Jordan Peterson has a huge fan following, who are interested in his views on matters from existentialism to human physiology.

The Canadian clinical psychologist and psychology professor is known for his simple yet practical solutions for a better life. Now the best selling author of ‘12 rules for life’ has decided to venture into the domain of information technology. In a recent statement Peterson discussed the plans of setting up a crowd-funding website. Explaining his rationale, he noted:

“I’ve been working on a system for months to allow authors and other people who engage publicly on intellectual issues to interact more effectively with their readers, viewers, and listeners. It occurred to me this week that could serve this function. We are going to try to set this system up on a subscriber model that is analogous to Patreon.”

When asked for details, the writer was rather coy, instead focussing on the interest that has been generated and the positive feedback about the idea. Without giving away anything he said

”It will have a bunch of additional features. I don’t want to over-promise because the system is new. But we’re going to try to get that rolled out as fast as we can. We have a number of people who are interested in moving their subscription over.”

This announcement comes a few days after he was on a show and said he was exploring options

“that will not be susceptible to arbitrary censorship.”

Peterson had announced on the 22nd of December that he was accepting donations via Bitcoin [BTC].In less than a week there has been more than 60 transactions to his public Bitcoin address.

The total accrued balance is 0.213 BTC, which amounts to almost $770. This should encourage both creators such as Jordan Peterson who has almost 1.7 million YouTube subscribers, as well as supporters to look at using crypto to pledge support, especially considering the recent issues with Patreon

Patreon has repeatedly found itself in hot waters recently. It was derided for its controversial fee increase, where instead of charging the creators, there would be a small fee associated with each donation. This made the position untenable for many who depended on smaller contributions.

After that a number of, decidedly right leaning, users were banned for allegedly violating the platforms terms and conditions with their content or affiliations.

Numerous personalities such as the charismatic alt-right Milo Yiannopoulos or Carl Benjamin, a YouTuber who frequently attacks feminism and identity politics, have views that one might not agree with. However, does that mean they have no right to be heard? It has been this baseline question that is causing a huge exodus from Patreon. The most famous being Sam Harris.

The noted author was on of the top five grossing users on Patreon with a reported income of about 35 to 55 thousand dollars per episode. In announcing his withdrawal he highlighted the same concern, stating

“While the company insists that each was in violation of its terms of service, these recent expulsions seem more readily explained by political bias.”

He also made his liberal ideology clear when he said

”Although I don’t share the politics of the banned members, I consider it no longer tenable to expose any part of my podcast funding to the whims of Patreon’s ‘Trust and Safety’ committee.”

He was almost immediately prompted to look at alternatives such as Bitcoin.

While many have considered individual freedom as an inalienable right, it increasingly feels like a by-product of the fancies of the powerful. Disagreements have to be part of the natural discourse for any healthy democracy. By forcing silence on such people it gives this situation a clear left leaning political narrative.

Ironically, for centuries free speech was coveted by those on the left while conservatives would regularly suppress this effort. Today, there seems to have been a cyclical displacement, with liberals looking to curb discussions they might not agree with.

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