>>5I've always felt like the NPC meme was really just a zoomer-fication of the problem proponents of mindfulness have been tackling for centuries. The big difference being that the former lends itself better to shitposting and therefore has more appeal to a broader audience. The paradox of mindfulness is obvious: it's something you can endeavor towards but never achieve, such as with most Buddhist interpretations of enlightenment, in that you can't exist in the Universe and also reach enlightenment. This culminates in a lot of silly Buddhist literature I've read about Zen masters (and other instructor roles) denying themselves the epiphany that leads them to enlightenment and enables them to leave the mortal plane, but deny themselves of that revelation so that they can further educate their disciples about something the teachers /know/ that they inherently know nothing about. Notwithstanding, in mindfulness, you're always at odds with yourself.
I think it makes sense that young people rallied around the NPC meme, albeit very briefly, because I think the crux of Western generational conflict has a lot to do with the righteousness of our parents, their eagerness to – not be devoid of the Death Drive – but to project onto others; whereas, younger people are more acquainted with irony, the ultimate tool to project that pessimism inwards. For as bleak as irony tends to be depicted in more contemporary pomo literature, it's a necessary device to usurp the conventions of the old generations. For me, righteousness is a bad word. I was flabbergasted the first time an old person used that word as if it was a good thing. It was a serious culture shock. When I go into stores, I'm sometimes afraid that I'm being a bad customer, that the employees are judging me. It was so hard to wrap my head around the idea that anyone would even fathom the inverse.