Compassion and its ‘enemies’
Feb22

Compassion and its ‘enemies’

Posted By on Feb 22, 2024

Below is an excerpt from my forthcoming book… © Mahabodhi Burton     10 minute read Diving into the Preface of ‘The Buddhas and Global Governance,’ this excerpt digs into the intricate dynamics of compassion and its adversaries. Building upon the narrative of ‘ The Twitter Files,’ it navigates through the suspension of Jordan Peterson from Twitter, shedding light on the complexities surrounding bringing the right amount of compassion to transgender issues. Join me as I embark on a journey towards understanding the nuances of compassion and where the Middle Way lies.         The ‘banning’ of Jordan Peterson from Twitter The ‘great sin,’ however, on ‘Old Twitter’ was to comment on a transgender issue: as Jordan Peterson found to his cost when he was suspended[1] from Twitter in July 2022 for allegedly violating their rules against hateful conduct. Mikhaila Peterson said her father would be off the platform until he deleted the tweet. Conservative commentator David Rubin commented on the incident, “The insanity continues at Twitter. @jordanbpeterson has been suspended for this tweet about Ellen Page. He just told me he will ‘never’ delete the tweet. Paging @elonmusk.”’ [2] only to be suspended himself, at which, ‘Rubin and Mikhaila called on Tesla CEO Elon Musk – who recently bid $44 billion to take the platform over in efforts to promote free speech.’[3] Musk eventually took over Twitter in October 2022.     ‘The crime’ Peterson had claimed in a tweet on 24 June 2022 that ‘The Umbrella Academy’ star Elliot Page, who formerly went by the name of Ellen, and who had announced his transition in December 2020, had his ‘breast removed by a criminal Physician.’[4]  Peterson had said ‘her’ instead of ‘his,’ tweeting, ‘Remember when pride was a sin? And Ellen Page just had her breasts removed by a criminal physician.’[5] (Emphasis added) Peterson explains his thinking behind the tweet: ‘Page is a star, and she advertised her transformation and made the claim that this is revolutionized her life and then she displayed her new body in a public forum and got 1.7 Instagram likes for it, and probably enticed, let’s say, one young girl who is confused into becoming sterile, which is one too many for me.’[6] Peterson’s tweet, along with other controversial tweets and statements in interviews, led the Ontario College of Psychologists to order him to undertake a social media coaching program; he appealed the decision, and lost:[7] ‘Dr. Peterson is subject to regulation by the College of Psychologists of Ontario, which received complaints about Dr. Peterson’s public statements.  Following an investigation into those of Dr. Peterson’s statements alleged to be “transphobic, sexist, [and] racist,”...

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Safetyism
Jan30

Safetyism

Posted By on Jan 30, 2024

Below is an excerpt from my forthcoming book…     37 minute read Chapter 2 The views expressed below on safeguarding are the personal views of the author and should not be assumed to represent the views of other members of the Triratna Buddhist Order or any organisation run by members of the Order. Despite our personal views, all order members undertake to abide by the Safeguarding policies of the Buddhist organisations in which we are active.   Safetyism ‘Safety is obviously very important. But it is also a principle that, absent countervailing considerations, admits no limit to its expanding dominion. It tends to swallow everything before it. Once you indulge the vitalist perspective with some sympathy, your gaze is shifted and it becomes easier to see the ideological work that “safety” does in our society. Those who invoke safety enjoy a nearly nonrebuttable presumption of public-spiritedness, so a stated concern for safety becomes a curtain behind which various entities can collect rents from perfectly reasonable behavior. The trick is to formulate rules that are at odds with our natural reasonableness (for example, setting the speed limit below the speed dictated by the features of the road). That way you can guarantee a certain rate of infraction, and therefore revenue. If one cares about safety (and who doesn’t?), one does well to take a skeptical look at the safety-industrial complex, and its reliance on moral intimidation to pursue ends other than safety. To do this thoroughly, one must venture beyond the mental universe of risk reduction altogether. That universe takes its bearings from the least competent among us. This is an egalitarian principle that is entirely fitting in many settings, a touchstone of humane society that we rightly take pride in. (One of the people closest to me is significantly disabled, and I am often moved with gratitude for the accommodations our society makes for her.) But if left unchallenged, the pursuit of risk reduction tends to create a society based on an unrealistically low view of human capacities. Infantilization slips in, under cover of democratic ideals. I will insist, on the contrary, that democracy remains viable only if we are willing to extend to one another a presumption of individual competence. This is what social trust is built on. Together, they are the minimal endowments for a free, responsible, fully awake people.’ —Mathew Crawford[1]   Safeguarding within a religious community I am a member of the Triratna Buddhist Order, which was founded in 1968 by an Englishman, Sangharakshita. Since that time, over 3,000 people have been ordained into the Order. Our ordination follows a tradition which dates back to time of...

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