The Capital riot was a huge event for everyone in the country, but for me, it opened my eyes to the filth in our society. My cousin and I are not on talking terms anymore. He even blocked me on every social media platform. It was in the aftermath of the riots and the man with the fur and horn headdress that I began to understand the sickness in the people. By looking at the conspiracy theories being propagated by the man, I wonder how individuals could bring themselves to believe him and the blatant lies he was spewing. I read the guy hypothesized that Biden would somehow not be sworn in and that something would happen that would have Trump back in the office. All these sentiments were stuff from a dystopian movie. The worst of all was that my cousin believed such information. How could this happen? He was a respectable person studying for his undergraduate. I always looked up to him and thought he was very level-headed. However, in this scenario, he was deeply immersed in conspiracy theories with no bearing at all.
(Qanon at theCapitolInsurrection)
The incident got me thinking about the nature of modern life, especially with regards to the phenomenon of alternative truth. I am an avid reader of current events and I have read much about the subject. While I know it was all about the fake news that politicians use to sway public opinion, it was now not possible to know the truth from the half-truths and the outright lies. At the same time, I could not understand how my cousin could get sucked into this world where everything was lies but a world he swore was the reality and that I was the one living in denial and that I did not see the truth. However, the insurrection at Capitol Hill provided me with glimpses of how the alternative world is very much real and that its adherents are guided by ideals that are not only astonishing but also drive curiosity for one to look into them.
After the incident with my cousin and the riot at the Capitol, I began looking at the issues of fake news and alternative truth from another perspective. Every time I read the news, there was always a little note about how the news had been fact-checked and that the information I read was correct. Currently, this is almost the norm. Fact-checking has become a huge concept with massive platforms developed for people to change what is being reported. After my awakening, I found that fact-checking is slowly losing relevance. Why would someone need to fact-check something whether they have their truths which they hold dear and nothing can change them from that particular perception? The people at the Capitol insurrection believed Biden stole the election and I hold that no amount of ‘truth’ and fact-checking can sway them from such perception. Fact-checking will soon become obsolete as there is no absolute truth. Truth is now relative and whatever one believes, then it is. These surely are dangerous times.
What caught my attention was that alternative truth was not always a matter of personal opinion and arguments on abstract concepts or a matter of different perspectives. Science was also being disputed. In essence, Science is no longer the middle ground for the left and the right to meet. I have seen interesting commentary, especially on the coronavirus vaccine and how it is effective while some other people say otherwise. The wearing of masks has been lauded and condemned at the same time. Most of the right-wing supporters have sensationally claimed that the masks are a plot to gag them. On the other hand, medical experts say that masks play a huge role in helping to curb the coronavirus spread. Some governors are angling to open up businesses and resume normal conditions even with the cases rising. Others are convinced and swear that this would be disastrous. Amid the noise, it is hard to find what the right thing to do is.
(Fake News on Coronavirus)
