Trump's Policies Present a Risk to Civilization.
The national and international initiatives – ranging from the attempted coup in the past to recent incursions and threats – undermine both domestic and international law. But that’s not all.
These actions jeopardize the core idea of civilization itself.
The guiding principle of any advanced culture is to prevent the dominant from preying upon and using the weaker. Otherwise, we would be trapped in a brutish war where survival of the strongest prevails.
This ideal is embedded of America’s founding documents. It’s also the heart of the postwar international order championed by the United States, emphasizing collective action, democracy, human rights, and the rule of law.
But, it is a vulnerable construct, often broken by those who choose to misuse their authority. Maintaining it necessitates that the influential have the moral fortitude to refrain from seeking immediate gains, and that the public hold them accountable when they fail.
Absolute power does not equal right. It makes for instability, disruption, and conflict.
Every time individuals, companies, or nations that are advantaged prey upon those that are not, the structure of civilization weakens. Should such behavior are not contained, the system fails. Without intervention, the world can fall into disorder and conflict. We have seen this pattern previously.
Today, we live in a society and world marked by extreme inequality. Authority and resources are held by fewer hands than ever before. This invites the powerful to exploit the weaker because they act with a sense of above the law.
The fortunes of certain ultra-wealthy individuals is almost beyond comprehension. The power of big tech, big oil, and large defense contractors spans much of the globe. Advanced technology is likely to further concentrate wealth and power to a greater degree. The military might of the world's largest nations is unmatched in the annals of time.
Empowered by a compliant faction and a pliant judicial body, the highest office has been turned into the supreme and answerable-to-none instrument of the state in the modern era.
Put it all together and you perceive the looming crisis.
An unbroken thread ties previous lawless actions to present-day threats. Each were premised on the arrogance of absolute power.
You see a similar pattern in the actions of other powers: in territorial invasions, in coercive diplomacy, and in the rampant monopolization by industrial titans.
But, raw power does not make right. It fosters instability, upheaval, and war.
Historical evidence demonstrates that rules and conventions to limit the powerful also safeguard them. Absent these limits, their insatiable demands for increased control and resources eventually lead to their downfall – taking down their corporations, nations, or empires. And risk international catastrophe.
This blatant lawlessness will plague America and the global community – and indeed civilized conduct – for the foreseeable future.
