I agree; society used to put pressure on people to conform to general standards. That kind of “peer pressure”, I guess, is lacking.
I would not necessarily say that it is lacking -more it is being depressed by government. The founders did not create the greatness of America, they created the environment fostered it that allowed it to take root and happen.
I think that the drive to better ones condition, wealth creation, moral order etcetera are all imprinted withing man and that is only freedom that allows these things to develop fully. We see know a tyranny that seeks to enslave man -a tyranny that oppresses individual self determination for collective ideology. I feel the answer is to simply remove the tyranny and man will recover "naturally"....