This post is a final plea to anyone in America who is able to vote in the forthcoming presidential election to vote against Donald Trump. Do not let him get in, as this could be one of the most dangerous decisions the world has seen for decades.

There are 50 days to go before the US presidential election. 50 days before the people of America make a decision that will have consequences for everyone else in the world, for many years to come.

Of course, the impact of this election is always far-reaching, as the president of the US remains possibly the most powerful individual on the planet, but the decision in this election is of even greater consequence than normal, due to one of the candidates on offer – Donald Trump.

It seems utterly absurd that someone like Donald Trump can be in the position of being one of the two possible candidates for the role of president, but that is the reality of where we are.

The other reality is that he can, and will, win – if the people of America don’t stop him.

We’ve seen before in history at times of economic and political crisis demagogues rising to power, with outlooks and policies that would be completely inconceivable at other times.

Don’t believe its possible? Political analyst Nate Silver commented last week “Never seen otherwise smart people in so much denial about something as they are about Trump’s chances. Same mistake as Brexit.”

We cannot let this happen again now – and must learn from relatively recent twentieth century lessons. I won’t list all the ways in which Trump is ill-equipped to take this role, the dreadful, hateful racist nonsense he’s spouted since the start of his election campaign or the fact that much of what he says is simply based on lies. The point is, that Donald Trump is not a joke – he is dangerous – and his election as president could have catastrophic consequences.

The only way he can be stopped is if people vote for Hillary Clinton. That’s it – no other options exist.

As Jonathan Freedland notes, “In a two-party system like America’s, if you want to stop Trump, then a vote for Johnson or Stein will not do it. Only a vote for Clinton can prevent a white nationalist bigot becoming the next US president.”

So, even if you usually vote Republican, are undecided or would rather see anyone else than Hillary Clinton in the White House, on this occasion you need to swallow your pride (and even some of your principles) and take a longer term view – and vote for her, as this is the only way to stop Trump. In other words, vote for Hillary, and against disaster. You will be helping America – and the world – to avoid real danger.

#StopTrump