The new Swedish Prime Minister intends to raise taxes and train everyone who is out of work for good paying jobs. At Ikea. Or maybe Volvo. Do Swedish car owners make their own Volvos?
How is it that all across Europe governments work better under a parliamentary system with a dozen political parties than in a two party constitutional government we have here?
I think this may have much to do with how so many Americans fail to grasp the issue of time. Like evolution, or looking at the CO2 graph that suddenly goes up off scale at the end of the 19th century.
Parliamentary systems work in the hear and now rather than in constant references to men and documents from 230 years ago. Governments can change after only a few months if enough people want it to. Which gives no time to gather up a couple billion dollars to sell congressional votes to the highest bidder. There are also dozens of ideas in play rather than just two. And some of the parties have to agree on things rather than two parties who never agree on anything.
And of course the difference between living in a GUN CULTURE rather than a FONDU CULTURE.
I traveled often with a young man from Sweden. He found four things here in America profoundly unable to grasp.
1) The religious silliness
2) The guns.
3) The visual contrasts of stark poverty across the street from over the top affluence.
4) Restaurant prices magnitudes less than at home.
I asked what they do in Sweden if they can’t afford to go out to eat very often. He told me, they stay home, get drunk, smoke weed and fk. Sounds like college without bars. But perhaps rural Americans should give up their Dairy Queen time and follow that lead.