Fear or Respect for The United States If Trump Wins? Part 1

Certainly not respected. Anybody who is paying any attention to how the rest of the world is reacting to the prospect of Trump winning the presidency would know that the thought of it seems absolutely astounding, and ludicrous, to most folks outside of the United States, including most political leaders, from both allies and perceived adversaries. (Putin, however, seems to relish the prospect of matching wits with Trump instead of Hillary in the coming years). Electing Trump would probably amount to stupidity and insanity. Trump's own party is already deserting him, how could the electorate be that stupid. The people of America will lose the respect of the global community for choosing a person like trump- most developed nations think he’s a joke, and find it ridiculous that Americans are even considering him for Presidency. But it will most definitely be feared.

Now, when I say feared, I don't mean the type of fear that Niccolò Machiavelli talks about in The Prince, where people are afraid of their wrath, and thus conform to their wishes. I mean that the world will fear his sheer unpredictability. They will wonder what sorts of things Trump will do in office- will he bomb the hell out of Iraq and Stria, killing innocents? Will he raise tariffs in a protectionist effort to fix the economy? Will he cause hyperinflation, ruining commerce?

Fear and respect are not mutually exclusive. The world has good reason to feel both emotions in relation to the US. The question is which would be dominant in the event of Trump being elected. I think fear would probably dominate if only because of the uncertainty surrounding his intentions on the level of international relations, with particular regard to the Middle East and Russia. But no, it would be the bad kind of fear, like “This guy is so unpredictable and irrational, we’d better just hunker down for the next few years and hope that the world can get through this without something catastrophic happening - like a global economic collapse, or him blundering into a nuclear crisis.”

It would be prudent to avoid speculating too much in advance of the election. There is bound to be a break-in period as he would adjust to the realities of his circumstances. The Congressional mid-terms would be the acid test of his presidency. A democratic hold on either house would severely restrict his authority to unilaterally act against any country. There is the world as he sees it and the world as it is in Washington. 

We'll just have to await the results in November. No point losing sleep over something that may not happen. If you're sufficiently worried, make sure you and your friends get out and make your votes count.

Part 1