[August 3, 2025] I recently came across Dr. Jordan Peterson talking with Chris Williamson. The idea of what he calls The Shallow Pond of Empathy is something that appeases people and does not cause them immediate discomfort. It is prioritized even if the net effect over the long term results in their suffering.
According to Dr. Peterson, that’s precisely what the Edible Situation is about. It prioritizes short-term emotional comfort over medium—to long-term thriving.
The mother who kicks the child out of the nest says, “This is going to hurt now, but the iterative consequences are positive.” It’s the same story of Michael Angelo’s Pieta marble statue symbolizing a broken Christ, after the crucifixion, in the arms of his mother Mary.
The moral of that story is that if you give up your children to the world, you will keep them. That’s the sacrifice of Abraham. God calls upon Abraham to sacrifice his son, and he says, “yes,” so he doesn’t have to do so.
You have to offer up your children to be broken by the world, or you will lose them, undermine them, and destroy them. This is a paradoxical truth.
We’re talking about patterns. Cain, for example, is the pattern of inappropriate sacrifice. He does everything second-rate. He lies. He omits. He prevaricates. He pretends. He doesn’t offer his best.
Abel is the opposite. He offers his best, which means his light is shining on the hill. There’s no hiding. He’s giving it everything he’s got.
The covenant with God is that if you give it everything you’ve got, you will prevail. And that’s what God tells Cain.
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There are plenty of idiots to go around and are on the shallow-pool side of intellect.
A paradoxical truth for sure. Gen. Satterfield is doing us a big favor by highlighting some of the more fundamental ideas of Dr. Peterson and others who have taken the time to comb through some of the greatest sources of wisdom that mankind has ever had accumulated. The starting point is the Bible (not the finger pointing kind but the books of wisdom contained therein). And, some of the best philosophers. Let’s continue to read this blog. And continue to read Gen. Satterfield’s books because, well, that’s how we can support him and learn more of how to be a good person and better leader.
The covenant with God is that if you give it everything you’ve got, you will prevail. And that’s what God tells Cain.
Exactly……. let us not improperly sacrifice our time to worthless activities but devout ourselves fully to the rightful goals of our families.
“The moral of that story is that if you give up your children to the world, you will keep them. That’s the sacrifice of Abraham. God calls upon Abraham to sacrifice his son, and he says, “yes,” so he doesn’t have to do so.” — Dr. Jordan Peterson. And this is absolutely right. Be sure to get a copy of his books and READ them. Also, get a copy of Gen. Satterfield’s books and learn from these two masters.
“Inappropriate sacrifice,” now that is a topic for us all.
The baby bird being kicked out of the nest analogy is appropriate here and Dr, Jordan Peterson again makes a point that he has driven home, over the years of him teaching at the University of Toronto and now in America as an independent. He is either loved or hated. Why? Because he says that in order to be a value asset to yourself and your family, community, and nation, you must first adopt responsibility for yourself and establish reasonable goals. This is the basis of doing well and his ideas run counter to the Woke victim ideology of the political leftists.
Idiot, you are no idiot.
Idiot Savant, good memory about how this idea of Dr. Peterson has developed over the years, like Gen. Satterfield, I’ve also been following Dr. P now for many years. I recommend one of his under rated books, “Maps of Meaning.” It’s certainly not for everyone but gets across his major themes.
Thanks, guys.
The story of Cain and Abel, and the idea of sacrifice is far more important than we might think. Well written, sir. Much appreciate the thought.
GREAT INSIGHTS
“The covenant with God is that if you give it everything you’ve got, you will prevail. And that’s what God tells Cain.” This is exactly correct. Thank you, Gen. Satterfield for highlighting this brief discussion of a very important and interesting issue.
Dale, yes! This is why I’m such a huge huge huge fan of Gen. Satterfield and his website. Every day is another look at the incredible dimensions of leadership and learning how to be a better person, better than you could ever imagine yourself to be. Be sure to read Gen. Satterfield’s book ‘55 Rules for a Good Life’ and you can thank me latter for this wonderful and useful advice. Thanks to all here who are regulars and who give good suggestions and comments. 💯
Thanks Susie. Indeed, I’m a big fan too.
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“We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light.”
― Plato
We are all big fans, I do believe. ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️