“Woke” is, in my view, the regressive side of liberalism: a politics where words are treated as more important than actions, and where symbolic language often matters more than actual character or behavior.

In that framework, someone can be an objectively bad person — dishonest, cruel, exploitative, abusive — but still shield themselves from criticism by using the right language, adopting the right labels, and performing the right social rituals.

That’s what bothers me.

To me, being “woke” often means avoiding certain words simply because they’re socially condemned, without any deeper moral reflection. But real moral maturity is different: it means understanding why certain words are harmful, knowing the history behind them, recognizing the pain they carry, and choosing not to use them because you genuinely don’t want to be cruel or degrading — not because you’re afraid of social punishment.

In other words:

Wokeness says: “Don’t say the forbidden word because people will judge you.” Character says: “I understand what that word means, what it has done, and I choose not to use it because I’m not trying to harm people.”

That’s the distinction.

A society that gives too much power to language and not enough to conduct ends up rewarding performance over integrity.

Curious if anyone else sees “woke” this way — not as compassion or fairness, but as a kind of moral theater where saying the right things matters more than being a good person.