Maybe the next fundamental step for humanity is detaching rule of law from physical enforcement at a macro level. This has already happened at the individual le

Maybe the next fundamental step for humanity is detaching rule of law from physical enforcement at a macro level. This has already happened at the individual level. Most people treat their neighbor with respect, not because they fear arrest or a vengeful God, but because we've internalized that we're all better off when we treat each other better. It's similar to getting off of the gold and silver standard. Money used to mean something because it was backed by a physical good. What we learned is that humans can operate at the macro level based on abstractions instead. Rule of law doesn't have to be backed by physical violence.