Generally speaking, I find Swedish politics about as exciting as sitting on a wobbly camping stool in the middle of a noisy campsite eating a bowl of soggy cornflakes doused in lukewarm milk.
Admittedly this year´s political scene offers a little more spice with perhaps the most outstanding feature being, that I run the risk of being shot off my stool.
Undoubtedly a flavour adding political ingredient galvanizing even the most lethargic lawmaker into some sort of action. There is general agreement on the problem with the political left putting the onus on better integration and anything remotely associated with the blatantly obvious need for the same and the political right sailing on the other tack, bemoaning the wishy washy, if any legal consequences for criminal gangs, hinting that getting rid of ”them” will solve the problem. ”Them” being an often used term in reference to any shade of immigrant colour, not necessarily criminal. ”Getting rid of,” meaning longer prison sentences, deportation and an almost total moratorium on low skills immigration.
I think most people are aware that a good mix of the two approaches is a necessary prerequisite for anyone to be allowed to finish their cornflakes in peace. A gigantic political challenge highlighted by almost daily gang shootings.
Significantly, the populist right wing SD party (Sweden Democrats) envisages a return to the Swedish ”folkhem,” or home for the people, where basically everybody did as they were Social Democratically told, people weren´t too fussy about locking their doors at night and there were few foreigners, not to mention Muslims. NB a large proportion of SD´s voters are former Social Democrats. Ignoring climate change also fits in well with the ”folkhem” scenario and the absence of Pride is enough to warm the cockles of any homophobic SD heart.
Surprise surprise, Sweden´s Prime Minister, Magdalena Andersson also says she wants to return to, ”the Sweden we love.” No prizes for guessing what that means. Although to be fair, it comes across as cheap political rhetoric rather than anything else, underlined by her pragmatic but defining move in applying for membership of NATO, unequivocally distancing the country from its Social Democratic ”folkhem” history and ending 200 years of neutrality.
The jaw dropping dishonesty that the future lies in the past is as laughably obvious as the benefits of Brexit or Russia´s reincarnation of Peter the Great. As a vote magnet for the disgruntled? Understandable. As a political agenda?
Doomed to failure.
Polling day, the 11th of September, will show us how many people in Sweden understand the difference.
