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The internal and external initiatives – from the effort to overturn the election in the past to latest moves and threats – undermine not only national and global legal frameworks. But that’s not all.

They jeopardize the very concept of civilization itself.

A moral purpose of civilized society is to forestall the dominant from harming and taking advantage of the weaker. Without this, we could find ourselves permanently immersed in a state of nature where survival of the strongest prevails.

This ideal lies at the center of the nation's founding texts. It’s also the foundation 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 delicate principle, frequently ignored by those who would exploit their power. Preserving it necessitates that the powerful have the moral fortitude to refrain from seeking short-term wins, and that the public hold them accountable should they falter.

Absolute power does not make right. It results in instability, chaos, and war.

Whenever entities that are advantaged attack and exploit those that are less so, the structure of our shared norms frays. If these actions are not contained, the fabric unravels. If not stopped, the world can fall into chaos and war. We have seen this pattern previously.

Our current reality is a society and world marked by extreme inequality. Political and economic power are increasingly centralized than in recent memory. This invites the elite to exploit the disadvantaged because they feel omnipotent.

The fortunes of certain tycoons is difficult to fathom. The reach of global industrial giants extends over much of the globe. Advanced technology is poised to consolidate resources and influence further. The destructive power of the major powers is unmatched in recorded history.

Supported by a compliant faction and a pliant high court, the executive office has been turned into the most powerful and unaccountable agent of state power in history.

Consider this confluence and you see the looming crisis.

An unbroken thread ties previous lawless actions to current provocations. These were founded upon the overconfidence of omnipotence.

You see much the same in international affairs: in territorial invasions, in coercive diplomacy, and in the global depredation by industrial titans.

Yet, raw power does not make right. It makes for instability, upended order, and armed conflict.

The lessons of the past reveal that frameworks designed to check the powerful also shield them. Without such constraints, their insatiable demands for greater influence and riches ultimately cause their collapse – along with their corporations, nations, or empires. And threaten international catastrophe.

Such disregard for rules will plague international stability – and the very idea of civilization – for years to come.