The Former President's Policies Pose a Risk to Civilized Society.
The domestic and foreign strategies – ranging from the attempted coup in the past to recent moves and warnings – undermine not only national and global jurisprudence. But that’s not all.
They jeopardize the very concept of a civilized world.
The moral purpose of a functioning society is to prevent the dominant from harming and taking advantage of the vulnerable. Failing that, we could find ourselves trapped in a conflict of all against all where survival of the strongest could survive.
This principle is embedded of America’s founding documents. This is also the core of the modern framework of international relations championed by the America, built on collective action, democracy, human rights, and the rule of law.
Yet, it is a vulnerable construct, frequently ignored by those who seek to abuse their power. Upholding it necessitates that the influential have the moral fortitude to avoid seeking immediate gains, and that the rest of us hold them accountable should they falter.
Unfettered might does not make right. It leads to turmoil, disruption, and conflict.
Whenever entities that are advantaged prey upon those that are less so, the fabric of our shared norms unravels. Should such behavior are left unchecked, the structure collapses. Allowing it to persist, the world can plunge into chaos and war. We have seen this pattern previously.
Today, we live in a society and world marked by extreme inequality. Influence and wealth are held by fewer hands than ever before. This creates conditions for the privileged to exploit the disadvantaged because they feel untouchable.
The fortunes of a small group of billionaires is almost beyond comprehension. The influence of big tech, big oil, and large defense contractors spans numerous countries. Artificial intelligence is could centralize resources and influence even more. The offensive capability of the world's largest nations is unprecedented in the annals of time.
Supported by political allies and an accommodating judicial body, the highest office has been transformed into the supreme and answerable-to-none entity of government in recent memory.
Put it all together and you perceive the danger.
An unbroken thread links earlier lawless actions to ongoing threats. Each were founded upon the hubris of invincibility.
There is parallel dynamics in other global contexts: in territorial invasions, in strategic threats, and in the worldwide exploitation by industrial titans.
Yet, unfettered might does not create right. It produces instability, upended order, and bloodshed.
History shows that laws and norms to check the powerful also protect them. Absent these limits, their endless appetite for increased control and resources ultimately lead to their downfall – taking down their corporations, nations, or empires. And risk global conflict.
This blatant contempt for legal order will cast a long shadow over America and the global community – and the very idea of civilization – for the foreseeable future.
