The Vice of Virtue-Signalling

2024 was probably the peak year so far for virtue-signalling. It's easy to see through the grim spectacle of this widespread halo-polishing that has infested our society. People virtue-signal as a sign of righteous posturing in an effort to seem morally superior. But, psychologically, why do people want to feel morally superior? It's primarily to fulfil their own needs and establish their own identity, which is, sadly, usually built on validating their individual worth in the mirror of their own insecurities and adequacies.

We should want much better for them, because these are people to be pitied. They are desperate to acquire a sense of belonging and acceptance, and they have deep-seated psychological and social needs that sit in conflict with genuine virtue, courage and truth. Because virtue-signallers have little confidence in their own intellect, their ethics and their over-simplistic grasp on complex situations - they know deep down that they are fraudulent, inauthentic moral peacocks - they use their self-righteous parading as a way to deflect from their own guilt and shame. 

All this is easy to understand when you remember that virtue-signalling is not being virtuous; it's a near opposite, like how prurient indulgence in flattery is a near opposite of sincere praise, or like how a wolf in sheep's clothing is a near opposite of a shepherd. That is the big cheat of virtue-signalling - it's telling lies about virtue to conceal vice. 

The Wisest Things I’ve Learned

 

I thought a new year might be a good time for this little reflection. Setting matters of religious faith aside for this post, I’ve learned a lot of very valuable things over the years – from parents, friends, writers and thinkers – which got me thinking about the wisest and most valuable things I think are worth knowing and have been most enriching. Given the possibilities, it’s challenging to narrow it down to a small list – but if compelled to choose, I think these would definitely make the cut: 

1} There is no better life than one spent seeking the truth at all times. 

2} Taking responsibility is the primary path to contentment, freedom, and self-liberation. 

3} Humility precedes wisdom.   

4} Wisdom is the only quality we can’t have too much of. 

5} Kindness and gratitude are like superpowers in the external lives they touch and the inward satisfaction they elicit. 

6} Suffering, hardship and challenge are necessary sources of growth. 

7} Courage is one of the most noble and beneficial qualities we should consistently cultivate. 

8} Having a balanced mind is the only way to be truly intellectually and emotionally stimulated. 

9} A few key people will meet most of your needs, but if you don’t have those key people you’re in trouble. 

10} We are always a work in progress, constantly in the process of becoming. 

11} Delaying gratification to prioritise long-term rewards over short-term pleasures is one of the cornerstones of emotional and psychological maturity. 

12} Forgive easily, because people are going through a lot more than you could ever know. 

13} Physical, mental, intellectual and emotional well-being underpin everything else you want to achieve. 

14} Work, hobbies and passions should be servants, not masters; they stop being demons only when they cease to be gods. 

15} Our ultimate internal fulfilment and external impact are measured by how well we loved.