The Jordan Peterson vs. Vox Day feud rages on, and although Vox says he has nothing against Jordan Peterson and considers him neither friend nor foe, calling him an intellectually dishonest coward are not exactly terms of endearment. It’s more like a one-sided feud considering that Jordan Peterson has yet to respond to Vox directly and likely never will. Dr. Peterson has made it clear he will not engage the far/alt right. That’s his choice, and I think a strategic one on his part, because the payoff is vastly asymmetrical against Dr. Peterson. But even though Dr. Peterson is likely overestimating Jewish IQ, does that make him an intellectually dishonest coward? Vox is making mistake, imho, by attacking Dr. Peterson’s character, especially considering Dr. Peterson acts as a sort of liaison between the alt-lite/middle and alt-right, and Dr. Peterson is highly respected by the same people who like Stefan Molyneux, Milo, and even Donald Trump. If Vox wants to flaunt how high his IQ is, and I agree he’s right about how IQ is important in terms of policy such as immigration and economic achievement, why would he side with Taleb–the same guy who attacks people who defend HBD and study IQ science. Even if they agree on some stuff, if intellectual honestly is the measure of one’s integrity, then Taleb, not Dr. Peterson, comes up short.
The feud is also demonstrative of the divide between the pragmatic/realpolitik ‘right’ vs. the identity-politics ‘right’. Neocons belong to the former, but also, interestingly, some Trump supporters too. Younger people may be more drawn to rationalist and pragmatic approaches to politics, than identity-based ones. I think Vox is on the losing side, or fighting an unwinnable war. Materialism is destiny (that what the wealth-individualism-intellectualism series is about).
The hyper-individualistic Rand-style of neo-conservatism and neo-liberalism has been on an unstoppable tear for the past 40 years and has only accelerated since 2008. This is consistent with social cycle theory, in which the ‘warrior class’, which is related to nationalism and identity, is superseded by the globalists and acquisitors. Unfortunately, this also means it will likely require a major catastrophe/crisis–something even worse than 911–to turn the dial of the cycle.
But Dr. Peterson, despite at times his insufferable individualism, understands the threat of the far-left. He understands that universities have becomes centers for indoctrination, than institutions of higher learning. He’s engendering social change by arousing millions of people from the slumber of political correctness. And that is why he deserves our support . Some say he’s a liberal, but by Vox Day’s standards, almost everyone is a liberal.