Not being ‘good’ can be so liberating

Today, we are here to deal with a serious issue: the quest for public approval. Quite clearly, it’s as serious as millennials feeling deeply anxious about things they feel disagreeable about: like a sneeze that may put the Arctic icecap in jeopardy. We now live in a world where everyone’s desperate to come across as ‘good boys’ and ‘good girls’. Frankly, it’s supreme comedy to behold. You’re at a dinner party, and someone drops their fork. Suddenly, six people leap to retrieve it, each vying for the title of ‘most considerate guest’. Dudes, it’s a fork, not a Faberge egg. Do you really want to be in a race to be the hero of pointing out other people’s foibles and faults?

And let’s not forget the self-congratulatory posts about charitable deeds. ‘Just donated to a good cause-feeling blessed.’ Nope. You’re not Mum Teresa. Move on. Everyone wants to follow the good leader doing the good stuff. Now, that is literally good. The problem, however, arises in the cheesy aspect of everyone fighting to come across as not just a do-gooder, but a do-goodest. So, dear reader, when you’re virtue-signalling, do remember that sometimes, with you having ordered the camera directed at you (or else!), it can look a bit silly. Sometimes, just sometimes, enjoy not doing the virtuous thing. You may not get the ‘likes’. But boy, can it be liberating.