Jordan Peterson and The Arbitrary Line
"The funny thing too is, is if you draw a line in the sand, which is what I did, all hell breaks loose because, 'Well, why did you draw it there? That’s arbitrary.' "
“One of the things that I studied, for example, with regards to the way events went during the Holocaust is that we went this far. It was like, ‘Okay, no problem.’ But then we went this far. That was okay, no problem. It’s like, “Oh, it’s okay. It’s okay. We can do that. We can go that one step further.” It’s like– The funny thing too is, is if you draw a line in the sand, which is what I did, all hell breaks loose because, “Well, why did you draw it there? That’s arbitrary.” It’s like, “Yeah, there’s an element of arbitrariness to it.” That’s why people won’t draw the line, they don’t want to take the heat for the arbitrary element, the arbitrary nature of the act because whatever people happen to be directly affected by that arbitrary line, they come out and say, “Well, you’re a horrible person.” “ —Jordan Peterson
For those who know Jordan Peterson, he can be a somewhat polarizing figure. But this quote from a documentary on his life and work struck me nearly two weeks ago, and it’s been difficult for me to stop thinking about it since. Regardless of your thoughts on Peterson, I encourage you to contemplate these words and to consider watching the documentary.
I pray that God grants me and so many others boldness to draw the “arbitrary line” even if we face enormous pushback for doing so.
Here's a link to the film: