The Former President's Approach Constitute a Threat to Our Social Fabric.
The domestic and foreign strategies – including the attempted coup five years ago to latest moves and threats – erode both domestic and international jurisprudence. But that’s not all.
They threaten the core idea of civilization itself.
The moral purpose of a functioning society is to stop the stronger from harming and taking advantage of the weaker. Otherwise, we risk being locked in a brutish war where survival of the strongest could survive.
This concept is central of America’s founding documents. This is also the heart of the global system established after WWII championed by the United States, emphasizing multilateralism, democratic governance, fundamental freedoms, and the rule of law.
But, it is a vulnerable ideal, easily violated by those who would exploit their influence. Upholding it necessitates that the influential have a sense of duty to abstain from seeking immediate gains, and that society hold them accountable should they falter.
Unfettered might is not right. It leads to turmoil, disruption, and hostilities.
Each instance people or corporations or countries that are wealthier and stronger prey upon those that are weaker, the structure of civilization weakens. If these actions are left unchecked, the fabric unravels. If not stopped, the world can descend into chaos and war. It has happened before.
Our current reality is a international landscape with deepening divides. Authority and resources are more concentrated than in modern history. This encourages the elite to take advantage of the less fortunate because they feel untouchable.
The resources of certain ultra-wealthy individuals is almost beyond comprehension. The influence of big tech, big oil, and large defense contractors covers much of the globe. AI is could consolidate resources and influence further. The military might of the leading countries is unmatched in human history.
Empowered by political allies and a sympathetic supreme court, the presidency has been turned into the supreme and answerable-to-none entity of state power in the modern era.
Put it all together and you perceive the danger.
A clear connection ties previous breaches of norms to current provocations. Each were founded upon the overconfidence of invincibility.
One observes parallel dynamics in international affairs: in military conflicts, in expansive ambitions, and in the rampant monopolization by powerful corporate entities.
But, raw power does not establish right. It makes for uncertainty, upheaval, and war.
Historical evidence demonstrates that laws and norms to limit the powerful also shield them. Absent these limits, their relentless pursuit for greater influence and riches in time cause their collapse – taking down their enterprises, countries, or domains. And risk international catastrophe.
Such contempt for legal order will haunt international stability – and the very idea of a rules-based order – for the foreseeable future.
