Trump's Policies Constitute a Threat to Our Social Fabric.
The national and international strategies – ranging from the challenge to the democratic process previously to latest moves and statements – weaken both domestic and international jurisprudence. But that’s not all.
They threaten the fundamental meaning of a civilized world.
The guiding principle of civilized society is to prevent the stronger from attacking and exploiting the weaker. Failing that, we could find ourselves locked in a state of nature where only the fittest wins.
This ideal is embedded of the nation's founding texts. It’s also the foundation of the postwar international order advocated by the United States, built on international cooperation, democracy, individual liberties, and the legal authority.
But, it is a fragile construct, easily violated by those who choose to misuse their authority. Maintaining it demands that the powerful have a sense of duty to refrain from seeking short-term wins, and that the rest of us hold them accountable if they don't.
Absolute power does not make right. It results in instability, upheaval, and hostilities.
Each instance entities that are advantaged attack and exploit those that are weaker, the fabric of society frays. If these actions are left unchecked, the fabric unravels. If not stopped, the world can descend into disorder and conflict. We have seen this pattern previously.
Our current reality is a society and world with deepening divides. Authority and resources are held by fewer hands than in recent memory. This encourages the privileged to leverage their position against the weaker because they feel untouchable.
The resources of certain ultra-wealthy individuals is staggering. The power of global industrial giants covers numerous countries. AI is could consolidate wealth and power even more. The military might of the major powers is without parallel in recorded history.
Supported by complicit legislators and a sympathetic judicial body, the presidency has been transformed into the supreme and answerable-to-none entity of state power in the modern era.
Consider this confluence and you see the looming crisis.
An unbroken thread ties previous transgressions to ongoing provocations. These were premised on the hubris of absolute power.
One observes parallel dynamics in other global contexts: in territorial invasions, in strategic threats, and in the rampant monopolization by powerful corporate entities.
Yet, unfettered might does not make right. It fosters fragility, upended order, and bloodshed.
The lessons of the past reveal that rules and conventions to constrain the powerful also protect them. If these guardrails are removed, their relentless pursuit for greater influence and riches eventually lead to their downfall – and with them their enterprises, countries, or domains. And risk global conflict.
This blatant contempt for legal order will plague international stability – and indeed civilization – for a long time.
