Why DCP’s Proposed Beatitudes Book is Problematic

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Doctor Scratch
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Re: Why DCP’s Proposed Beatitudes Book is Problematic

Post by Doctor Scratch »

Gadianton wrote:
Fri Feb 10, 2023 12:22 am
Doctor Scratch wrote:
Thu Feb 09, 2023 11:19 pm
Edited out, with no acknowledgement! He ought to thank Tom for alerting him. And he ought to apologize to his readers for his carelessness.

But, of course, he won’t, and for that reason, he will never be able to finish any of his books.
This is an innovative way of thinking about the publishing problem. I'm still trying to wrap my head around it, you're a few moves ahead of me, like usual.
He’s caught between a rock and a hard place. How do you be a “Good Christian” while also defending Mormonism? Moreover, how do put together an impressive publishing portfolio in the midst of all that?

Simply put, DCP is flailing. He doesn’t really know where to turn or what to do, so he adopts a “shotgun” approach where he’s going to make movies, blog about his travels, oversee a half dozen “foundations,” and still try to find a way to wedge actual life in there somehow.

But what does he care about most? If he is as committed to the Church as he claims, then behaving in a kind, Christlike way should matter to him, and it should matter *a lot.* So how is he faring in that department?

If he actually has a Christian conscience (and I am not fully convinced that he does), then his past behavior and treatment of others will be eating at him non-stop. There is evidence to support this idea—namely, his obsession with this board. Why does he care what we say? He has claimed in the past that it’s a matter of “reputation,” but this is a relatively obscure board, so why give it extra air time?

He reads here because he’s worried that we are *right.* What if it’s true that he lied about his compensation for Mopologetics, that he deliberately tried to hurt critics via smear campaigns, and that he cheated Dr. Moore out of money? If all of this was just made-up nonsense, then he wouldn’t care. But he *does* care. And it eats at him.

He won’t ever finish any of these writing projects because in one way or another, they all tie back to his Mopologetic aims, and his role as a Mopologist conflicts with whatever he’s got left of a Christian conscience. So every time he embarks on one of these new “notes for a new book!” blog posts, he’s inevitably dragged back into his role as a Mopologist. And he did inarguably bad things as a Mopologist. He hurt people: this cannot be denied.

I would be willing to grant the idea that he could finish a book if he could manage somehow to not read this board or any other critical comments for three or four months, but he’s as incapable of doing that as a smoker is incapable of laying aside the cigarettes. So you have to ask: Why can’t he keep himself from looking? Again: he claims that he’s “worried about his reputation” and that’s why he looks in on this board, but how is what we are saying any worse than his posts? Or his plagiarism? Or his support of Neville-Neville Land? Or his emails on SHIELDS? He could make amends, but he won’t. And so he will always get dragged back into the fundamental morass he has created for himself.

Writing books is, to no small extent, a matter of mindset and endurance, and Dr. Peterson, so long as he has to live with the reality that he has hurt a lot of people (and he has—this is indisputable), he’s never going to be able to complete a book. His mindset/conscience (if he still has one) is always going to be interrupted by the worry that he needs to apologize and attempt to make things right.

He can start by telling Steve Smoot that it’s time to shut down Neville-Neville Land.
Last edited by Doctor Scratch on Fri Feb 10, 2023 1:21 am, edited 1 time in total.
"If, while hoping that everybody else will be honest and so forth, I can personally prosper through unethical and immoral acts without being detected and without risk, why should I not?." --Daniel Peterson, 6/4/14
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Doctor Scratch
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Re: Why DCP’s Proposed Beatitudes Book is Problematic

Post by Doctor Scratch »

One thing I’ll add is that all of this is wrong if DCP is a revenge-driven person. If that is the case, the he’s motivated by hatred and a desire to inflict as much pain as possible, and *that* is the reason why he can’t finish books. But he has repeatedly denied that this is his motivation, and I’m willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.
"If, while hoping that everybody else will be honest and so forth, I can personally prosper through unethical and immoral acts without being detected and without risk, why should I not?." --Daniel Peterson, 6/4/14
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Re: Why DCP’s Proposed Beatitudes Book is Problematic

Post by Kishkumen »

Or, like me, he just can’t break away from the spectacle of critic-apologist interactions.
“If they can get you asking the wrong questions, they don’t have to worry about the answers.”~Thomas Pynchon, Gravity’s Rainbow
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Doctor Scratch
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Re: Why DCP’s Proposed Beatitudes Book is Problematic

Post by Doctor Scratch »

Kishkumen wrote:
Fri Feb 10, 2023 1:18 am
Or, like me, he just can’t break away from the spectacle of critic-apologist interactions.
Maybe. Though I must have missed where you announced multiple book projects and even bilked your university out of money so that you could take a sabbatical and travel while failing to produce the promised books. If your Dean asked you, “Where is your book?” would you say, I was too busy reading what Internet critics had to say?
"If, while hoping that everybody else will be honest and so forth, I can personally prosper through unethical and immoral acts without being detected and without risk, why should I not?." --Daniel Peterson, 6/4/14
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Re: Why DCP’s Proposed Beatitudes Book is Problematic

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Doctor Scratch wrote:
Fri Feb 10, 2023 1:23 am
Maybe. Though I must have missed where you announced multiple book projects and even bilked your university out of money so that you could take a sabbatical and travel while failing to produce the promised books. If your Dean asked you, “Where is your book?” would you say, I was too busy reading what Internet critics had to say?
I was lucky enough not to mix career and religion. I currently have partial manuscripts for several books. None of them have anything to do with Mormonism.
“If they can get you asking the wrong questions, they don’t have to worry about the answers.”~Thomas Pynchon, Gravity’s Rainbow
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Doctor Scratch
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Re: Why DCP’s Proposed Beatitudes Book is Problematic

Post by Doctor Scratch »

Kishkumen wrote:
Fri Feb 10, 2023 1:26 am
Doctor Scratch wrote:
Fri Feb 10, 2023 1:23 am
Maybe. Though I must have missed where you announced multiple book projects and even bilked your university out of money so that you could take a sabbatical and travel while failing to produce the promised books. If your Dean asked you, “Where is your book?” would you say, I was too busy reading what Internet critics had to say?
I was lucky enough not to mix career and religion. I currently have partial manuscripts for several books. None of them have anything to do with Mormonism.
I have no doubt you will finish those manuscripts if you truly want to, and if you can overcome the obstacles, which, I’m quite certain, are different for you than they are for DCP, or anyone else, for that matter.
"If, while hoping that everybody else will be honest and so forth, I can personally prosper through unethical and immoral acts without being detected and without risk, why should I not?." --Daniel Peterson, 6/4/14
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Re: Why DCP’s Proposed Beatitudes Book is Problematic

Post by Kishkumen »

I plan to finish a complete draft of one by January 1. Thank you for the vote of confidence, Doctor! It means a lot!
“If they can get you asking the wrong questions, they don’t have to worry about the answers.”~Thomas Pynchon, Gravity’s Rainbow
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Everybody Wang Chung
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Re: Why DCP’s Proposed Beatitudes Book is Problematic

Post by Everybody Wang Chung »

I remember the olden days when Tom would provide edits (free of charge) to the Interpreter's articles and DCP would (begrudgingly) acknowledge Tom for pointing out the errors.

I also remember when DCP abruptly stopped acknowledging this board for pointing out errors. DCP must be seething with anger, resentment and hate every single time it happens now.

He really is obsessed with this board.
"I'm on paid sabbatical from BYU in exchange for my promise to use this time to finish two books."

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Re: Why DCP’s Proposed Beatitudes Book is Problematic

Post by Moksha »

Everybody Wang Chung wrote:
Fri Feb 10, 2023 5:19 am
He really is obsessed with this board.
Who can blame him? There are many interesting posts and he is featured in a number of them.
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Re: Why DCP’s Proposed Beatitudes Book is Problematic

Post by drumdude »

He’s been refreshingly benign whilst on his Hawaiian vacation. Sic et non would make a pleasant little travel blog without all the nonstop atheist and ex-Mormon bashing.
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