I whole-heartedly agree with this theory and the desire for group inclusion is strong in the human psychology. It's deep rooted. The desire to belong and to share a community with 'our people' is hugely powerful. It plays out in religion, it plays out in sports, it also plays out in race. The same underlying psychological principles that make you cheer at the LA Lakers, is what makes the people who listen to R.L feel like 'white people' is the group they want to belong to. The group identity is strong and it can be hijacked.

That does have to be tempered though, the power of belonging to a group shouldn't outweigh the consistent questioning we have about our group identity. We must be aware of where our group identity is leading us and the absolute malleability of our brains towards unquestioning obedience in the face of exclusion. Attacking the group makes individuals identify with the group more strongly and shifts our moral reasoning. The group moves and the individual moves within it - the more the group comes under pressure to break up, the more cohesive and irrational it becomes.

For you, carefully in the world of sports, that's no biggie. LA til you die - but not really. If the Lakers asked you to murder someone, you probably wouldn't... but this happens all the time with every group. When groups attack each other, they create more cohesion in the 'in-group' - the scary thing to consider, is what the USA needs right now, to put its demons to bed is a good old fashioned World War.

Failing that, to lower the heat - different ideologies need to stop attacking each other and use reasoning to override that emotional draw towards inclusion. In short, to stop identifying as anything other than human beings and to work towards that as a common functional goal. Everything else is doomed to failure because of the interactions of both sides for exactly the Psychological reasons you've outlined.

For the record, I'm a Baltimore Ravens fan. Different sport. Different part of the country. What can I say... I love Purple and have a soft spot for Edgar Allen Poe. That's enough for my group inclusion needs. :o)