Everyone runs – few arrive A nurse counts the minutes between alarms. A warehouse worker lifts at the high pace required by the band. A teacher takes the correction home again. All three have too tough working conditions. Sweden is even among the worst in the Nordic countries in terms of cultural funding, which is why librarians and museum officials have far too poor…
Category: Competition
The crisis of hyperglobalization – and the path to a new green Bretton Woods
The crisis of hyperglobalization finally arrived. For several decades, the world had been governed by one idea: that more trade, more deregulation and more global capital mobility would automatically lead to prosperity. In the report “Out of the Ashes into the Fire,” Stefan de Vylder calls the period from 1980 to 2016 the era of hyperglobalization – an era in which the economy became increasingly…
From the public home to the financial crisis
Anders Borg's confession and the false burden of debt In 2005, Anders Borg admitted that it was not welfare that caused the 1990s crisis, but a misvalued exchange rate and poorly managed macroeconomic policy. Despite this, welfare was left to bear the blame. The Moderates used this narrative to push through attacks on wage earners, privatizations and cuts. Already in 2006, when Fredrik Reinfeldt won the election,…
Saving the world starts with local protests
How do we save democracy, world peace, the climate and nature? Democracy wins the people and vulnerable groups through local protests historically. If they are of sufficient public interest, they spread. Today's capital is built on fragile international systems such as just-in-time. These are very sensitive to disruptions. If local protests spread, this could have a major effect. Could red-green…
Visitation zones instead of competitiveness
In visitation zones, the police must be able to stop and search people without having a specific suspicion of crime. The idea is that it will make the streets safer, but many are against it. Critics believe that it can lead to abuse and violations of people's rights. This is especially true if it is used against certain groups based on skin color…
Work for all provides a more stable, state-regulated mixed economy
Work for all is the goal society must have. Brilliant text on the benefits of full employment and its positive side effects. Niklas Blomqvist questions the idea that the market itself can create full employment. For example, Blomqvist points out that attempts to follow this path in the last thirty years have not produced the desired results. He emphasizes that work for…
The truth about immigration
Integration is an investment – not a cost. Although it sometimes takes up to 5-8 years for refugee immigrants to get a firm grip on the labor market, it is significantly shorter than for many native Swedes without higher education. Young Swedes often try their luck in their 20s and 30s between temporary jobs, unemployment, and studies before they…
The people need both the middle class and the working class
Are you part of the middle class and feel like your job doesn't really make a difference? Don't worry, you're not alone in that feeling. But here comes something that might make you think again. We've heard that some experts believe it's time for the middle class to reassess its role…
Low popularity of benefactor Biden
President Biden has achieved a lot on the economy - especially falling inflation and a great many more jobs. Biden has also won several legislative victories. These will limit the rise in prescription drug prices, expand care options for veterans, slow climate change and rebuild the nation's infrastructure. Still, his popularity ratings are among the lowest in American history except for those of Trump…
Swedish wages are 30 percent too low – The ironclad wage law delivers
Lower Swedish wages. That's what the blue Alliance government wanted in 2006. That's how the Alliance's attack on wages began. Fatally, the Blue Alliance eroded the union affiliation. Another attack was to make it more difficult to get social security and benefits. Consequently, this blue constellation lowered the compensation levels of social security and benefits. The reservation wage would drop. The reservation wage is the lowest…