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Disclaimer: I offer this in good faith, and I don't disagree with your broader points. I had to visit Stockholm twice in September to go to an Embassy. I caugh
by vertis 6y ago
Disclaimer: I offer this in good faith, and I don't disagree with your broader points.
I had to visit Stockholm twice in September to go to an Embassy. I caught the train from Copenhagen, where it was mandatory to wear masks on public transport (though not outside this).
As the train crossed the bridge into Sweden an announcement came over the intercom saying that we could now take our masks off.
As an outsider, I have had the chance to compare the way that a bunch of countries and populations have handled the pandemic. Perhaps the most stark shocks were actually in Copenhagen where I watched people queuing to get into pubs and sitting at densely packed tables at restaurants (September).
I'm always hesitant to judge because there are such complex dynamics at play and there is such and opportunity for biases to creep into what you see. But walking past it, it was hard not to wonder if it would come back to haunt them.
While visiting Sweden it was pretty clear that, aside from the masks, there was absolutely a change in behaviour (social distancing, hand hygiene). Compared to pre-pandemic visits.
The Radisson Blu had packaged up it's buffet breakfast into little containers for safety (that was a truly surreal breakfast -- tiny little glass jars of cheese).
I'm not saying Sweden's approach is right or wrong. The rest of the world hasn't been in any way consistent in their approach(es). But Sweden has definitely taken a different path on several issues.
- catears 6y agoHey, that was pretty cool to hear. Thanks for sharing that experience. The one thing I have continuously relearned about this virus is that pandemics are incredibly complex. It makes sense the pandemic spreads into every context humans place themsleves in. I feel like Sweden (the world?) wasn't well prepared for a pandemic. Hopefully we can prepare better for the next one.
- vertis 6y agoEveryone has the benefit of hindsight now. Having read a little bit about Anders Tegnell, I believe he is making decisions in good faith, and you can't ask for more than that. Trying to apply his expertise to the problem. The majority of countries out there have made slip ups. Australia, which has fared better than most, had several "The Ruby Princess" and a hotel quarantine breach. They're still managing to tear each other apart politically even though the total deaths for Australia (pop 25 mil) is 909. In some ways I think we've gotten off lightly with this pandemic. It could have been Ebola, or with similar survival rates. We've actually proved as a global society that we can all pull in the right direction -- vaccines, etc. Has it been perfect? Not even close. Has it been worse for minorities and lower socioeconomic groups? Absolutely. We can only hope, and plan that some of these things are a catalyst for changes that protect us next time, and make the world a better place in general.