Is our conformity rooted in alienation and dissociation?

This article puts an earlier one into some perspective.

clipped from susanrosenthal.com Capitalism alienates the majority from control over the decision-making process, putting most people “on the receiving end of orders.” Dissociation is a psychological defence against feeling powerless; the worker goes “somewhere else” to preserve self-respect. Alienation and dissociation reinforce each other in countless ways to create a deep sense of powerlessness. People who are forced to function like cogs in the social machine have dissociated relationships with the other cogs. Instead of relating to each other as fellow producers, directly exchanging what they want and need, workers relate to each other as dissociated consumers, you pay my boss for what I made and I pay your boss for what you made. Consequently, despite living, working, commuting and shopping together, most people feel estranged from one another. We talk about what we can’t control (sports, the weather) to avoid discussing what we aren’t allowed to control (our work, the world)

We talk about last night's TV program instead of discussing how to make the changes needed to avert multiple disaster. And sadly, most Americans support "capitalism" (when they understand what it means) because they operate under the delusion that they, against all odds, will someday be the boss.