In this episode, Alex starts by discussing growing concerns about another COVID wave just in time for the holidays. He notes that this one will likely be different but could be concerning for hospitals. Next, Alex discusses the irritating delusions of Kyrsten Sinema, who has recently declared she will work as an independent, detached from the Democratic Party. This is not surprising because Sinema only seems to fight for corporate interests and has been a thorn in the side of Democrats for years now. Alex moves on to a seemingly laughable yet disturbing story out of Germany that involves a far-right network that was planning a coup against the German government. Their goal was to overthrow the “deep state” and to create a new, German Reich. Alex argues that this event exposes the threat of domestic extremism in many large democracies around the world. Finally, Alex reflects on another structured attempt to overthrow a democratic system. Peru’s (now former) president, Pedro Castillo, was removed from office. The Economist notes that Castillo attempted to “close Congress, convene a new one with powers to write a new constitution, and “reorganize” the judiciary and the prosecutor’s office.” Alex gives a brief history of recent Peruvian leaders and discusses why these revelations are not surprising. Simply put, a lot of Peruvian presidents have ended up in jail or been removed from office. A problem for democracy? Probably.