There's a video I came across on YouTube where a YouTuber went to a college campus and did a survey on serveral college students to get their actual political affiliations as opposed to what they simply said. I found it interesting because it brought up a very relatable idea of how we are putting less thoughts into some of the decisions we take and instead opt to simply go with what is trending.
I also recall a certain time when virtually all the movies churned out the main protagonist would be some sort of rebel, or an anti-hero. Hollywood fed us with so much content that encouraged going against cultural norms that it would've been impossible to not have been influenced by one form or the other. Of course there were underlying cultural and political issues and Hollywood was there to play an active role.
It certainly hasn't ceased, and we definitely still get movies that are laced with social and political activism, but the heralded rebel who opposes the general rules of society isn't quite as strong a selling point. As with everything without depth, it will eventually fizzle out when faced with the reality on ground. We were told it took courage to rebel against what was expected of us, but in reality I've found the opposite to be the case.
Having a set of principles and willingly subjecting to difficult rules even when there are no restrictions on them seems to be the actual way people have built satisfying lives. I wonder how well a society can truly thrive in a state of anarchy, or libertarianism to put it mildly. I don't see It as workable as It always seems to me that everyone is simply trying to replace one solution with another. What was once packaged as useful Rebellion is later unveiled as a set of new rules that are inferior to their predecessors.
We have to be careful in the way we let society shape our opinions simply because life is short and there is not much time. Imagine spending the greater part of it heralding some ideas, values or actions that are against our core principles. I've talked previously about approaching issues with a level of humility knowing our limitations to what speaks true. Yet at the same time we must be fully aware that no mind is truly independent, and at the very least let our core principles guide us.