Okay, interesting stuff, but I think I come to the table with a different perspective than you. I like to use this as a framework for cultural divides in the US. Take a look at the map-- I live in the "New Netherlands" region (aka the NYC-metro area). I can also tell you, as someone from New Jersey, that the north/south Jersey divide is real. If you come here, you'll hear people joke about it all the time.
Okay, so in this article, they describe the nature of "New Netherland" (my home!), and I was going to describe it to you myself, but I'll give you the quote from the article, because it's quite accurate:
It wasn’t there for long, but the seventeenth-century Dutch colony of New Netherland had a lasting impact on New York City and northern New Jersey. Woodard describes this global commercial trading society as multi-ethnic, multi-religious, speculative, materialistic, mercantile, and free trading, a “raucous, not entirely democratic city-state where no ethnic or religious group has ever truly been in charge”.
That being said I'll address the next thing you said in your post--
Where divisions occur, that is a breakdown of culture. This is why wherever there is multiculturalism, there will be conflict because culture is a big part of people and why they do what they do.
Given my own personal experience living in one of the most multicultural/diverse places in the world, I feel confident in saying that this is simply not true. I'm certainly biased because I love where I live, and I feel grateful everyday that I get to live in a place with such, for lack of a better word, "culture." So here's a slice of my personal live. At work, about 70-80% of my clients were born in a different country. And they come from no single nation or continent, but from everywhere. We talk all the time about what their homes are like, and I get to learn quite a bit about the rest of the world. I quite like my job, and this is part of what makes it interesting. working with immigrants has nothing to do with that actual work I do. It just so happens that there are that many immigrants where I live. Where I live, there tends to be wholehearted support for multiculturalism. And, tbh, I don't see much conflict.
On the contrary, the areas in the US where I see "conflict" regarding multiculturalism are the areas where (as weird as it sounds) multiculturalism isn't a part of the "culture." Homogeneous populations who have little experience with multiculturalism are upset by it. Which makes sense-- it's a change from their "way of life."
However, my culture is defined by it's "multiculturalism." I've lived in a world of diversity my entire life, and I can't imagine living anywhere else. This is my culture. It seems like it would be... boring?
For real, though, I don't see much conflict where I live. The number of people who voted for Trump in my city was in the single digits. Which indicates that even though we have literally one of the most "multicultural" places in the world, there must a whole lot of stuff that "we as a people are in sync on," as you put it. And I can tell you that from experience, this is true. Although we are a diverse population, we have many unifying values. Belief in multiculturalism is one, for sure, but there are for certain social values that we all share. We are home to Broadway, and have historically been very gay friendly. We as a people, share the value that being gay is okay. We are one of the most densely populated places in the world (and the most densely populated place in the nation), so the values typical of urban areas are shared by us as well. But where I live, immigration is and has historically been our most defining feature, one that is absolutely central to the so-called "New Netherlands" culture.
I am a 3rd generation American. I very rarely meet someone whose family has been in this country longer than me. Collectively, and extremely large percentage of the millions of us that live here still hold onto some traditions of their home country. And collectively, we celebrate it. My home town is made up of largely 2nd and 3rd generation Italian Americans. Come to Jersey, and you'll see the Italian American pride seep into our culture. I am not a drop Italian, but I, too, celebrate it. In this follows through with the many enclaves of immigrants from the past 150 years through today in NJ. Multiculturalism is our identity.
I also read that we (NJ) were ranked on Google as the second most prideful state after Texas (cause, you know, Texas), so as you can probably tell, my Jersey pride is coming through. It's because we feel strong sentiments towards our culture. And because we're just that awesome :)
The thing about America, Canada, and the UK (and other Western countries) is that we vote on culture like everyone else but we continue to believe that we don't. Nobody really cares about economics or how the government spends money, and that's why all the topics of debate are so broad.
I agree completely with this.
The West, right now, is involved in an identity crisis and everyone just wants to know where we stand as a people on certain topics.
I'm not sure about the whole west, but I think the US's problem is displayed directly in the link I above. There is no single unified culture in this country. There are about 11 different unified cultures in this country. If you allowed the NYC-metro area to run the country, we'd have a damn clear picture as to what direction we want ourselves to go in. And ditto for the bible-belt. But force iyr two cultures to run the country together as part of the same "United" States? Well, it's no wonder our country is the way it is.
everything seems to be in flux and, in my estimation, societies don't exist like that for long.
I also agre with this. People forget how young our country is. And you know what, I would bet that societies are and are going to be coming and going much faster than they ever have in the history of humanity simply due to globalization. We've got airplanes and the internet. We're all connected. So we're all forced to find some way to co-exist peacefully. Only time will tell what the ultimate affect globalization will have on society is, but all I can tell you is that I don't even have an inkling as to how it will turn out.
I do suspect, though, that there will be a "winner" of sorts. Or that we'll all lose. Idk. It's a Brave New World...