In the Coronavirus Fight in Scandinavia, Sweden Stands Apart.

[elleng]

'The country has drawn global attention with an unorthodox approach while its neighbors have imposed extensive restrictions.

STOCKHOLM — When the coronavirus swept into the Scandinavian countries, Norway and Denmark scrambled to place extensive restrictions on their borders to stem the outbreak. Sweden, their neighbor, took a decidedly different path.

While Denmark and Norway closed their borders, restaurants and ski slopes and told all students to stay home this month, Sweden shut only its high schools and colleges, kept its preschools, grade schools, pubs, restaurants and borders open — and put no limits on the slopes.

In fact, Sweden has stayed open for business while other nations beyond Scandinavia have attacked the outbreak with various measures ambitious in scope and reach. . .

*The state epidemiologist, Anders Tegnell, said in an interview that Sweden’s strategy is based on science and boiled down to this: “We are trying to slow the spread enough so that we can deal with the patients coming in.”'>>>

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/28/world/europe/sweden-coronavirus.html?

[Ferrets are Cool]

1. Will someone with access please explain this to me...

how are they actually fighting the virus?

[elleng]

2. 'There is no evidence that Swedes are underplaying the enormity of the disease

rampaging across the globe. The country’s leader and health officials have stressed hand washing, social distancing and protecting people over the age of 70 by limiting contact with them.

But peer into any cafe in the capital, Stockholm, and groups of two or more people can be seen casually dining and enjoying cappuccinos. Playgrounds are full of running, screaming children. Restaurants, gyms, malls and ski slopes have thinned out but are still in use. . .

Sweden’s approach appeals to the public’s self-restraint and sense of responsibility, Mr. Tegnell said. “That’s the way we work in Sweden. Our whole system for communicable disease control is based on voluntary action. The immunization system is completely voluntary and there is 98 percent coverage,” he explained.

“You give them the option to do what is best in their lives,” he added. “That works very well, according to our experience.”

Sweden’s method flies in the face of most other nations’ stricter strategies. . .

In explaining Sweden’s current strategy, experts point to other underlying factors: The country has high levels of trust, according to the historian Lars Tragardh, and a strict law in the Constitution prohibits the government from meddling in the affairs of the administrative authorities, such as the public health agency.

“Therefore, you don’t need to micromanage or control behavior at a detailed level through prohibitions or threat of sanctions or fines or imprisonment,” Mr. Tragardh said in a phone interview. “That is how Sweden stands apart, even from Denmark and Norway.”

The government has deferred to the agency’s recommendations to fight the virus, which has infected more than 600,000 people and killed more than 27,000 worldwide by Saturday. If the health agency were to say that closing borders and shutting down all of society was the best way to go, the government would most likely listen.

Mr. Tragardh said Swedes’ level of trust was manifested in other ways: Not only do citizens have confidence in public institutions and governmental agencies and vice versa, but high social trust exists among citizens, as well.

That is evident in the country’s approach to the virus. Norway did not completely shut its 1,000-mile land border with Sweden, but most people returning from abroad must enter a two-week quarantine (Reindeer herders and daily commuters are exempt.) Finland closed the borders of its most populous region — which has 1.7 million people and includes the capital, Helsinki — for three weeks to fight the outbreak there. . .

Sweden initially banned gatherings of 500. . .

Closing borders at this stage of the pandemic, when almost all countries have cases, to me does not really make sense,” he said. “This is not a disease that is going to go away in the short term or long term. We are not in the containment phase. We are in the mitigation phase.”

He also said that closing schools had not been ruled out.'>>>

[Ferrets are Cool]

3. If this works there, it will be a pure accident.

Seems to me that it is not being taken seriously enough.

[Celerity]

4. we (I live in Stockholm) are more than likely fucked

see here

here are 3 OP's of mine that goes into depth (some of my replies do as well)

https://www.democraticunderground.com/100213185779

https://www.democraticunderground.com/100213175937

https://www.democraticunderground.com/100213167850

it is a clusterfuck, like reverso-word Trump (from the quasi-left, not the right)


btw


the resto in the OP article's pic

used to be Pubologi , one of our few favourites in Gamla stan (Old town, which we usually try to avoid, as it is far too touristy, although touristy for Stockholm pales in comparison to many EU cities)

now it is another really good one (same owners, they have a 'gastro bloc' on that street) called La Ragazza

https://www.laragazza.se/?welcome=true

and NO we are NOT NOT NOT going out at all, for 2 weeks now, we are doing our part, fuck the government

FUCK ANDERS TEGNELL

[Ferrets are Cool]

5. Thank you for posting. Please stay safe. nt