As we transition from 2024 to 2025, a critical examination of the significant news stories reveals a persistent underlying theme: the encroachment of technocracy. Various headline events, such as the war in Ukraine, the conflicts in Gaza, and diverse political shifts, overshadow a more profound and concerning narrative. As Patrick Wood articulates, totalitarianism creeps in gradually, a sentiment echoed in Hemingway’s famous words about bankruptcy. It’s essential to recognize that the major global stories – elections, advancements in artificial intelligence, and geopolitical crises – may not scratch the surface of what is happening beneath. Instead, we need to turn our attention to systemic changes ushered by what many refer to as “The Great Reset.”
The Great Reset represents a vast, ambitious blueprint aimed at reshaping societal structures under the guise of sustainability, inclusivity, and fairness. Initially brought to light several years ago, the conversation surrounding it waned amidst backlash and discontent, leading many to believe it was no longer a pressing concern. However, this perspective overlooks the reality that the plan’s implementation continues, albeit in a dispersed and incremental manner. Various components of this agenda are now subtly integrated into policies worldwide—an unseen hand manipulating numerous facets of daily life without the public’s awareness. The cautious and compartmentalized nature of these changes suggests that the Great Reset is not fading but rather evolving into a more insidious form.
Recent developments in the UK provide a glimpse into this unfolding scenario. Health recommendations now advocate for “sin taxes” on various foods and the concept of 15-minute cities, alongside existing restrictions on smoking and new regulations on chicken ownership. These initiatives represent emerging policies aimed at controlling personal choices and consumption, which hint at a wider trend of increasing governmental oversight over individual lives. The automotive industry is similarly affected by impending bans on petrol vehicles, pushing society towards an electric future tethered to centralized energy sources. Moves such as these not only restrict individual freedoms but also create a framework where compliance is monitored and enforced through technology, mapping toward a broader portrait of technocratic governance.
In the context of education, the shocking case of a tragic incident leading to proposed legislation that threatens parental rights to home-school their children highlights the creeping authority of the state over family matters. This regulation is merely one aspect of a larger movement characterized by the imposition of digital identities, collective monitoring, and regulation of various societal dimensions—rights once considered personal are eroding in favor of an overarching narrative of safety and efficiency. This creeping digital surveillance, tied to various government agendas globally, unravels layers of private life while promoting a facade of security and governance.
These policies do not exist in isolation; they are interconnected elements of a far-reaching agenda that transcends political affiliations and is approved across spectrum divides. The intensity of these movements raises concerns as more countries and regions embrace measures such as biometric tracking, rationing, and asset registration. A collective urgency surrounds issues like food security, digital identity, and resource management—illustrating a growing tendency to justify increased control over aspects of life justified by societal trends, misinformation, or claims of disobedience. It appears that a growing cohort of people is gradually losing sight of their individual liberty amidst calls for communal responsibility and social justice.
Divergent distractions dominate public attention, ranging from celebrity culture to sensational political scandals, which serve to obfuscate these critical issues. The media metabolism continually shifts focus, suppressing discourse on the systemic control being placed on everyday life. This ‘laser pointer’ effect keeps societal attention diverted, allowing those enacting technocratic policies to operate with minimal scrutiny. While people are engrossed in debates about polarizing topics, there is a coordinated advance in building a framework that encroaches on personal freedoms and civil liberties.
The recent years have fostered a climate ripe for remediation, as complacency threatens to define collective aspirations. The hope is that as 2025 unfolds, the realities of increasingly collective governance will lead to a widespread acknowledgment of the problems we face. The first step towards countering a growing technocracy may lie in recognizing that the gradual changes we’ve witnessed are not mere coincidences or unrelated events. The dream of a world worth inhabiting is fundamentally tied to the realization of the threats posed by pervasive control, urging a resurgence of agency in reclaiming individual freedoms in an era of profound surveillance and authority.