>There's a general malaise throughout this continent of Europe

The continent is remarkably resilient, we just love to complain. The fact that we're handling a de facto war with Russia, an energy crisis, a trade crisis and about half a dozen other crises with merely moderate amount of pain is a sign of strength, not the opposite. Five years ago people were claiming we'd freeze to death.

And I'm saying that as a German who can't stand the AfD as much as anyone else, the fact that they sit at 40% in our poorest region of two million people (where a third has emigrated over the last two decades) maybe shouldn't send you into a panic. That's Germany's version of rural Alabama. Turns out we're not exceptionally immune to populism in times of stress.