Others have said more already, but it's maybe good to remember that "karma" isn't fair. It's just cause and effect. Like, say, gravity, it doesn't set things right. It has no sense of justice. It is inherently dumb.
It's just that, like gravity or crude oil or electricity, we can use it to our advantage. Most beings don't know about it, and act for millions and millions of lifetimes with no other guiding light than their habits and their perceived needs. They act in whatever way and as a result have whatever experiences, maybe millions and millions of lifetimes later.
This is all pretty much meaningless. Ignorance, the karmas (actions) we do based on ignorance and the experiences that result from those karmas are all pretty much meaningless.
My condolences for the loss of your dog. You could consider saying a mantra like om mani padme hum on their behalf, or light some candles and incense. That would be meaningful karmas, which will surely lead to meaningful results. You could do the same for mr. Trump actually. Karma, or rather cause-and-effect might be generally meaningless, but compassion surely isn't.
Just some thoughts.
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Karma being a process of cause and effect it is just in an absolute sense and as intelligent as the laws of physics (however you want to take that, infinitely dumb, infinitely intelligent) As in, it is justice without notions of justice. Conventionally speaking it is unfair because of our limited view of its procession.
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Karma is not a cosmic justice system, it’s a doctrine describing the relationship between intentional actions and how the mind is conditioned to experience reality.
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Karma is not a doctrine. Perhaps a doctrine can describe this relationship but that’s just a cluster of concepts. I’m not trying to say it is a justice system in conventional terms, like how we think of right/wrong or punishment/reward. It is just what happens as a result of thought/actions. And sure, in a more ultimate sense there is no karma because there is no separation between cause and effect or condition and causes, but in terms of “why did this undesirable thing happen when no one was immediately deserving of it” can be explained by this completely impartial reaction. It just isn’t immediately apparent because karma doesn’t operate via the same parameters as the conditioned mind, which creates ideas of fairness or justice. So yes I guess my phrasing is inaccurate in using that word, but something as absolute as what happens is very tricky to put into words
PROBLEM OF NATURAL EVIL V MORAL EVIL
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Karma is just your doing. It just means "action".
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Why should I believe in karma?
You don't have to. If you do, though, it reminds you of the importance of being skilful when it comes to finding your own happiness, because you are aware that there will be lasting consequences.
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Taking responsibility for one's actions
"'I am the owner of my actions (kamma), heir to my actions, born of my actions, related through my actions, and have my actions as my arbitrator. Whatever I do, for good or for evil, to that will I fall heir'...
"[This is a fact that] one should reflect on often, whether one is a woman or a man, lay or ordained...
"Now, based on what line of reasoning should one often reflect... that 'I am the owner of my actions (kamma), heir to my actions, born of my actions, related through my actions, and have my actions as my arbitrator. Whatever I do, for good or for evil, to that will I fall heir'? There are beings who conduct themselves in a bad way in body... in speech... and in mind. But when they often reflect on that fact, that bad conduct in body, speech, and mind will either be entirely abandoned or grow weaker...
"A disciple of the noble ones considers this: 'I am not the only one who is owner of my actions, heir to my actions, born of my actions, related through my actions, and have my actions as my arbitrator; who — whatever I do, for good or for evil, to that will I fall heir. To the extent that there are beings — past and future, passing away and re-arising — all beings are the owner of their actions, heir to their actions, born of their actions, related through their actions, and live dependent on their actions. Whatever they do, for good or for evil, to that will they fall heir.' When he/she often reflects on this, the [factors of the] path take birth. He/she sticks with that path, develops it, cultivates it. As he/she sticks with that path, develops it and cultivates it, the fetters are abandoned, the obsessions destroyed."
— AN 5.57
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You have asked about kamma and your dog. Sadly, the answer there is clear: when you are born you will die. This happens even to beings who live extremely long lives as gods. See other replies here about kamma being just a 'dumb law' that isn't part of human justice or fairness (our perceptions and our activity, not the outcome of laws of physics). When you are born you will die, and as there is again-birth there is again-death, over and over again.
You also ask about kamma and people who you think act in unskilful ways. The answer there is clear, too: if these people do not reflect on how they are heir to their own actions then they will cause themselves problems. Do you want old rich men with political power and influential allies to show those problems now? Well, I'd argue they do: do either of the men you mention seem very happy? I don't think there's any amount of money or kingship that can make up for that. If I make, say, ten times the normal units of sadness a day, and you arrange around me as perfect a world as possible out of unlimited money, I'm still going to find myself sad quite a lot.
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Drug-induced Ego Dissolution (DIED). A family of acute effects produced by high doses of psychedelic drugs, typically reported as a loss of one's sense of self and self-world boundary.
Focused Attention (FA). A common style of meditation that involves sustaining one's attentional focus on a particular object, either internal (e.g., breathing) or external (e.g., a candle flame). The practitioner is instructed to monitor their attention, notice episodes of distraction (mind-wandering), and bring their attention back to the object. FA is usually the starting point for novice meditators.
Loving-Kindness Meditation (LK). A common style of meditation that focuses on developing compassion and love for oneself and others, gradually extending the focus of empathy to foreign and disliked individuals or even all living-beings. While loving-kindness meditation incorporates technical elements from FA and open monitoring (OM, defined below), it has a distinct phenomenology and neural correlates due to its emotional content.
Mantra Recitation (MR). A style of meditation that involves repeating a sound, word or sentence, either aloud or in one's mind, in order to calm the mind and avoid mind-wandering. Although MR is arguably a form of Focused Attention meditation, it is distinguished by its speech component and may have distinct neural correlates.
Meta-Awareness. The ability to take note of the content of one's current mental state. In the context of meditative practices, meta-awareness often refers specifically to the meditator's awareness of episodes of mind-wandering (spontaneous thoughts arising during meditation).
Mindfulness Meditation. A group of practices aimed at cultivating mindfulness, typically defined as a state of non-judgmental awareness to one's present moment experience. Mindfulness meditation may refer to both focused attention (FA) and open monitoring (OM) practices.
Non-Dual Awareness (NDA). In many contemplative traditions (including Advaita Vedanta and Kashmiri Shaivism within Hinduism, and Dzogchen and Mahāmudrā within Buddhism), the practice of meditation aims at recognizing the illusory nature of the subject-object dichotomy that allegedly structures ordinary conscious experience, thus revealing the “non-dual awareness” that lies at the background of consciousness.
Open Monitoring (OM). A common style of meditation that aims at bringing attention to the present moment and openly observing mental contents without getting caught up in focusing on any of them. Open monitoring meditation traditionally follows focused awareness, as the practitioner learns to switch from a narrow attentional focus on an object to a global awareness of the present moment.
Psychedelic Drugs. A family of psychoactive compounds whose complex effects on the quality of conscious experience are mainly mediated by their action on serotonin receptors in the brain (and specifically their binding to and stimulation of serotonin 2A receptor subtype). Psychedelic substances include mescaline, psilocybin (so-called “magic mushrooms”), Lysergic Acid Diethylamide (LSD), N,N-Dimethyltryptamine (DMT), and the DMT-containing brew Ayahuasca.
Pure Consciousness (PC). A state of consciousness described as “objectless” or entirely devoid of phenomenal content. While the possibility of such states is very controversial, certain conscious states induced by some meditative practices and classical psychedelics might lack at least ordinary phenomenal content. In the Hindu and Buddhist traditions, the practice of Samadhi is often described as leading to the experience of PC.
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I don't want to get into too much detail right now and will let others elaborate on this topic. Fundamentally, karma is cause and effect. It is an accumulation of actions that lead to repercussions or result in self-punishment.
I don't know exactly what is going on with BoT, however, if you look into the eyes of some people you will see their fear, they will cry or possibly are filled with anger and stress--this is only part of what the effect is that they receive.
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I have a story to tell to make a point...
In 1946, somewhere in the Savanna, Teddy is nearing his death. Surrounding him are his large family and extended family who love him. Its a long tiring life but feels.... different. For the first time in his life, he feels like he accomplished something. He feels loved and appreciated. You see, Teddy lived a very greedy life but he changed halfway through his life. He somehow learned to look after others especially his family members.
He died and his family of 30 fellow baboons wept as he passed away.
Seconds later, miles away, across the ocean, a baby human boy was born. Fred & Mary named their son Djt
He grew up with no recollection of his past lives. From scorpion, pig, snake, a Japanese sex slave girl in 900 AD, then back to geese, snake again, pig again, then a French merchant who got beheaded during the French Revolution, then back to being a horse, a cat, a lion, and then a mighty baboon. (Teddy)
Teddy/dt has been around a long time reliving the same life and traits he has, occassionally reaching the human realm for good deeds he did as animal, only to fail and return to the animal realm again for hundreds of years.
In 2030, we see again that Teddy dt is loved by his family, yet he is still full of deceit, greed, lust, he passed away after living a full human life....
Moments later somewhere in Vietnam village, a 4th puppy comes out of his mom's body. Days later. Teddy is back at it again, sucking the breasts of his dog mom while pushing away his siblings.
Few years later, young dog Teddy ends up on a plate.
Minutes later, somewhere in Indonesia, an egg hatches and a snake is born. Teddy is back as a snake....and so his life goes.
Who will Teddy be next? A duck? A disabled girl? A Nobel winning scientist? Will he be back again as a camel or a hen? Will Teddy find the Dharma and escape the cycle of suffering?
Nobody knows.
(I don't want you to belive in Karma. That's NOT my intention at all. But I made this story to answer one thing.....NO, dt is NOT getting away unscathed. You can't say "nothing bad happens to him".)
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