Worldcrunch
The Left (Die Linke) and the far-right AfD party scored big in Germany’s federal election on Sunday. But their success has less to do with the fact that they offer more or less radical alternatives to other parties than in their style of political discourse — and more moderate parties would be wise to learn a thing or two from this.
The multi-faceted Friedrich Merz promises to be a most indecipherable head of government. Only one thing’s for certain: He is willing to take risks. It comes with serious perils, but may be exactly what Germany (and the world) needs right now.
Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro joins a long line of dictators whose fall from grace is marked by a period of incessant corruption, isolation, and a disconnection from reality.
People’s deplorable actions ultimately have more to do with socially induced fears and mistrust than some inherent evil. Fiction and tradition tells us humans are fundamentally wicked, but history says otherwise.
The halting of AstraZeneca’s vaccine trial is not only a reminder of the challenge of finding a cure, but will feed growing public mistrust of states and scientists.