Donald Trump's Actions Pose a Risk to Civilization.
His domestic and foreign policies – from the challenge to the democratic process five years ago to current incursions and threats – weaken both domestic and international law. The implications are broader.
They endanger the very concept of civilization itself.
A moral purpose of any advanced culture is to prevent the dominant from preying upon and using the weaker. Failing that, we could find ourselves permanently immersed in a state of nature where only the fittest prevails.
This principle is central of the Declaration and Constitution. It’s also the core of the postwar international order championed by the United States, built on multilateralism, popular sovereignty, individual liberties, and the legal authority.
However, it is a delicate principle, often broken by those who would exploit their influence. Maintaining it demands that the influential have a sense of duty to refrain from seeking short-term wins, and that the public ensure they answer for their actions if they don't.
Unfettered might is not right. It leads to instability, upheaval, and hostilities.
Whenever people or corporations or countries that are wealthier and stronger prey upon those that are weaker, the fabric of our shared norms frays. If such aggression are left unchecked, the structure collapses. Without intervention, the world can descend into disorder and conflict. We have seen this pattern previously.
Today, we live in a global community with deepening divides. Political and economic power are held by fewer hands than ever before. This creates conditions for the powerful to leverage their position against the weaker because they feel untouchable.
The wealth of a handful of ultra-wealthy individuals is staggering. The influence of big tech, big oil, and large defense contractors covers numerous countries. AI is poised to consolidate resources and influence further. The destructive power of the leading countries is unmatched in human history.
Empowered by a compliant faction and a sympathetic judicial body, the executive office has been turned into the most powerful and unaccountable entity of government in history.
Put it all together and you grasp the danger.
A direct line links earlier breaches of norms to ongoing provocations. These were premised on the arrogance of absolute power.
One observes much the same in international affairs: in territorial invasions, in expansive ambitions, and in the worldwide exploitation by industrial titans.
Yet, unfettered might does not establish right. It fosters instability, upended order, and bloodshed.
History shows that laws and norms to constrain the influential also protect them. Absent these limits, their relentless pursuit for more power and wealth in time cause their collapse – taking down their enterprises, countries, or domains. And pave the way for international catastrophe.
This kind of disregard for rules will plague America and the global community – and the very idea of civilization – for the foreseeable future.
