When order and order seem to apply most to others Scenes from Ulf Kristersson's political career The Moderates often talk about order, order and responsibility. Ulf Kristersson has long played the role of the adult in the room. There are several concrete episodes in political history. Strängnäs: savings package and red numbers In 2002, Ulf Kristersson took office as finance municipal councilor in Strängnäs….
The Liberals – lost in the shadow of the right
A party with a democratic tradition The Liberals carry a historical heritage that few Swedish parties can match. When the party was called the People's Party, liberal forces contributed to voting rights reforms and political modernization. With support from liberal voters, the Social Democrat Hjalmar Branting was able to take a seat in the Riksdag as early as 1896. This history shows that the will to social reform and liberal freedom have long been…
Amending the Refugee Convention will not solve problems of crime and injustice
In political debate, deportations are often presented as an obvious and simple method for dealing with crime among people without permanent residence in a country. The idea is that if such a person commits a serious crime, the state should immediately deport the person. At the same time, it is important to ask yourself – what happens after deportation?…
Iran – bombing democracy and human rights is very difficult
Air raid sirens cut through the night in Tehran. Missiles strike a country where people have long lived under severe oppression, economic pressure and geopolitical vulnerability. In the West, leaders and commentators once again talk about freedom, security and perhaps democracy. But historical experience points in a different direction. War has almost never built human…
The law was followed, but where did humanism go?
I do not question that the Migration Court of Appeal ruled according to the applicable law. Courts are supposed to apply the law, not engage in politics. But that is precisely why the question must be asked elsewhere: what kind of legislation have we created – and what values does it reflect? When a young person who has lived most of his life in Sweden, who has taken root…
When did the Social Democrats stop being “patriots”?
As the Social Democrats' political communication increasingly revolves around security, values and national cohesion, new tensions arise in the party's organization and ideological direction. When the future is described as a preservation of the present, communication risks becoming both exclusionary and visionless. A simplistic view of security and nationalistic communication shifts social democracy away from equality, global responsibility...
Magdalena Andersson and the communication dead end
In recent years, the Social Democrats have communicated more about issues such as migration, values and cohesion. This is no coincidence, given that social policy developments since the late 2010s have been more about topics such as community, crime and security. In a political landscape where the Social Democrats have lost many voters and their previously more obvious position as…
What is a school?
The school building is important Once upon a time, schools were built to be schools. Back then, they planned for the school building to fulfill its purpose. Of course, there are old schools that included an apartment for the teacher. So, these are not the ones I mean. I am referring to the schools that have everything needed to…
Three-party systems normalize inequality and racism
This is how racism & right-wing politics were normalized despite voters wanting equal welfare: deregulation and healthcare choices created insecurity; surplus labor kept wages down; “winner-takes-all” in the Riksdag; S shot at the market in 2010. The anxiety became the fuel for the right. M attracts voters who like insecurity and SD attracts voters who like security. S is outmaneuvered when they don’t want to go…
Social media and public concern are turning public opinion on Russia
When the people's voice turns the tide in security policy Is a neutral Ukraine at peace preferable to a country where bombs continue to fall? The question is appearing more and more often in Swedish feeds on social media and in topics of conversation back home. In Ukraine too, people are tired of the war and 70% want peace now as soon as possible through negotiations….