Humans respond to incentives or the lack thereof. If there are no incentives then society falls apart. With the right incentives, society stays together.
Shared myths also hold societies together. Even if the myths are a complete lie, people with common values are incentivized to cooperate. They get along.
There are a large number of people who want to overturn the current system and replace it with some form of benevolent authoritarianism. The problem is that this never turns out well. What follows is a hellish existence for at least some people.
I think that people are primarily motivated by fear. The world is a dangerous place and filled with uncertainty. Fear can cause normally peaceful and rational people to suddenly turn violent.
I think that most people in their minds perceive something in the world as an existential threat. In the 1960s it was communism. Even little kids talked about it. Our country had what we perceived were enemies.
It used to be that despite our differences, most people in the United States shared the belief that the United States was a force for good in the world. Now we perceive each other as the enemy.
