The Week Unwrapped podcast: Sovereign citizens, troops and suits

Olly Mann and The Week delve behind the headlines and debate what really matters from the past seven days.

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In this week’s episode, we discuss:

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Sovereign citizens

In Australia and the US, the coronavirus pandemic and the regulations intended to counter it, have led to a rise in the phenomenon of the Sovereign Citizen. Although the term covers a wide range of beliefs, most people who use it are convinced that they have a right to opt out of specific laws or even the entire legal system - and that they can do so by quoting an obscure statute.

American withdrawal

With Trump hurtling toward a seismic election in November, his decision to suddenly withdraw 12,000 US troops from American bases in Germany has been described by some as a “final gift to Russia”. But with German opinion turning against US presence on the continent, the geopolitical consequences may not be as simple as they seem.

Dressing down

Several prominent US retailers of men's suits have filed for bankruptcy in recent weeks. Men's formalwear has long been in decline, but the pandemic – and for many of us, the new reality of working from home – is accelerating a change in workplace attire. But is it just the pandemic that's to blame? Would the end of the suit be such a bad thing? And are we stuck in a design rut more generally when it comes to style?

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