Trump's Actions Present a Risk to Civilized Society.
His national and international initiatives – from the challenge to the democratic process previously to recent moves and threats – undermine both national and global jurisprudence. The implications are broader.
They threaten the fundamental meaning of civilization itself.
The moral purpose of a functioning society is to stop the more powerful from harming and taking advantage of the weaker. Without this, we would be trapped in a conflict of all against all where might makes right could survive.
This ideal lies at the center of the nation's founding texts. It is equally the heart of the postwar international order championed by the US, which stresses multilateralism, popular sovereignty, fundamental freedoms, and the rule of law.
However, it is a fragile principle, frequently ignored by those who choose to misuse their power. Upholding it necessitates that the those in charge have enough integrity to avoid seeking short-term wins, and that the rest of us ensure they answer for their actions should they falter.
Unchecked strength does not make right. It leads to instability, disruption, and hostilities.
Each instance entities that are richer and more powerful target and use those that are not, the structure of our shared norms weakens. If such aggression are not contained, the fabric unravels. Without intervention, the world can plunge into chaos and war. We have seen this pattern previously.
Today, we live in a global community with deepening divides. Influence and wealth are held by fewer hands than in modern history. This invites the elite to exploit the disadvantaged because they act with a sense of above the law.
The fortunes of certain ultra-wealthy individuals is almost beyond comprehension. The power of big tech, big oil, and large defense contractors covers numerous countries. AI is could consolidate economic and political clout to a greater degree. The military might of the major powers is without parallel in recorded history.
Supported by political allies and a pliant high court, the presidency has been made into the most powerful and unaccountable instrument of government in history.
Put it all together and you perceive the danger.
An unbroken thread links earlier transgressions to current threats. Each were based on the arrogance of omnipotence.
One observes a similar pattern in other global contexts: in wars of aggression, in strategic threats, and in the rampant monopolization by industrial titans.
But, strength without restraint does not create right. It fosters fragility, revolution, and bloodshed.
The lessons of the past reveal that rules and conventions to constrain the influential also safeguard them. Absent these limits, their insatiable demands for increased control and resources eventually cause their collapse – and with them their enterprises, countries, or domains. And risk global conflict.
Such lawlessness will plague America and the global community – and indeed a rules-based order – for a long time.