"...the atomization of society, the loosening of social bonds ... deep suspicion of authority, the strong belief that hierarchies and organizations are suspect,

"...the atomization of society, the loosening of social bonds ... deep suspicion of authority, the strong belief that hierarchies and organizations are suspect, ... the assumption that individual preference should be supreme... the rising tide of distrust, the corrosive spread of cynicism, the fraying of the social fabric..." It's the culture wars. The issue might not be inherently about left and right, but the way David Brooks is framing it is straight from the culture wars of the 1960s. I think he's slightly in denial, but he seems to argue with himself and then take reliably conservative positions.