mexico City was the first city where same-sex marriage became legal and other states or cities had follwed but not nationwide, as well as other related liberal reforms _https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_Mexico ... since it is evolving quite quickly, I would not be surprised if the dream of finding a neutral pronoun would follow, there was an attempt already directed to Real Academia Española(Royal Spanish Academy) the Spanish language authority _https://www.change.org/p/real-academia-espa%C3%B1ola-crear-un-pronombre-adecuado-para-el-g%C3%A9nero-neutro-en-espa%C3...

 

[Oxajil]

Thanks for the links, Palinurus.

It seems, this gender theory is still in diapers in my social environment? because, I had not noticed around people talking about, perhaps it is a ta-bu theme? people avoid to talk about it ...but I noticed last week that in at least 3 different TV nationwide stations used the transsexual theme in Mexican TV programs, and it got my attention, as if, since it has not had made major impact, it needs a little impulse? Mexico City was the first city where same-sex marriage became legal and other states or cities had follwed but not nationwide, as well as other related liberal reforms _https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_Mexico ... since it is evolving quite quickly, I would not be surprised if the dream of finding a neutral pronoun would follow, there was an attempt already directed to Real Academia Española(Royal Spanish Academy) the Spanish language authority _https://www.change.org/p/real-academia-espa%C3%B1ola-crear-un-pronombre-adecuado-para-el-g%C3%A9nero-neutro-en-espa%C3...

Yeah, perhaps it's still in diapers. I suspect this kind of thing will start popping up in other countries (mostly western I think). But it probably won't go without resistance at some point. I've been reading some responses from Dutch citizens for example on this gender neutral language thing. Here are some of those comments (most liked ones on social media):

So, if I'm understanding correctly, soon it will be: Dear traveller, dear renter, dear driver, dear stay at home mom etc., I just want to be addressed by my first name or Sir..... norms and values continue to slide off in this 'banana country'.

Someone asked: "People, then how should I announce the gender of my baby??" Later she writes: "Dear family and friends, the gender is known now.... it's going to be a... baby!!" (She was mocking the idea)

There are only men or women, you can change yourself into the other if you want, but then you're still one or the other!! Total nonsense!!

"Genderneutral language" nice, my gender is that of a helicopter, I want to be addressed as "apache", else I will be offended, and I also want a special toilet and special treatment.

So if as a transgender you're offended because someone says "ladies and gentlemen"... Sorry but that makes no sense. Probably something that comes from the US.

I think it's odd that this is a "trend", as the majority of people appear to be against it... Because it's just BS first class...

There was one person who got a lot of likes, he wrote a long post, basically saying why we're making changes for about 1% of the population, and how people get so easily offended these days. A snippet:

Look at the US on what this is doing in their society. Deal with it if you are different in some aspects in your life compared to most people, and don't worry about your rights or whether you (feel) respected or not. Forcing others to respect you in this way will not work, people will only find it troublesome. People stare at me every day, because I walk a little strange with my right foot, what do I care whether I'm being respected by everyone?

It will be interesting to see what will happen next, or if more changes will be made.

 

[Siberia]

Jordan Peterson‏ has tweeted the following:

Google has disabled my main account. No explanation given. Cannot access my YouTube channel.

 

[mkrnhr]

Jordan Peterson‏ has tweeted the following:

Google has disabled my main account. No explanation given. Cannot access my YouTube channel.

Yes, he commented the following:

Google is refusing to reinstate my account. Violation of terms of service. No explanation given.

 

[Alana]

He posted on FB that he regained access to his accounts:

My gmail/YT account is back. Why was it shut down? Who knows Why did they refuse to reinstate it? Who knows? Why did they turn it back on?

and posted an article that explains how it all went down:

Google And YouTube Ban Prof Who Refused To Use Gender-Neutral Pronouns

A professor in Canada who refuses to use gender-neutral pronouns and criticizes social justice issues was banned from using his Google and YouTube accounts Tuesday.

Professor Jordan B. Peterson of the University of Toronto disputed Google and YouTube’s decision to lock him out of his accounts, according to correspondence obtained by The Daily Caller News Foundation.

“Please tell me what principle I have violated,” said Peterson in his email to Google upon discovering that he was locked out of his account. “I have not violated any terms that I am aware of and have not misused my account.”

The psychology professor has over 350,000 subscribers on his YouTube channel, which he uses as a platform to post his lectures, interviews, and Q&As.

“We understand you’ve recently been unable to access your Google account, and we appreciate you contacting us,” said Google in a response. “After review, your account is not eligible to be reinstated due to a violation of our Terms of Service.”

But Google did not provide any details regarding which rule the professor violated.

When emailed at his Google address, Google returns an “Address not found” error message.

“I’ve had that account for the last, say, 15 years,” said Peterson to TheDCNF. “All of my correspondence is in that account. It’s hundreds of thousands of emails from people all over the world.”

The professor said he initially thought it was just a mistake.

“But the fact that they reviewed it and then decided that my account is not eligible to be reinstated indicates to me either that this is quite a curious mistake or that there’s something that’s political going on that is associated with censorship.”

Peterson reiterated that he had not violated the terms of service, stating that he had only recently posted a video detailing his plans for the future. The professor said that he could not [this unfinished sentence appears like this in the original]

“This is just another example of these big companies that either [kowtow] to pressure…or deciding on their own accord who gets to communicate and who doesn’t,” he told TheDCNF. (RELATED: Canadians Could Face Hate Crimes Over Using The Wrong Gender Pronouns)

Peterson’s YouTube videos criticizing social justice regularly obtain tens or hundreds of thousands of views. The professor came under scrutiny in 2016 after criticizing a bill which could potentially criminalize using the wrong gender pronoun to identify someone. That bill is now law.

UPDATE: Peterson reported that he regained access to his Google and YouTube accounts shortly after the publication of this piece.

 

[Joe]

He'd be well advised to back up his email and every video somewhere safe.

 

[Turgon]

He'd be well advised to back up his email and every video somewhere safe.

I posted what you said on his tweet with the addition of putting it on an external hard drive.

 

[PhoenixToEmber]

Jordan Peterson‏ has tweeted the following:

Google has disabled my main account. No explanation given. Cannot access my YouTube channel.

Yes, he commented the following:

Google is refusing to reinstate my account. Violation of terms of service. No explanation given.

Really fishy.... It almost seems like someone that doesn't like him who works for the company probably wanted to mess with him.

 

[Voyageur]

Jordan Peterson‏ has tweeted the following:

Google has disabled my main account. No explanation given. Cannot access my YouTube channel.

Yes, he commented the following:

Google is refusing to reinstate my account. Violation of terms of service. No explanation given.

Really fishy.... It almost seems like someone that doesn't like him who works for the company probably wanted to mess with him.

Noticed this followed his announcement on July 31st, 2017:

Announcements and Upcoming Plans

https://youtu.be/ojYmFNbUhek

I hope that these plans are welcome to my viewers, readers and listeners, and to all of you who, in general, have decided to sort themselves out:

1. Launch of new YouTube channel: Jordan B Peterson Clips: http://bit.ly/2uRM689 This will feature 5-15 minute videos, original and edited from previous lectures, released at the rate of 2-3 per week.

2. Design and pending release of

2.1. a consumer information website aimed at helping students discriminate between courses pushing the post-modern/neo-Marxist cult of indoctrination and those offering a classic education, furthering their ability to communicate and introducing them to the great works of science, technology and civilization.

2.2. The Online Big Five Aspect Scale, which will enable its users to obtain a psychometrically-valid portrait of their personality along the well-established dimensions and aspects of Extraversion (Enthusiasm and Assertiveness), Neuroticism (Withdrawal and Volatility), Agreeableness (Compassion and Politeness), Conscientiousness (Industriousness and Orderliness and, finally, Openness to Experience (Aesthetic Openness and Intellect/Interest in Ideas). In the next stage, we will produce a version of this that will allow pairs of people (parent/child, husband/wife, employer/employee, brother/sister or, simply, friendship pairs) to generate individual reports AND a joint report indicating where conflicts in the relationship are likely to take place and what might be done to bridge the conceptual and perceptual gap. Future plans include adding an IQ test, as well as integrating suggestions for career success (based on the analysis of personality and general cognitive ability). If you go to www.understandmyself.com, you can enter your email address, so that we can notify you when the test launches, and provide you with a 20% discount.

2.3. The high school version of the SelfAuthoring Suite (www.selfauthoring.com), a set of writing programs that allows its users to write about and understand their past experiences, current faults and virtues, and future plans. The adult version is four separate programs, one of which – the Future Authoring Program – helps its users create a positive vision and negative counter-vision of the future 3-5 years down the road. The high school version will integrate elements of all four adult programs, and ask its users to attend to their personal development 3-6 months in the future; and, finally,

3. Completion of my new book, 12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos, published by Penguin/Random House Canada (estimated release date January 9, 2018). Pre-release orders can already be made at Amazon.

Amazon.com: http://amzn.to/2vgMJKI
Amazon.ca: http://amzn.to/2vgLEme
Amazon.co.uk: http://amzn.to/2wfvfvy

 

[NormaRegula]

I'm so looking forward to all of Peterson's projects.

 

[PerfectCircle]

He'd be well advised to back up his email and every video somewhere safe.

I posted what you said on his tweet with the addition of putting it on an external hard drive.

Seems like this is a must for everyone having YT channel, you never know when could Big Brother erase you from existence.

 

[Alejo]

I'm so looking forward to all of Peterson's projects.

Same here..:)