In uncertain times, such as these are, perhaps the instinct is kicking in to view one another as rivals for resources.
So here’s a line of thought. You might think that a time of relative risk would be the time to band together as a community for mutual benefit; but one of the downsides of the present cultural and political climate is to erase boundaries and distinctions so you don’t know who is “us” and who is “them.”
(There’s an upside to that, of course, as we know. We hear about it all the time. It’s reasonable to discuss the downside too, and that doesn’t happen very often.)
If I look upon A or B as my sister or brother and they don’t regard me in the same way, there is no safety for me with them, not even if I’ve been there for them when they needed a hand. When it’s time to close ranks for protection, their closing won’t include me.
So either I have to find a group to identify with, a group I can trust to stand by me even when danger is high and resources are scarce, or I have to be prepared to go it on my own, which is really hard. Does my safe group include my family? How much beyond my family? What criterion am I using?
I’m talking about primitive instincts here, not political ideologies. Tribalism is pretty basic.
Perhaps what you’re seeing is simple petty jealousy, people feeling threatened by someone else’s ability or competence, but I think there are deeper roots to it.