Donald Trump's Actions Present a Danger to Civilized Society.
His domestic and foreign strategies – from the challenge to the democratic process previously to current actions and warnings – erode both national and global jurisprudence. But that’s not all.
They endanger the fundamental meaning of civilization itself.
A guiding principle of a functioning society is to prevent the stronger from preying upon and using the less powerful. Otherwise, we would be trapped in a conflict of all against all where only the fittest wins.
This principle is embedded of America’s founding documents. It is equally the heart of the postwar international order supported by the America, built on multilateralism, democratic governance, fundamental freedoms, and the supremacy of law.
Yet, it is a vulnerable ideal, often broken by those who choose to misuse their power. Maintaining 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.
Unfettered might does not equal right. It makes for turmoil, disruption, and conflict.
Each instance people or corporations or countries that are richer and more powerful attack and exploit those that are not, the structure of civilization frays. If these actions are allowed to continue, the system fails. Allowing it to persist, the world can fall into instability and violence. We have seen this pattern previously.
Today, we live in a global community with deepening divides. Authority and resources are increasingly centralized than in modern history. This encourages the powerful to take advantage of the weaker because they perceive themselves as omnipotent.
The resources of a handful of tycoons is almost beyond comprehension. The reach of big tech, big oil, and large defense contractors spans numerous countries. Artificial intelligence is could centralize resources and influence further. The offensive capability of the world's largest nations is unprecedented in recorded history.
Empowered by a compliant faction and an accommodating high court, the presidency has been transformed into the most dominant and unchecked entity of the state in history.
Combine these factors and you see the looming crisis.
A clear connection connects previous breaches of norms to current menaces. Each were founded upon the overconfidence of invincibility.
You see much the same in other global contexts: in territorial invasions, in coercive diplomacy, and in the global depredation by industrial titans.
However, unfettered might does not make right. It produces uncertainty, upended order, and war.
History shows that rules and conventions to limit the influential also safeguard them. Absent these limits, their endless appetite for greater influence and riches ultimately lead to their downfall – and with them their enterprises, countries, or domains. And risk international catastrophe.
This kind of contempt for legal order will plague America and the global community – and indeed a rules-based order – for a long time.