Trump's Actions Present a Danger to Civilized Society.
His internal and external initiatives – from the effort to overturn the election five years ago to current actions and warnings – undermine not only national and global law. However, the issue goes deeper.
These actions threaten the core idea of a civilized world.
The ethical foundation of any advanced culture is to forestall the dominant from harming and taking advantage of the vulnerable. Otherwise, we would be locked in a state of nature where might makes right prevails.
This concept is central of America’s founding documents. This is also the heart of the modern framework of international relations championed by the US, built on collective action, popular sovereignty, human rights, and the supremacy of law.
However, it is a fragile principle, often broken by those who choose to misuse their influence. Preserving it necessitates that the those in charge have the moral fortitude to abstain from seeking immediate gains, and that society ensure they answer for their actions if they don't.
Unchecked strength does not make right. It results in turmoil, disruption, and conflict.
Every time people or corporations or countries that are wealthier and stronger prey upon those that are weaker, the fabric of our shared norms frays. If these actions are left unchecked, the structure collapses. Without intervention, the world can plunge into chaos and war. We have seen this pattern previously.
We now inhabit a global community marked by extreme inequality. Influence and wealth are held by fewer hands than in modern history. This invites the privileged to take advantage of the less fortunate because they feel above the law.
The fortunes of a handful of ultra-wealthy individuals is almost beyond comprehension. The reach of major corporations in technology, energy, and aerospace covers numerous countries. Artificial intelligence is poised to centralize wealth and power to a greater degree. The offensive capability of the major powers is without parallel in the annals of time.
Empowered by a compliant faction and a sympathetic judicial body, the presidency has been turned into the supreme and answerable-to-none agent of government in the modern era.
Consider this confluence and you perceive the threat.
A clear connection ties previous breaches of norms to present-day threats. These were based on the arrogance of absolute power.
You see a similar pattern in international affairs: in military conflicts, in strategic threats, and in the rampant monopolization by industrial titans.
But, raw power does not create right. It makes for fragility, upheaval, and armed conflict.
The lessons of the past reveal that laws and norms to check the influential also shield them. Absent these limits, their relentless pursuit for more power and wealth ultimately bring them down – taking down their enterprises, countries, or domains. And pave the way for global conflict.
This blatant lawlessness will cast a long shadow over the nation and the world – and the very idea of civilization – for years to come.
