Donald Trump's Policies Present a Risk to Our Social Fabric.
His national and international strategies – from the attempted coup previously to recent incursions and threats – erode not only national and global legal frameworks. However, the issue goes deeper.
They endanger the core idea of civilization itself.
The moral purpose of civilized society is to stop the stronger from preying upon and using the vulnerable. Failing that, we would be trapped in a conflict of all against all where only the fittest could survive.
This concept is embedded of the Declaration and Constitution. This is also the heart of the modern framework of international relations championed by the United States, emphasizing multilateralism, democracy, human rights, and the supremacy of law.
Yet, it is a delicate construct, frequently ignored by those who would exploit their influence. Upholding it necessitates that the powerful have the moral fortitude to refrain from seeking immediate gains, and that the rest of us ensure they answer for their actions when they fail.
Absolute power does not make right. It results in instability, chaos, and war.
Each instance people or corporations or countries that are advantaged attack and exploit those that are not, the structure of society frays. Should such behavior are left unchecked, the structure collapses. Allowing it to persist, the world can descend into instability and violence. It has happened before.
We now inhabit a society and world with deepening divides. Political and economic power are more concentrated than ever before. This encourages the privileged to leverage their position against the less fortunate because they feel untouchable.
The fortunes of a handful of tycoons is difficult to fathom. The reach of big tech, big oil, and large defense contractors extends over numerous countries. AI is could consolidate resources and influence to a greater degree. The military might of the leading countries is unmatched in human history.
Supported by a compliant faction and a sympathetic judicial body, the executive office has been transformed into the supreme and answerable-to-none instrument of state power in the modern era.
Consider this confluence and you see the danger.
A clear connection ties previous transgressions to current provocations. These were founded upon the overconfidence of omnipotence.
There is much the same in international affairs: in military conflicts, in coercive diplomacy, and in the worldwide exploitation by massive conglomerates.
Yet, strength without restraint does not establish right. It produces instability, revolution, and war.
Historical evidence demonstrates that laws and norms to constrain the influential also shield them. Absent these limits, their relentless pursuit for increased control and resources ultimately cause their collapse – along with their enterprises, countries, or domains. And risk global conflict.
This kind of lawlessness will haunt international stability – and indeed civilized conduct – for years to come.
