Canadian psychologist Dr Jordan Peterson has a lot to answer for. At least he does according to Auckland Peace Action spokesman Iris Krzyzosiak. According to Krzyzosia, Peterson “threatens everything of value in our society.” Levelled against a professor at a mainstream university, that is quite some claim.

Yet you would not have guessed this from the crowds attending his lectures around New Zealand this week. Those lining-up looked distinctly respectable. Men and women, young and old, with a diverse ethnic mix. I even picked out the odd hipster.

Granted those attending looked mostly male. But then Peterson’s messages are aimed at young men. His proselytising encourages them to do things like get their own houses in order before criticising others, take responsibility for their actions, pursue meaning, and tell the truth.

Peterson is prone to preaching. But his strictures do not sound that subversive. Unless of course society wants males who whose lives are a mess, who do not take responsibility for their actions and who are nihilistic liars.

But perhaps there is value in some of these messages for Krzyzosiak’s colleagues.

Last year the Wellington branch of the Peace Action group thought it would be a good idea to plant a fake bomb in Wellington’s Roxy Theatre.  Police were called and removed a beeping black box chained to one of the cinema’s seats.

The group’s plan was to disrupt the screening of Ben-Gurion, Epilogue, a documentary on the former Israeli Prime Minister, David Ben-Gurion. At the time the cinema was packed with elderly Jewish people.

When interviewed last week, Krzyzosiak could not see the irony in a group responsible for terrorising elderly cinema-goers claiming a Canadian psychology professor is subversive.

Perhaps they would benefit from reading Dr Peterson’s book?