Read on Twitter
Presenting: a twitter thread in defence of the Swedish coronavirus strategy, by a grateful émigré who went to a bar in Stockholm the other day. (1/15ish)
While most of the rest of the world panics and shuts everything down, Sweden has retained a hum of normalcy, albeit with more hand sanitiser and plexiglas windows. Gatherings of more than 50 people are banned, but shops, restaurants, and national borders are still open.
For this, it’s getting a lot of international hate https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/28/europe/sweden-coronavirus-lockdown-strategy-intl/index.html
A few things to set straight.
They said it would get bad here, but it hasn’t just yet. The death rate is already declining.
https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/624/cpsprodpb/170C3/production/_111930449_deaths_per_day_sweden_23april-nc.png
They said it would get bad here, but it hasn’t just yet. The death rate is already declining.
https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/624/cpsprodpb/170C3/production/_111930449_deaths_per_day_sweden_23april-nc.png
Barely 20 people below the age of 40 have died. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1107913/number-of-coronavirus-deaths-in-sweden-by-age-groups/
The majority of deaths happened in poorly funded elderly care homes (the government privatised them a few years ago) reserved for the oldest and frailest people. This is ofc awful, but not the fault of a non-lockdown strategy.
Scientists and doctors at first told Scandinavian governments that a full lockdown wasn’t necessary. Denmark, Norway and Finland decided to go that way anyway. Public health decisions in Sweden are not made by parliament, but by the health agency.
It’s a political decision to lock down.
People (politicians especially) want to be seen to be doing something, even if that something isn’t the saving grace we’re hoping it’ll be.
People (politicians especially) want to be seen to be doing something, even if that something isn’t the saving grace we’re hoping it’ll be.
This strategy wouldn’t work anywhere else. More than half of Sweden lives in single person households. Sweden has a very healthy population, in a well resourced and sparsely populated country.
And Swedes are used to keeping a distance from each other. Two metres is nothing. about the normal size of a standard Swedish comfort zone.
I can’t say how good this is for a nation’s mental health. But it's certainly saved mine. Sweden has one of the highest rates of depression in the world - much deadlier than COVID-19. Rather than being forced into even greater loneliness, we can go to the park and get tacos.
These chilled out measures don’t come from a place of laziness or carelessness or recklessness. The idea is that less stringent physical distancing measures can be maintained over a longer period of time. https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-01098-x
It is not without guilt that we continue to go out like everything is pretty much fine.
I’ve likely already been infected with coronavirus, although I’ve had no symptoms. They’re saying around 26% of people in Stockholm are probably already infected.
I’ve likely already been infected with coronavirus, although I’ve had no symptoms. They’re saying around 26% of people in Stockholm are probably already infected.
For the most part, people here trust that the government has their best interests at heart. It’s not like they’re wilfully ignoring scientists and doctors. On the contrary, they meet almost every day.
It’s an experiment, but every country is experimenting. Sweden’s chief epidemiologist accepts that he doesn’t know if he’s made the right decision. We won’t know for a while if this worked out better for us.
In a few months from now (if we survive that long) I could well be eating my words (perhaps they’re all i’ll have left to eat).
But for now, it seems like their decision is the right one.
That is all.
But for now, it seems like their decision is the right one.
That is all.
It’s been a while since I’ve seen any articles in english language media decrying the Swedish coronavirus strategy. And, well...
As embattled countries struggle with a resurgence in cases, Sweden discos.
(footage from this morning, around 5am in a field in Kista)
#coronavirus
(footage from this morning, around 5am in a field in Kista)
#coronavirus
“There are no other tricks”
#covid19 https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/sep/15/sweden-records-its-fewest-daily-covid-19-cases-since-march
#covid19 https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/sep/15/sweden-records-its-fewest-daily-covid-19-cases-since-march
