Hi All,
  I meant to comment at the end of that post that I am heading out of town for a week and will have limited-to-no-email access for the next 8 days. After that, I will be back in FULL work mode 😊.

Best,
Gregg

From: Henriques, Gregg - henriqgx
Sent: Friday, July 27, 2018 7:45 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: RE: Draft of Jordan Peterson Blog Series

Thanks to everyone for their comments about the JP blog series. Very helpful, and encouraging.

Steve, thanks in particular for sharing your experience with “person first” language. I had a powerfully negative experience with that frame also. I gave a job talk at JMU on my research on treating “suicide attempters” and the search chair raised a question/made a comment in the discussion, essentially trying to shame me for not using person first language, suggesting I was disrespecting the folks. It was so absurd, as I had poured my heart into that work and respect was one of the fundamental principles that guided my work.

Thankfully, I was offered a job at JMU and turned that position down (before they made a decision). But I always remembered and felt that the frame he used was shallow and righteous and exemplified virtue signalling. And, although I seriously doubt he ever saw it, I did sort of get my revenge in print. Here is a footnote in the Toward a Useful Mass Movement<https://www.gregghenriques.com/uploads/2/4/3/6/24368778/toward_a_useful_mass_movement.pdf> concluding article I did:

2 Some individuals have objected when I have used the term “suicide attempters,” and have instead reminded
me that the politically correct phraseology is “people who have made suicide attempts.” This is, of course, a
well-meaning argument, and it certainly is true that the “personhood” of these individuals was not defined
solely by their attempt. A clinician of any depth never forgets she treats real people. But the participants were
defined by their attempt in relationship to the research we were conducting. Although concerns about terminology
certainly have their place, in this instance I found a dark sense of irony in “Ivory Tower” academics
quibbling over trivial issues of terminology that were so dramatically removed from the magnitude of the
problems these individuals faced. This is my justification for continuing to use the term.

Also, I will say here that the whole article (Toward a Useful Mass Movement) does lay out a way to conceptually think about moving the ToK System forward as a ‘movement,’ framing it as a “scientific humanistic philosophy”. Simplistically, we can consider science the fact part, humanism the value part and philosophy the broad meta-physical language game. Since that time, I have built up the Garden as a more detailed and individualized way to cultivate “wise” human persons. So folks may want to check it out if they have not already done so.

Best,
Gregg




From: tree of knowledge system discussion <[log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>> On Behalf Of Mathew Jamie Dunbaugh
Sent: Friday, July 27, 2018 5:09 AM
To: [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Re: Draft of Jordan Peterson Blog Series

Thanks, I hadn't recognized the problem as a cultural identity crisis
In my understanding, we're reverting to the identities that give people self-esteem while other forces keep us from being violent.

I'd say that the current state of the left is actually progress, not to say that it's good. It's that we've started to confront hard truths and we're trying to figure out how to deal with them. We've "discovered" systemic racism, and we're trying to figure out how to deal with that.

I'm inclined to think (and hope) that whoever runs against Trump in 2020 will be more centered, or Trump will get re-elected.
Because
1) I don't think the left's identity politics can unify around anything.
2) Trump is probably the best the far right can ever get.

The ratcheting of justification will continue towards a more large-scale integration of society. And the global conversation about what's just and true will distill what actually works.

We're going to have to become tolerant of facts ...and more nuanced in order to keep from reinforcing unjust cultural fictions. And all this while we change the truths we can change.

Eventually, we're going to have to have a celebrated global identity, and I think that can only happen when we can find self-esteem from being a part of the world...which means that eventually, the technium will have to include everyone in its care.

Also, I think Jordan Peterson is the beginning of a new "religion", or value-system of transcendence being formed. Part of my inspiration for the Moral Apex was in response to Peterson's philosophy. Peterson argues that embodying and telling the truth is what allows people to rise in dominance hierarchies, or embody the logos or whatever. I wish this were actually true today. It doesn't seem so to me.

It's twisted that Peterson uses Jesus as the example of someone who achieves transcendence when he was actually killed. If a person aims to be completely truthful and act in the interests of universal well-being, it seems to me that they'd get eaten alive.

But I think we are moving towards the truth winning out. A big part of that is discovering (and admitting) what's true. I think many forces are converging to make this so. Threats from within will increase if we don't include everyone. The only means of consensus that works is the actual truth.


On Wed, Jul 25, 2018 at 9:42 AM, Henriques, Gregg - henriqgx <[log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>> wrote:
Hi List,
  I have completed an initial draft of a five part blog series on Jordan Peterson. It does not have all the links and references, but I am done working on it for the time being and thought I would share. I am going out of town next week, and will be likely posting it the week I get back, right now shooting for August 10.

If folks are interested, and read it and have reactions, recommendations, concerns or comments, I would, of course, welcome that.

Warm regards,
Gregg

___________________________________________
Gregg Henriques, Ph.D.
Professor
Department of Graduate Psychology
216 Johnston Hall
MSC 7401
James Madison University
Harrisonburg, VA 22807
(540) 568-7857 (phone)
(540) 568-4747 (fax)

Be that which enhances dignity and well-being with integrity.
Check out my Theory of Knowledge blog at Psychology Today at:
https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/theory-knowledge<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.psychologytoday.com_blog_theory-2Dknowledge&d=DwMFaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=HPo1IXYDhKClogP-UOpybo6Cfxxz-jIYBgjO2gOz4-A&m=YrtIxDgnOHWjAvjl8KtDdqGyIR0YEoIEHJ--TNsz15I&s=XjIrqdJAJjIsG_UyKLw2NelE9OEnd2fTpKYqQ-_9quE&e=>


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