The old idea that the world runs on polite international rules is falling apart.
That is the main message of a recent long interview with Konstantin Kisin, a British political commentator and co-host of the podcast TRIGGERnometry. He is also the author of An Immigrant’s Love Letter to the West. You do not need to know his name to follow the point: the West got comfortable, other countries did not play by the same rules, and now power is shifting.
After World War II, and especially after the Soviet Union collapsed, many leaders in Europe and America acted as if the big contests were over.
Kisin says that was a mistake. The West took its eye off the ball. Countries cut industry, let their militaries shrink, and spent huge sums on welfare. Europe, he notes, is a small slice of the world’s population and economy—but a very large slice of the world’s welfare spending.
Germany shut down nuclear plants and became more dependent on Russian gas. Britain, he argues, hollowed out manufacturing and now lives with high taxes, weaker influence, and less money per person than it had two decades ago. When a country feels safe for too long, it stops preparing for a world that is not safe.
That is why, in his view, Donald Trump is not “breaking the system.” He is treating the system as it actually is.
Other powers already act in their own interest. China, Russia, and others do not wait for permission from international law. International law only works if someone can enforce it. No world police exists. So, Trump’s approach—put America first, deal with hostile neighbors, look at strategic places like Greenland, and stop pretending everyone is playing the same game—is a recognition of reality, not a rejection of it.
Kisin also argues that mass immigration has to be stopped if Western countries want to stay stable.
He points to unrest in Iran, China’s shrinking young population, and the danger that big job losses from AI could push politics toward more extreme “take from the rich” ideas. He is blunt about Britain’s Labour leadership and about a culture that punishes wealth instead of building it.
The simple version: the postwar peace story is over. Countries that stay strong, control their borders, keep cheap reliable energy, and look after their own people will matter more. Countries that lecture the world while weakening themselves will matter less.
That is the warning Kisin is giving the West—and the reason he thinks Trump’s style fits this moment better than Europe’s.
