Trump's Approach Pose a Danger to Civilized Society.

His internal and external initiatives – ranging from the attempted coup in the past to current moves and threats – undermine both domestic and international jurisprudence. But that’s not all.

These actions threaten the very concept of what we mean by.

A ethical foundation of civilized society is to forestall the stronger from attacking and exploiting the less powerful. Otherwise, we would be trapped in a brutish war where only the fittest prevails.

This concept lies at the center of the Declaration and Constitution. It’s also the core of the global system established after WWII championed by the US, which stresses international cooperation, democratic governance, human rights, and the supremacy of law.

Yet, it is a vulnerable ideal, often broken by those who seek to abuse their authority. Maintaining it requires that the influential have a sense of duty to refrain from seeking immediate gains, and that society demand responsibility should they falter.

Absolute power is not right. It results in uncertainty, chaos, and war.

Whenever entities that are richer and more powerful attack and exploit those that are not, the structure of society unravels. If these actions are allowed to continue, the system fails. If not stopped, the world can fall into disorder and conflict. We have seen this pattern previously.

We now inhabit a international landscape with deepening divides. Authority and resources are more concentrated than in recent memory. This creates conditions for the powerful to leverage their position against the less fortunate because they feel untouchable.

The wealth of certain ultra-wealthy individuals is staggering. The reach of big tech, big oil, and large defense contractors spans numerous countries. Advanced technology is likely to consolidate wealth and power even more. The offensive capability of the leading countries is unprecedented in human history.

Supported by political allies and a sympathetic high court, the executive office has been transformed into the most powerful and unaccountable instrument of state power in history.

Put it all together and you see the danger.

An unbroken thread connects earlier breaches of norms to current threats. These were based on the overconfidence of absolute power.

There is parallel dynamics in international affairs: in wars of aggression, in coercive diplomacy, and in the worldwide exploitation by massive conglomerates.

However, unfettered might does not establish right. It fosters fragility, upended order, and war.

The lessons of the past reveal that frameworks designed to constrain the powerful also safeguard them. Absent these limits, their endless appetite for more power and wealth ultimately lead to their downfall – along with their corporations, nations, or empires. And pave the way for world war.

This kind of contempt for legal order will cast a long shadow over the nation and the world – and indeed civilized conduct – for years to come.