At the start of every year, I write a brief editorial. These editorials seem to become only darker with every passing year. 2026 has only just started and we seem to be off to a very grim start, and things seem even worse than they already did in 2025. But we cannot stick our heads in the sand.
The United States has essentially become a rogue state. Extrajudicial killings and now, the unlawful invasion of Venezuela and the kidnapping of Nicolás Maduro, have destroyed whatever shreds of positive reputation the USA might have still had on the international stage. Trump’s obsession with Greenland, a territory held by its NATO ally Denmark, is the final nail in the coffin.
Everyone now knows that the United States cannot be trusted anymore. They have always done whatever they wanted to, but now there is no civilized pretence anymore. The American government treats the world as its private property; manifest destiny exported to whatever country is next on the shopping list. Among other things, an explicit aim of current American policy is to destroy the European Union by sowing division: propping up far-right parties like the repulsive AfD in Germany, and by tempting countries like Italy, Hungary, and Austria to follow the United Kindom and quit the Union, as if any politician here has any stomach to do that after the disaster that was – and continues to be – Brexit.
These efforts will mostly fail, because the current American administration is stupid, headed by a demented fool who, even in his youth, possessed a subnormal intelligence at best. Every stereotype of the loud, dumb American is proudly embraced by this rat pack of grifters, liars, thieves, rapists, and pedophiles. They wage war against other countries, but also against their own people. Structural violence, such as their latest healthcare “reform”, will ensure the deaths of thousands if not millions of Americans. Direct violence, such as the recent ICE murder of Minnesotan resident Renée Good, is no longer beyond the pale, nor the lies they create to cover them up.
The world must resist this onslaught on whatever passes as civilization. At the very least, the American military bases in other sovereign nations, in Europe and elsewhere, should be dismantled immediately. At this point in history, having an American base within your borders is like inviting Putin to station some Russian troops in your country. Trump is the most openly right-wing, authoritarian leader of the United States so far, but he is, ultimately, the culmination of a decades’ long rightward lurch in American – and, indeed, global – politics.
The most frustrating thing about all of this is the way that a lot of conventional media frame these assaults on the world. On the CNN website, Stephen Collinson wrote an article entitled, “Europe may need to adopt Trump’s brass-knuckle methods to save Greenland”, rather than “Trump Willing to Start World War Three with Europe for No Good Reason”. The Guardian publish a piece entitled, “Trump news at a glance: president reveals the snub behind his Greenland ambitions”. These are not “ambitions” – cry baby Trump is willing to start a war against a NATO ally because he – and whoever advises him – are clearly thirsty for blood. These examples can be multiplied ad infinitum.
Lest we forget, the US was the only NATO country to ever invoke article 5, but, sure, say that NATO doesn’t support you. The United States are also the only nation in the world to have dropped not one, but two atomic bombs on an opposing state. But, sure, keep saying that other states, like Iran, shouldn’t have a nuclear arsenal.
Might does not make right. It is unsettling – to say the least – to see the United States openly embrace neocolonialism, one quarter into the twenty-first century. But it’s not surprising.
After 9/11, the media and politicians alike felt obligated to take lunatics of the far right seriously. They were offered a seat at the table, and when mainstream media, slowly dying as a result of the internet, realized what a gold mine the ravings of these morons were with regards to viewership and readership, they fully embraced Le Pen, Meloni, Wilders, Orbán, Trump and more of their ilk.
When far-right ideology was thought to be popular among voters, especially centrist politicians lurched to the right rather than offering up any good solutions themselves, because they had none. On the left, parties lost voters because they largely failed to connect to the worries, fuelled by reports in the media, of the average voter. As far-right politics became mainstream, voters felt confident in tossing in their hats with the likes of the AfD, FPÖ, Reform, and the Republicans (the MAGA party).
It’s easy to give in to despair because things are bad. But if history teaches us one thing, it’s that these situations do not last. Most far-right parties that get into power do not last a long time, because their policies, focused on demonizing minorities, does not actually improve life for the average voter. We have seen in recent years that parties on the left can surge to victory. There is always a way out of the darkness.
The United States seems to overreach more and more, and their erratic and hostile behaviour is that of a dying predator, hissing and clawing at whatever comes near. Some who get too near may be taken down, others will be injured. But the creature will, eventually, expire. We can only hope the total damage it does on the way out will be limited.
Whatever the United States does next, the world is ready to move on without them. Already after last year’s tariffs, many ships started to avoid American ports. Tariffs are ultimately paid by the American people anyway, so it’s a stupid measure to take regardless. After decades of negotiating, he EU struck a major trade deal with Mercosur, the South American trade bloc. Canada cut a deal with China. And so on.
The United States of America is diving headlong into the abyss of irrelevance. We need to resist them, just like we need to resist every other right-wing, xenophobic, selfish organization and person everywhere. The only way forward is through altruism, expansion of social programs, collective resistance to authoritarianism wherever it emerges, and a renewed commitment to international cooperation based on mutual respect rather than domination.