It’s a grad-school reunion this time for Siva and guest-host Allison Wright, as they speak with two pals who are Texas historians about what the heck is going on in the Lone State. Plus, we hear from a teacher in Dallas about some controversial education reforms.

The U.S. occupation in Afghanistan may be over, but every indication is that America will continue to launch targeted strikes on security threats around the world. This time, Yale historian and legal scholar Samuel Moyn makes a plea for leaders to think about how to make peace before using force.

The Haitian Revolution once held out the promise of radical democracy. But internal strife and global oppression has thwarted its fulfillment for two centuries and counting. Three UVA scholars walk Will and Siva through that complex history, and the current unrest in Haiti.

In the wake of Vietnam, the United States pared its global aspirations — and often fell short on humanitarian values. Then came two disastrous national-building efforts. In Part II of our post-Afghanistan reality-check, our guests consider how America might get off this seesaw.

A native New Yorker, Spencer Ackerman watched with horror as the Twin Towers fell in September 2001. At first, he fed on the popular rhetoric of vengeance and unity in the war on terror. Then he became a journalist and covered the conflicts that came — and decided he had swallowed a fantasy pill.

Joe Biden used the word “democracy” in his inaugural address more times than any other President, signaling a shift in rhetoric from his predecessor. But the opposition party that stands in the way of his agenda is openly pursuing less democracy, not more. We wrap up season two with a former republican congresswoman who rejects the cult of Trump, and we hear from political analysts Larry Sabato and Nicole Hemmer.

As India approaches the 75th anniversary of its independence, the future that the country’s founders envisioned — of a diverse, dynamic, egalitarian nation — has been cast in doubt. Historian Manu Bhagavan along with two journalists, Kapil Komireddi and Vidya Krishnan, help Will and Siva ponder whether India is, after all, too big to fly.

Alexei Navalny was poisoned by a Russian-made nerve agent in August 2020. When he recovered, he returned to his own country, knowing he would face persecution. New Yorker staff writer Masha Gessen says that sort of audacity is a cornerstone of the opposition movement.

Alexei Navalny was poisoned by a Russian-made nerve agent in August 2020. When he recovered, he returned to his own country, knowing he would face persecution. New Yorker staff writer Masha Gessen says that sort of audacity is a cornerstone of the opposition movement.