The blatant takeover of Ukraine by Russia seems close to reality.  Will this lead to China doing the same to Taiwan?  Donald Trump opened the door to both and Joe Biden and the European Union seem powerless to say don't.  While the Scandinavian countries are united for freedom and democracy, many elective democracies, including the USA, show signs of fraying. The  Democracy Index  shows that we are a FLAWED Democracy. The 2021   Economist Intelligence Unit   Democracy Index   map   Full democracies    9.01–10    8.01–9 Flawed democracies    7.01–8    6.01–7 Hybrid regimes    5.01–6    4.01–5 Authoritarian regimes    3.01–4    2.01–3    0–2.00 The U.S. shows a score of 7.85 and ranks #26, with Norway #1 at 9.75.  Russia is #124 (3.24) and China #148 (2.21).  Afghanistan is #167 (0.32), Myanmar is #166 (1.02) and North Korea is #165 (1.08). The  shift to democracy  is shown here from 1816:   File:Democracy_peace_theory_gif.gif .   Democracy is a political system in which all members