The second group you mention is "cynical and lax" about damned near everything, to include habits and principles that tend to lead to success in life. 😐

I'm not Latino but have lived in, travelled widely and also have an academic degree in related fields. It may be over-simplifying, but you are entirely correct on a few counts. The Latin tradition had (and still has) a far stronger caste system or well-defined social structures. It's not quite feudal anymore, but those classes are quite clearly defined. There was and still is a MUCH stronger tradition of Catholicism in these cultures, which tend to be more supportive of the traditional society/power structure than the later Protestantism which rather shook up old institutions. That observation, by and large, remains valid even for major political movements (e.g. Socialism, Communism) of the 19th century onward. The revolutionary slogans of these movements notwithstanding, what usually results is, in effect, replacing the old control structure (the Church) with a government serving many of the same (worldly) functions. Even nations like Cuba, who would love to boast they've been a Communist paradise for 60+ years, still have strong vestiges of what look suspiciously like a feudal society. English-speakers, especially those steeped in a Liberal ethics, would be shocked at the rigid racial caste system endemic in these nations. Again, notwithstanding official denials of same. Latin America has a long tradition of bribery and corruption that makes whatever we complain about in America look pretty tame by comparison. Laws and rights are routinely ignored whenever it suits the ruling power's interests. Alas, the West seems to be well down that path, although we are probably still some decades behind the most craven examples of the Third World.

You couldn't be more wrong about social mobility in such societies. The occasional exception, an Evo Morales or a local drug kingpin, are just that, exceptions. The ruling structure, local or national, are the "Ladino," wealthy or at least well educated classes.

In sum: Yes, Latinos are pretty good proxies for sheep. This trait is of course not unique to them, but it is the rule.