You've either been lucky or oblivious. My experience with office people has been that any minuscule thing that can be used to alpha-dog somebody, will be used

You've either been lucky or oblivious. My experience with office people has been that any minuscule thing that can be used to alpha-dog somebody, will be used to alpha-dog somebody. I suspect it's because the mothership goes out of its way to keep them in a constant state of anxiety and confusion--open offices, stack ranking, endless meetings, etc... It is easier to assert your dominance over them when they are at each others' throats.