I have come to believe that most of the collectivist philosophy, Kant for instance, can be traced all the way back to Plato and his forms. Where as the teachings of Aristotle would lead to individualism through logic and reason. I can see the attraction Collectivism would have to powerful men, dictators, emperors etc. I feel like, regardless of Hegel or Marx intentions, they operated from an ideology flawed from it's very inception. From a philosopher kings' perspective, ounce you have the people placed in groups and rejecting their individuality for false altruism in the name of the greater good of society, they are much easier to herd. And it seems like this path has always been paved through propaganda in one form or another. Dividing people into groups, pitting them against each other. It's everywhere today. Sadly it seems Aristotle's teachings, logic and reason and the works of philosophers inspired by him have all but been erased from modern education. I don't think the current hostility and societal decay are unrelated. It's like we are losing our ability to have reasonable discussions. Propaganda is as prevalent as ever and the scary thing is how damn good at it the state has become. Excellent post! Really can't put a price on the value of content like this on Steemit.