The Southern US (The Deep South)
You said you recently traveled to Nashville, Tennessee, and I wish to know what your views are on the South, particularly the Deep South, in general. We have a strange history of many ironies, great struggles, and tough progress. Our bad deeds, the lessons learned, and our progress is best exemplified in C. Vann Woodward's book The Burden of Southern History. I've many questions I want to ask you, but I guess first among those... There are many stereotypes of us Southerners out there, I being from Alabama, most notable is prolly the movie Forrest Gump. The "Left" often looks at us racist dimwits, however, I've heard from some on the "Right" that we are looked at as almost alt-right fascists. So, tell me Professor Peterson what are your views on us in the Southern identity?
What should you do when you’ve been too generous and are growing resentful?
I was wondering how to go about finding a middle ground with my significant other surrounding finances. It’s my first time living away from home and paying my expenses, but my parents have had to help me financially at times because my boyfriend just won’t do his part (although I made my share of mistakes when first starting out too). I’ve been paying more than my share for nearly three years now and he’s not been pulling his weight. I’ve developed myself in career and in education since we’ve been together and he’s stagnating. He always says he’s going to pay me what he owes me at the end of the month but he’s always been short by a large margin if I received any money at all. I feel conflicted asking this here. I don’t want to badmouth my significant other; I just feel exasperated. Any tips on what I should do next? Why is it that I’m unable to face having to be alone? Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Elon vs Peterson
You and Elon are my heroes. Elon and the companies he works at seem to be the solution to co2, the future of the world as in integrating humans with A.G.I. to try to make it less likely from destroying the world, getting humans to be self sustaining on mars to minimize risk of total social collapse or other disasters. you seem to overlook these things idk
Significance of Night in the Bible
Why did God/the angel wrestle with Jacob at night & then asked to be let go before sunrise? (Gen 32:26 “Let me go, for dawn is breaking.”) Why did Jesus pray most of the time at night? (Luke 6:12, Mark 2:35, Matt 26:36-44) Why are most laws in the bible relate to evening sacrifice? (Going into the night) (Lev ch.15, Lev 14:46, Lev 11:25-40) Gen 1:2: "Now the earth was formless and empty, and darkness was over the face of the deep..." I guess what I'm trying to ask is what I the significance of 'night/darkness' and the devine?
Free will and We Who Wrestle with God
I’m beyond excited about your upcoming book, especially given its apparent topic. I’ve seen a video where you briefly discussed the existence and nature of free will, and I would’ve liked to have heard five or six more hours of discussion on that topic. Do you expect that We Who Wrestle with God will touch on the existence and nature of free will? It’s apparent to me that our environments and experiences play an important role in our decision-making processes. If free will exists (I tend to think it does), then at what point - if ever - do our experiences diminish our ability to choose? At what point should we no longer be responsible for our decisions? Thanks!
Addictions and Youth, A possible component for your online University?
Hello Doc, I just wanted to take a moment to thank you very much for the new Mondays of meaning. I look forward to them very much. I understand this is somewhat of a public post, but I feel this to be a crucial issue crippling our youth, so I am posting here anyway. I was hoping to discuss with you an addictions component to add your online content. I am 21+ years sober and have gained much knowledge and wisdom through the mentoring I so freely received while in early recovery in the Alcoholics Anonymous program. I owe my very life to those people and how they showed me to reconnect with my concept of my higher power, which in my case, is God. I have been blessed with a new life, restored relationships, loss of money woe and ALL of the other 12 promises. I first walked into the rooms of AA in October of the year 2000 and have not had a relapse since. I now know, personally, growth of pretty much any kind was impossible while I was in the grips of that addiction. I have a user profile on a rather popular sober app that I use to help assist others. In my opinion, I am seeing a record number of Youth in recovery programs. Nothing like it was a few decades ago. I find it quite alarming. My main goal through all of this is to somehow pay it back (step 12) on a grand scale if possible. A few minutes of your time would be greatly appreciated. PS. I went for the full meet and greet when you and Dave Rubin were in my city. That was a powerful evening for sure. Keith in Winter-peg
Mezzo narrative
I find myself in the strange professional position of attempting to sew divides within our community. We’ve made some headway in reviving good faith discussions in public space (with much help from you and other IDW inspirations). We’ve run head first into what I think is a narrative issue. Groups within our city have unwittingly abandoned, forgotten or outright rejected local values and culture in favor of those of their chosen digital community. Is it hubristic to believe we might purposefully adjust which parts of our history were important? We’ve been telling a narrative version of our history publicly and it is well received. The narrative itself conforms to some structure and archetypes you might expect and frames our city as a protagonist. Does breaking the fourth wall in this case ruin the effectiveness of the idea? Is this irresponsible as an experiment? Is there a path back to our older values or must we find somewhere new? Even general thoughts on this would be helpful. I have no sounding board or interlocutor to help me find the parts I’m surely messing up or missing entirely. Thank you so much for the all of your hard work. Good luck and good health on the tour.
Identifying the voice of conscience
Hi Dr. Peterson. How do you identify the voice of conscience within you? How does this differ from say anxious or fearful thoughts that could be confused with the voice of conscience? Thanks Dr. Peterson - lovely to see you back on your feet. Best wishes from New Zealand.
How do we know what we find meaningful to pursue?
Hi Dr. Peterson, I hope you’re doing well. Your lectures have inspired and helped me improve my life so I thank you for your help. This question relates to career choice/pursuing passion (predicated on the idea that they are one in the same). I’m curious as to how we know what we find to be meaningful and therefore pursue in our lives? Is it whatever we do/like most? I’d like to use a professional chess player as an example. Do you think they lead meaningful lives? And if so why do they find playing chess full time meaningful? Is it their love for the game that fulfills them and therefore meaning is a feeling (i.e. love for something)? I picked this example because this career path is vastly different than a farmer for instance whose labor and fields grow produce that feeds a nation or an educator whose teachings influence generations. Furthermore, is meaning something that is subjective or objective? Or both? And how would each be defined? Thank you Dr. Peterson! Looking forward to learning more.
Why don’t people take what’s meaningful seriously
I have so many friends, coworkers, family members, etc. who avoid and dismiss any deep or meaningful conversations about life. I’ve sent people your videos, I’ve brought up conversations about how suffering requires sustaining meaning, all with the intention of it helping someone the way it has helped me and it’s dismissed as an adult dismissing a child’s wild imagination and It is sort of bothersome
Dr. Andrew Huberman's Protocols
Your impact on the mental well-being of many is akin to Dr. Andrew Huberman's impact on the physical well-being of many. I have a specific ask: Dr. Huberman sometimes does a bit of a "super episode" whereas he shares actual protocols people can do in real life to improve xyz. Could you share a similar episode where you share clinical psychological protocols which may help people? I believe you could cover basics, like the widely accepted suggestion for depressed people to take a quality fish oil or two given its anti-depressant effects for example, to a range of other protocols which you have picked up over your lifetime. Your ability to translate a lot of complex topics down to what can be understood is second to none, and I have no doubt this would be a valuable episode for many. That would really be cool. As well as getting around to hosting Dr. Huberman. Looking forward to seeing you speak in person again next month in Boston, Doc. - sgmdotis
How to know if someone is taking advantage?
Hi Dr. Peterson. How do you tell the difference between whether someone is taking unfair advantage of you/bullying you (for example a work colleague) vs. if you're being rather thin-skinned and overly sensitive about something you should take on the chin? I find this hard as I'm 95th percentile agreeableness + neuroticism (not to mention male), so it's hard to discern whether my agreeableness is being used against me or if my concerns are distorted projections from my neuroticism. Any clues to help tell the difference would be immensely helpful. Thanks so much & hope you are well.
Logos
I’m having some trouble reconciling yours and Jonathan Pageau’s conception of the Logos. Is the Logos the highest ideal at the top of the hierarchy and transcanding it? Or is the Logos the process that produces the distinction between high and low in the first place? And if the second, is that why Jonathan Pageau insists that Christ is not at the top of the hierarchy but stretches out through the whole hierarchy?
Debt Crisis
Hello Dr.Peterson. I have been watching your videos on YouTube and you recently talked about bitcoin and the debt crisis that plagues most western nations. Have you looked into Austrian economics (a school of thought) and its predictions for the future? Austrian economists such as Peter Schiff who predicted the 2008 crash foresee very dark times ahead.
Battling rising nihilism
Hello Dr. Peterson, thank you for what you do. I do not know if I would be sat here writing this question if I hadn’t of come across your work when I did, so thank you. Recently I have been struggling with a rising sense of nihilism- the same nihilism that, after reading your work I was able to stop. I don’t want to bore you with my sob story, but after facing a decade of child abuse, varies stints as a homeless teenager, the bushfires where the property was almost destroyed, my father dying from COVID in mid-2020, coming to terms with the effects of over two years of heavy substance abuse, and relationship breakdowns. I must confess the ever-creeping sensation is building deep within my Being once again. The one thing I still have going for me is university where I study a double degree in Psychology and Biotechnology, but alas it appears that for the third continues year my undergraduate experience will be conducted predominantly online. I know, in truth I have nothing to complain about. I look around the world and see billions of people exposed to conditions of such depravity that I cannot truly comprehend. Do you have any advice that you may be able to pass on not only to me, but to people in my generation who I feel are facing similar thoughts to myself at the moment? P.S. I have written a short piece about my experience of trying to get help while I was being abused that I would be happy to share with you. I believe it shows a direct anti-male bias within the discourse surrounding boys and men as victims of domestic violence. Best wishes and warmest regards, Zak
Brains that can't write
I have purchased the self authoring suite and have yet to start it. I shrink back from being judged, even by myself. I have been told to journal my entire Christian life (converted at 23) but I refuse to do that too. Can one think without writing? Is this a dragon I must slay?
Personality traits and autism/adhd
Personality traits is a subject that you often discuss (very interesting!), but you seldom talk about autism/adhd etc. My question is about the connection between the two, since it seems as though for example autistic persons are very low in openess. How are personality traits and autism/adhd conditions related?
PTSD/Anxiety
I have been dealing with PTSD for decades. (A mass shooting as a teen) The anxiety over the last four years is getting to be too much for me. I’ve been to several psychologists and psychiatrists and all I’ve been left with is an addiction to clonazepam. The American mental health system is terrible. It takes 3-4 months to get an initial appointment and then you find out what you’re getting, after a year, you may or may not know by then if there’s going to be any progress. As my life is crumbling around me, how do I find a good dr? Where can I go? I feel like I’m running out of time.