I have some serious disagreements with Jordan Peterson, in particular with his thoughts on epistemology and ethics. However, unlike these journalists, I have respect for him. Many journalists have tried to make him a villain, but instead, have turned him into a celebrity. As a result, he now has a book that is a huge best seller and is making a fortune off his Patreon page. So, I must ask, how do they think these villainization efforts are working?

First, Peterson was absolutely right to protest the language regulations in Canada (which in our country would be unconstitutional). Instead of engaging him on this topic, they tried to portray him as a homophobe and a transphobe, neither of which are true (check out the Cathy Newman interview). The Lindsay Shepherd incident is just further proof that some people are desperate to discredit him.

However, when you put aside your outrage, and listen to people engage him intellectually, a different person emerges. You learn that he isn’t the boogey man (no, he does not hate gay or trans people). You see that he has some pretty weird beliefs about truth and morality. You learn that he has some pretty damn good advice for people dealing with depression (yeah, shoot me). And you also see he is a guy who knows how to fight back (something, I admire). Honestly, if he had been treated with respect from the beginning, he would have remained an unknown, but popular, university professor in Toronto.