I was living in Washington four winters ago when Donald Trump made way, eventually, for Joe Biden. Something sticks with me from that time. If there had been no access to the news, no knowledge of the election result at all, an alert person walking the streets could still guess that Republicans had left town and that Democrats had moved in. There was a difference in dress. There was a difference in modes of transport. (More cycling.) Above all, there was a difference in common speech.
How so? Well, you were likelier to hear someone vow to be “intentional”. Or use the phrase “redemption arc”. Or accuse a third person of having “main character syndrome”. Or of doing something “performative”. You were likelier to hear “toxic” and “narcissism” and “cosplay” and — more on this in a bit — “gaslighting”. Your date was likelier to say, “I’m an empath”.