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…
Category: Poverty
Strikes, knowledge and demonstrations drive society
History shows that almost all major reforms have started with ordinary people rising up. Kjell Östberg's book People in Motion describes how the right to vote, the eight-hour day and welfare did not come from above but grew out of strikes, demonstrations and union struggles. Workers, women, students and soldiers in uniform took to the streets together and demanded dignity,…
Freedom, work, housing and social mobility now
Indeed, the Social Democrats must deliver freedom, work, housing and social mobility – not just manage neoliberalism, say three Social Democrats. So I say that we need a systemic shift back to welfare with a humane refugee policy, labor immigration to shortage occupations, improved pensions, a green transition, free dental care, pharmaceuticals and healthcare, restored social insurance, etc. There is rumbling among the grassroots For people is…
Sufficient childbearing is a matter of security
Sweden's fertility rate has fallen to a historic low of 1,43 children per woman, well below the replacement level of 2,1. Karin Engdahl believes that political reforms are urgently needed to restore young people's faith in the future. She suggests reducing working hours, especially for parents of young children. Without more secure jobs, cheap, good and beautiful housing and investments in saving the climate. and stronger welfare…
“Goody, Goody Two Shoes” – the perfect swear word
“Goody, Goody Two Shoes” – the perfect insult for anyone who wants to take someone down a notch. And not just anyone, but the type who seems to float through life on a wave of superior excellence. We all know someone – or at least we’ve come across them. But where does this come from…
Book about reforming America fairer
The Peoples' Union Manifesto: 35 Steps to a USA That Works for Everyone by Ray Gross seeks to reform the United States from corruption through 35 concrete reforms. The book proposes to make compulsory insurance, energy companies and pharmaceutical companies non-profit. The book wants to introduce Medicare for all, universal basic income, and free or low-cost higher education. It also suggests that religious organizations…
Cooperation, care and human success - from the Stone Age to today
Stone Age Stone Age people survived not because they were the strongest or fastest, but because they could cooperate and care for each other in unlimited numbers. Researchers have found graves that show that even people with disabilities were cared for and buried with respect. This tells us that society depended on everyone…
Dental care should be free - just like healthcare
Dental care is part of the body and should be free for everyone, just like healthcare should be. Dental and medical care are real needs of the people and an investment that increases production in society through better health and quality of life. This reduces the risk of inflation. Despite this, the government chooses to reduce dental care support for young people and lower...
The school's lack of results is due to cutbacks, lack of performance, municipalization and independent schools
In SvD, Henrik Dalgard raises important points about how a culture of adaptation and lowered requirements in teaching affect students and pupils. But it is crucial to place the problem in a larger context. The deteriorating results in school and students' reduced ability to write and analyze is not an isolated phenomenon. They are consequences of…
Social Democracy's challenge
In Movement, Johan Sjölander raises an important and pressing criticism of the Social Democrats. Sjölander puts his finger on a painful truth – that the party has long been accused of drifting to the right. Now the party has actually drifted far too far to the right. But Sjölander's criticism is too mild. The reality is that the Social Democrats, together with their allies…