Trump's Actions Pose a Danger to Civilized Society.
His internal and external initiatives – including the attempted coup in the past to latest incursions and statements – weaken both domestic and international jurisprudence. The implications are broader.
They threaten the core idea of what we mean by.
The guiding principle of a functioning society is to forestall the stronger from harming and taking advantage of the weaker. Otherwise, we would be trapped in a brutish war where only the fittest could survive.
This principle is embedded of the Declaration and Constitution. It is equally the heart of the modern framework of international relations advocated by the United States, which stresses multilateralism, democracy, individual liberties, and the legal authority.
However, it is a vulnerable construct, frequently ignored by those who seek to abuse their authority. Maintaining it demands that the those in charge have a sense of duty to refrain from seeking short-term wins, and that society hold them accountable should they falter.
Unchecked strength is not right. It leads to uncertainty, disruption, and war.
Whenever entities that are advantaged prey upon those that are less so, the structure of civilization frays. If such aggression are not contained, the fabric unravels. Without intervention, the world can descend into disorder and conflict. History provides ample precedent.
Today, we live in a society and world grown vastly more unequal. Political and economic power are more concentrated than in recent memory. This encourages the powerful to exploit the weaker because they feel above the law.
The resources of a handful of billionaires is difficult to fathom. The power of global industrial giants spans much of the globe. Artificial intelligence is likely to consolidate wealth and power even more. The destructive power of the world's largest nations is unprecedented in the annals of time.
Supported by a compliant faction and a sympathetic supreme court, the executive office has been made into the most powerful and unaccountable agent of government in history.
Put it all together and you grasp the threat.
A direct line connects past transgressions to current provocations. These were premised on the hubris of invincibility.
There is much the same in the actions of other powers: in territorial invasions, in expansive ambitions, and in the worldwide exploitation by powerful corporate entities.
However, raw power does not establish right. It fosters instability, upheaval, and bloodshed.
The lessons of the past reveal that rules and conventions to limit the powerful also protect them. If these guardrails are removed, their insatiable demands for greater influence and riches ultimately lead to their downfall – taking down their corporations, nations, or empires. And pave the way for international catastrophe.
This kind of disregard for rules will cast a long shadow over America and the global community – and the very idea of civilization – for a long time.
