Posted on 04/30/2020 9:18:46 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
Conservatives have developed a fascination with Sweden’s hands-off approach to the coronavirus — an unexpected twist for a country that once served as a Republican punchline for Bernie Sanders jokes.
On the surface, Sweden’s approach to containing the coronavirus pandemic is a libertarian dream: Restaurants remain open, as long as they adhere to social-distancing rules. Schools are in session. Salons are in business. And by some metrics, Sweden has fared roughly as well as many of its European neighbors, all of which have instituted much stricter lockdown measures.
The combination has made Sweden an object of curiosity — and a possible model — for conservatives and libertarians pushing states to relax the strident social-distancing guidelines that have shuttered much of the American economy. Some on the right have called Sweden an example of what happens when Big Government leaves citizens alone. President Donald Trump himself grappled with Sweden’s approach while talking to reporters on Wednesday, musing that the Swedish leader doesn’t have to tell people, ”stay in your house. The people stay there automatically.”
But Swedes are quick to point out that their model relies on elements that are antithetical to American conservative philosophy — namely a high degree of trust in government — in addition to natural factors such as a less dense population.
“It is interesting to see that the Swedish stress on what we call ‘freedom under responsibility‘ is getting picked up by the libertarian right in the U.S.,” said Lars Trägårdh, a history professor at Ersta Sköndal Bräcke University College in Sweden. “The big problem with all of that is that Sweden is all built, ultimately, on a very strong alliance between the state and the individual.”
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
Didn’t Trump say Sweden isn’t doing well?
Setting aside attacks about Sweden’s universal health care system, conservatives have a long-standing interest in Sweden’s inability to fall neatly on a left-right dichotomy: The country has a strong welfare state and high taxes, but also a strong free-market economy. The conservative Heritage Foundation, for instance, places Sweden on par with the U.S. in its yearly Index of Economic Freedom, ranking it the 22nd most economically free country in the world, just five spots behind the U.S.
“Sweden's not really socialist so much as ‘libertarian with a welfare state,’” Dr. Pradheep Shanker, a radiologist and public health policy expert who writes for National Review says. “It's the libertarian part that a lot of conservatives are watching.”
RE: Didn’t Trump say Sweden isn’t doing well?
Yes he did. Sweden’s relatively relaxed policies are NOT what America is implementing.
Trump noted the country was “paying heavily” for its decision. “Despite reports to the contrary, Sweden is paying heavily for its decision not to lockdown. As of today, 2462 people have died there, a much higher number than the neighboring countries of Norway (207), Finland (206) or Denmark (443). The United States made the correct decision!,” Trump said in a post Thursday morning on his official Twitter account.
No, they immediately turned and looked how to best copy Communist China.
But Sweden is and will be just fine.
I have to edit to add though, the reason the USA has a LOWER death rate than Sweden is because we are a vastly LARGER country with MOST of the country having RELATIVELY FEW infection and death rates. What brings our death rates up are the hardest hit states — NY and NJ for instance.
When you compare Sweden to say, New York City, New Jersey and some of the other hardest hit American states which has STRINGENT lockdown policies, Sweden has a LOWER death rate.
Didn’t Trump say Sweden isn’t doing well?
*************************************
Originally, yes, but he has tempered his initial harshness toward the Swedish approach as he has gotten more information.
The CCP weaponized “flu” has definitely brought out the Libertarian in me.
“The Government which governs least governs best”
The leftists simply cannot understand the conservative mind. First, conflating libertarianism with conservatism. Then saying that a mistrust of government means conservatives wouldn’t behave given the opportunity to act responsibly. The concern is not mistrust of govt, it is government’s lack of trust in the people, using lies to control their behavior. I couldn’t get beyond the excerpt — pure propaganda.
Yeah, that's the ticket. I'm cheering on the Swede's libertarian streak - not their socialist proclivities. Yeah, I'll go with that...
“addition to natural factors such as a less dense population.”
One, that’s not a natural factor, but more importantly Sweden has population density if 23 per square km and U.S. has 34.
Both well under world averages.
And Sweden’s is really higher in that less area is populated as opposed to the U.S.
But news reporters are dumb and say things they just assume are true.
Trump got played.
I think by the end of the summer, we’ll follow the Swedish approach, whether our Governors want to or not. Already, Michigan is rebelling and if their Governor was smart, she’ll back off. But she’s not doing that.
You are calling him a liar?
No one actually has accurate death rate numbers.
Nope.
Trump didn’t get played by anyone.
He’s not Bush. This guy knows what he’s doing.
It’s enlightening. All these posts about Trump getting played or being stupid regarding Fauci and Birx, etc. Me included.
Trump is a billionaire businessman who ran for president against the GOP and Dems and the entire political establishment and still won!He ain’t getting played by anyone and it’s disheartening that so called conservatives are no better than the liberal media and their followers.
End of the Summer?
We are screwed if we wait that long.
I’m referring to his negative comment about Sweden.
It is a leftist talking point and meaningless.
As someone mentioned, Trump seems to have walked it back.
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