Trump doesn’t know what’s around the corner

So much has been written about Donald Trump, there is little to add. My offering is triggered by the incident where Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was a guest of the American president and was treated as an intruder.
The appalling episode at the White House where he was ambushed and verbally attacked by Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance may become a folklore legend reflecting the ongoing battle between good and evil. One of the classical accounts of this confrontation is the Biblical story of David and Goliath. It is the universal expression of the unlikely underdog overpowering the oppressive strongman.
Zelensky fulfils the role of the hero, like David who slew Goliath. While he did not overcome Trump in this instance, he displayed the characteristics of the classical hero. A hero is someone who gives his or her life to something bigger than oneself. They embark on a quest or journey embodying a noble cause, often facing trials and tribulations, to achieve their goal.
The villain is the opposite of the hero, selfish and self-serving, manipulative, individualistic, and cruel. They are motivated by a craving for wealth, power and vengeance, opposing the greater good and dehumanizing opposition, spreading violence and leaving destruction in their wake.
Trump’s threats of punishing tariffs, his strained relationship with NATO and his appeasement of Russian president Vladimir Putin are seen and felt as a betrayal of allies and relationships going back 75 years. They are simply dismantled and the ideals underlying them dismissed. In this light Trump is a traitor. The American most synonymous with betrayal is Benedict Arnold. In a different way Trump is betraying the USA and its people. Betrayal is one of the cruellest actions you can take against another, especially someone close to you. It is like stabbing someone in the back. Once trust is broken, it not only damages current relationships, it takes decades to restore, if at all.
In spite of his power and influence, Trump is not totally in control of events. Indeed, America has many failings and may be in decline as an “Empire.” History can upset his agenda in ways we can’t predict, and there are so many unknowns ahead of us which can interfere with his plans. And like all of us, he has his weaknesses. There are no shortages of speculations about his Achilles heel. One is the USA’s isolationist and protectionist policy. We live in a global village and nations need each other. Community is built on truth, trust, dependability and co-operation. Interdependency defines the relationship of nations and any country going it alone or trying to be in charge of the rest will be treated as a pariah. An extreme example of the isolation syndrome is North Korea.
Unfortunately for all of us, a weakened and isolated USA opens the way for China becoming the world’s dominant power. If this occurs, the consequences will be dire, compounded by the expansion of Russia.
It is unlikely President Trump will have a change of heart, but we can hope that events, such as a recession, will change his mind about his abandonment of the positive role America has played since 1945.
Everett Hobbs
Conception Bay South