The moral obligation to find evidence or answers to the true social challenges we face has weakened. Apathy and the need to belong to a group has increased which has led to a rise in people simply agreeing with others’ opinions in an effort to appear engaged and part of an established community. Social media and the attention deficit this breeds, alongside the subconscious revolt against isolation, seems to fuel this herd mentality: offering an easy way to feel powerful and authentic, joining the unified pulsing mind set of others. Surrounding yourself with these repetitive, negative false idols normalises the language and behaviour, creating a dangerous echo chamber of false, toxic mantras that can ultimately turn rational people into vitriolic nationalists who follow fascist ideologies.

It is never us against them, and not nostalgia versus progression. These are distractions from the real issues: the culture of dishonesty, cronyism and the lack of ethical responsibility that festers in governments of all colours. The only way to fight it is through knowledge, but that takes effort, commitment and focus. These values have been systematically damaged through the conflict of questioning who and what sources we can actually trust.

Yet, many of those who consider themselves on the right side of history are doing little to help. They also find their version of reality in an alternative online echo chamber, watching the world transform into a dystopian manifestation they no longer fully understand. They like and share posts of others that take the time and energy to protest, to create, to be physically heard and seen in opposition to this negativity. But those red pixels are just a token, and are no match for beating heart. Using this symbol does not mean by default that they are part of, or included in this defiance. By not being present, not asking questions, not finding common ground, not physically signalling that they are part of the resistance to this amplifying volume of hate, they are silent. Idle hands are the devils playthings, so recognising our own virtue signalling is an inconvenient truth on which we must reflect.