Is it wise to advise alienated young men to be like alpha lobsters?
Of course, no one ever thinks they’ll write something with this bizarre title. Then there was 2016, when so many things emerged whose emergencies won’t have ended before November 2024, and probably for many years after.
As always in the culture wars, a lot of the press surrounding Jordan Peterson gives more heat than light. One thing is clear. Whereas many on the new Left revile him, Peterson has a following. That following is predominantly male, predominantly young. In older times, they might have been called working class, although Peterson himself would reject the term.
Many will be living at their mom and dad’s home. Most will be white. In many cases, they will come from situations, even entire postcodes or communities, that have been scorned by the postmodern-financial-managerial capitalism of the last decades. Their repressed aggression will be played out in hyperviolent online gaming. In many cases, they will also participate in Rightist discord and other chat groups.
Is it a good idea, wise is the old word, to tell these young men to model themselves on victorious lobsters? For readers who think the question shows I’m daft, let’s let Peterson do the talking.