While Sweden Slept

New York Sun ^ | December 8, 2006 | By BRUCE BAWER

[Eurotwit]

The approach of the New Year and departure of the old inevitably brings a flurry of "year's best" lists. This even applies to nations, which some organizations make it their business annually to rank in order of wealth, quality of life, and what-have-you. Surprisingly often, the Nordic countries come out on top. This placement is usually a reflection less of objective reality, however, than of the list-makers' enthusiasm for the Nordic welfare-state model. The criteria, in other words, are formulated in such a way that the Nordic countries will inevitably end up on top. Hence Norway, for example, is repeatedly named by the United Nations as the world's richest country — forget that prices and taxes are so high that even business executives lunch on dry sandwiches brought from home in aluminum foil. Now it's Sweden's turn.

[Eurotwit]

ping

[untenured]

I read Nr. Bawer's book, and appreciate his point about the squelching of discussion about immigration in Sweden, but...

In Sweden, whose murder rate is currently twice that of America...

No way.

[FormerACLUmember]

Thank you for a terrific post. Extremely informative, not to mention jaw-dropping!

Check out the Sweden Democrats (English) website:

http://www.sverigedemokraterna.net/int_text.php?action=fullnews&id=225

[goldstategop]

Scandinavia is becoming as Islamified as Western Europe. And its famed welfare state is on its deathbed thanks in no small part due to the natives' low rate of reproduction. There's a good chance in a generation, the Northern Lands will be Muslim.

"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." -Manuel II Paleologus

[Fairview]

They'll reap what they sow.

[NYorkerInHouston]

Bruce Bower- liberal, gay and a liar as well.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruce_Bawer

[bobjam]

Based on their birth and abortion rates, they don't deem their culture worthy enough to be passed on to future generations. We'll see how those intellectuals fare under sharia law.

[mad puppy]

If you follow the link and look at the comments on the article section you'll see a fairly strong rebuttal to this column. Still, one is left with deep concern for Sweden. Truth be told, they are sleeping just a bit more soundly than most people in the US. In the last 6 years, President Bush has disappointed me a great deal, BUT, he has fought Islam and hopeful bought us a few more years to wake up.

[Eurotwit]

I think Bawer is using some interpol figures from 2003 published in the Economist, which has later proven to be wrong.

Wikipedia states:


In 2003, there were 189 homicides in Sweden [3]. In 2001, there were 169, which gives a rate of cirka 2 murders per 100,000 inhabitants. This figure is in line with most European countries, which also have a level of between 1-2. For comparisments: U.S has 6 murders per 100,000; and Russia: 20.5.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crime_in_Sweden

[El Gato]

There's a good chance in a generation, the Northern Lands will be Muslim.

Does that mean St. Nickolaus will be trading his reindeer in for camels and his sleigh for a magic carpet? Will he, after being renamed Abu Nic, be bringing toy suicide belts to all the good little boys, with new burkas for the girls? Inquiring minds want to know.

[kabar]

I wonder who put his bio into wikipedia. The fact that he is gay or liberal is not as important as whether his facts are correct or not.

[2banana]

When voices of dissent do break through in Sweden, they're often punished. During the runup to the Iraq war, the Swedish government censured the independent TV channel TV4 for running an "Oprah" episode that presented both pro- and anti-war arguments. TV4 was charged with violating press-balance guidelines when in fact its offense was being too balanced — it had exposed Swedish viewers to ideas from which journalists had otherwise shielded them.

Only one sizable party in the country, the Sweden Democrats, articulates most Swedes' concerns about their country's immigration and integration policies. Again and again, it has been the object of breathtakingly undemocratic treatment by the political establishment. Earlier this year, for example, the government closed down the Sweden Democrats' Web site because it had published a cartoon of Muhammad. Stig Fredriksson, head of the free-speech organization Publicistklubben, complained bitterly. But the incident was hardly reported in Sweden — and, of course, barely caused a ripple abroad. If the Bush administration had closed down a Democratic Party Web site¸ there would be scare headlines and editorials thundering about dictatorship — and rightly so. But when Sweden's rulers did it, it was apparently acceptable — because they did it in the name of political correctness.

The double standard of the socialist press is arrogance, pure and simple. There is no difference to socialism, fascism and communism. All three operate in the same manner and all three end just as badly...

[kabar]

Jihad in Swedish Schools

"Even more news from Sweden's third largest city, Malmö, the evolving tragedy of failed immigration policies and runaway crime rates. Set to become the first major Scandinavian city with a Muslim majority a few years from now, it is the horror story in the ongoing collapse of Swedish society."

[Barney Gumble]

Bruce Bower- liberal, gay and a liar as well. While he was your traditional liberal democrat, I think he had an awakening after moving to Europe and seeing how the radical Muslims affected their society. He's been highly critical of radical Muslims, so I don't see how he can be that liberal.

[ryan71]

I'm gonna miss Europe...NOT!

[NYorkerInHouston]

He still portays his book: Stealing Jesus: How Fundamentalism Betrays Christianity proudly on his website so I would say that the apple hasn't fallen far from the tree. He is what what as he always has been. Currently living in Norway with his "partner".

[shrinkermd]

Alexis de Tocqueville pointed out over a century ago that efforts to achieve egalitarianism usually ended up with democratic despotism. The harder the Swedes try to tell themselves they are a superior group the more likely they will be to engage in unnecessary day to day control over some of their citizens.

Besides that they have eliminated religion as a force; hence, all that is left to secure the safety of the citizens is state power. The murder rate is unsurprising.

[NYorkerInHouston]

Check out his website where he proudly displays his previous books including: Stealing Jesus: How Fundamentalism Betrays Christianity

Here's his website: http://www.brucebawer.com/

Now he has appeared to inch a little to the right since moving to Europe, but only a little and he still seems to support the views he held in his previous books.

[the anti-liberal]

"they don't deem their culture worthy enough to be passed on to future generations."

This may go a long way to explaining some of the behavior of some of the brainwashed, politically "minded," liberal women in our society.