Sweden's Version of Freedom

Off Topic Politics and World Issues
21

[quote]lixy wrote:
Schwarzfahrer wrote:
…

Same thing in Sweden. They don’t shout at you though. They just ask if they might come in, and you say “piss off!”. Usually ends there. A minister had to resign last year because people found out she owned a telly and didn’t pay the tax.

You think you have it bad in Germany? Think again. In Morocco, they included the tax with the electricity bill. You have absolutely no recourse. If you have as much as a light bulb, you pay the audiovisual tax.

In France, since 2005, they guys in charge of the housing tax (which is whooping in the country!) collect the TV money. Makes it seem like pennies compared to the tax on your home. Psychology 101. By the way, Arte is financed by the same “redevance audiovisuelle” as all other channels on the public airwaves. Why is it different in Germany?[/quote]

You guys live in some fucked up countries! We definitely need to invade Europe and Morocco and re-establish individual rights in those countries!!

:smiley:

22

[quote]Zap Branigan wrote:

When I read about some of this crazy shit that goes on in Europe I wonder how you guys can come here and talk about Americans losing their civil liberties with a straight face.

It seems like a homeless man lecturing Bill Gates about money.[/quote]

LOL!! So fucking true its hilarious!!!

23

[quote]Zap Branigan wrote:
When I read about some of this crazy shit that goes on in Europe I wonder how you guys can come here and talk about Americans losing their civil liberties with a straight face.

It seems like a homeless man lecturing Bill Gates about money.[/quote]

I was thinking the same thing.

Why does everyone have a bug in their ass over the supposed erosion of our rights?

Seems like there are enough problems in the Euro backyard without telling the US how unfree we are.

Which is better? To be ruled by a government that will break into your house to see if you have a tele, or an evil corp that sells you cable if you want it?

24

Do all EU countries need TV licenses? I know the Brits do, and obviously you Germans, Austrians and Swedes do.

A license for a TV…and a keen-arsed cop force prepared to find out if you have one or not. I’d be doing an Arnold and making my quiet way to California…

25

[quote]rainjack wrote:
Why does everyone have a bug in their ass over the supposed erosion of our rights? [/quote]

Foreign policy run amok.

If with the level of power your government has, it gets away with such things as the overthrowing democratically elected regimes and waging wars of aggression, one can only wonder what they might do if they acquired more rights.

And seriously, between cashing out to pay for TV and financing weapons used in the murderous journey you embarked on, I’ll pick the former any time. Not perfect, but I’ll sleep better at night knowing my money went in buying film gear and make up than if it went into jet fighters, cluster bombs, and other weapons used in unnecessary wars.

The good news is that a substantial portion of Americans have had it with that criminal foreign policy. The bad news is that most of the population is terrorized to the bone, which lets politicians get away with almost anything as long as they wrap it up in patriotism, 9/!1, and other gimmicks.

26

[quote]rainjack wrote:
Zap Branigan wrote:
When I read about some of this crazy shit that goes on in Europe I wonder how you guys can come here and talk about Americans losing their civil liberties with a straight face.

It seems like a homeless man lecturing Bill Gates about money.

I was thinking the same thing.

Why does everyone have a bug in their ass over the supposed erosion of our rights?

Seems like there are enough problems in the Euro backyard without telling the US how unfree we are.

Which is better? To be ruled by a government that will break into your house to see if you have a tele, or an evil corp that sells you cable if you want it?

[/quote]

Now this is where you all don`t get it.

They would not dare break into our houses because of this, because they are pussies.

In theory we have a lot of taxes and regulations that could never ever be enforced in reality and those who have to enforce BS rules usually know when to look the other way.

An example:

Our drug laws are the same as in the US, however, nobody aggressively enforces them, there are no real mandatory minimums, and the idea that a SWAT team breaks into your house because you grow a few plants there is ridiculous.

The idea that I could actually lose this house, because I grew it there for medicinal purposes would lead to an uproar.

So we may have more laws on the books, but they are conveniently ignored by most reasonable people, ratting to the police is a big no-no concerning such laws and our governments get of our backs because they fear us at least a little bit, especially in small countries like Austria and Sweden where you cannot really hide from us.

The end result is a society that feels much more free than a society where every random letter combination seems to have a commando team.

27

[quote]Peter1968 wrote:
Do all EU countries need TV licenses? I know the Brits do, and obviously you Germans, Austrians and Swedes do.

A license for a TV…and a keen-arsed cop force prepared to find out if you have one or not. I’d be doing an Arnold and making my quiet way to California…[/quote]

They are not cops. They have no rights whatsoever.

28

[quote]Headhunter wrote:
orion wrote:
Headhunter wrote:
vroom wrote:
LOL. That’s hilarious, though incredibly wrong.

Don’t worry Rainjack, I’m sure you’d at least fail the test.

You rip RJ for putting insults into a post once in a while, then try to provoke him with a post like this. Uh…okay…

He probably benches twice your squat, 3 wheels and all.

Excuse me, but to insinuate that RJ is on the vitamin T is hardly news nor an insult.

Hmmm…Are you assuming that a muscular guy is on gear?

I said no such thing, yet you’re making the same assumption as the bitch cop. Hilarious!!

[/quote]

My point was that Vroom did not try to provoce him. If someone has posted that he is on the gear all year round I am assuming that he is.

Should he have something to show for it and according to his picture he has, good hor him.

29

[quote]Peter1968 wrote:
Do all EU countries need TV licenses? I know the Brits do, and obviously you Germans, Austrians and Swedes do.

A license for a TV…and a keen-arsed cop force prepared to find out if you have one or not. I’d be doing an Arnold and making my quiet way to California…[/quote]

The people who collect the tax are not cops. They cannot enter your house unless you give them permission to do so. They would try to trick you into acknowledging that you have a TV, but you’ll have to be retarded to fall for their blatant attempts.

In short, paying the tax is ultimately voluntary. Luckily, people do have principles besides making a buck around here. Most would value the greater good of the society over money.

It seems to me that the “In God, we trust” is more respected in Europe than in the US on a personal level. It’s a personal observation based on the little spent I spent in the US.

30

[quote]lixy wrote:
The good news is that a substantial portion of Americans have had it with that criminal foreign policy. The bad news is that most of the population is terrorized to the bone, which lets politicians get away with almost anything as long as they wrap it up in patriotism, 9/!1, and other gimmicks.[/quote]

No Lixy, most of us aren’t terrorized at all. That’s a nice gimmick used by the media. Laws are passed because it’s in the interest of the government and they are not up for popular vote. The make them up, sign them in, and we deal with them. If we raise enough stink, they may reconsider, however it seems we are too busy doing other things to make enough clamor over them at one time. That’s our problem.

31

[quote]BigRagoo wrote:
No Lixy, most of us aren’t terrorized at all. That’s a nice gimmick used by the media. Laws are passed because it’s in the interest of the government and they are not up for popular vote. The make them up, sign them in, and we deal with them. If we raise enough stink, they may reconsider, however it seems we are too busy doing other things to make enough clamor over them at one time. That’s our problem.[/quote]

For some reason, I doubt the American public would have supported the motives to invade Iraq if the administration didn’t cunningly play the 9/11 card at every turn. So, you may not feel that you are terrorized, but ultimately the system has been exploiting the latent fear ever since 2001. It’s by no mean restricted the USA. Lawmakers have jumped on the opportunity around the world to tighten the grip on their populations. Russia, England, South East Asia, Africa have all used the fog of terror to sneak in locks on liberties. Central Europe has not succumbed to the fear in the same proportions.

That said, it is also my understanding that a majority of Americans want the troops to get out of the quagmire no latter than next year. And as far as I can tell, there is more than “enough clamor”. Yet, the White House don’t seem to give a rat’s furry ass about what the people think. Is it working three jobs that’s keeping you from standing up to them? Is it the many mortgages? Or is it simply that you don’t think the victims of Iraq weren’t that big a deal? I sure hope it’s not the latter…

32

Didn’t Sweden recently ban MMA events too? Or am I thinking of another Scandinavian country?

33

[quote]lixy wrote:
BigRagoo wrote:
No Lixy, most of us aren’t terrorized at all. That’s a nice gimmick used by the media. Laws are passed because it’s in the interest of the government and they are not up for popular vote. The make them up, sign them in, and we deal with them. If we raise enough stink, they may reconsider, however it seems we are too busy doing other things to make enough clamor over them at one time. That’s our problem.

For some reason, I doubt the American public would have supported the motives to invade Iraq if the administration didn’t cunningly play the 9/11 card at every turn. So, you may not feel that you are terrorized, but ultimately the system has been exploiting the latent fear ever since 2001. It’s by no mean restricted the USA. Lawmakers have jumped on the opportunity around the world to tighten the grip on their populations. Russia, England, South East Asia, Africa have all used the fog of terror to sneak in locks on liberties. Central Europe has not succumbed to the fear in the same proportions.

That said, it is also my understanding that a majority of Americans want the troops to get out of the quagmire no latter than next year. And as far as I can tell, there is more than “enough clamor”. Yet, the White House don’t seem to give a rat’s furry ass about what the people think. Is it working three jobs that’s keeping you from standing up to them? Is it the many mortgages? Or is it simply that you don’t think the victims of Iraq weren’t that big a deal? I sure hope it’s not the latter…[/quote]

It’s not so much latent fear, but more of “let’s get those bastards” that they exploited. They lied to the public and used our general ignorance on exactly who did what to further their agenda. It wasn’t until it was too late that we realized that Iraq had nothing to do with 9/11. Now we’re faced with solving this mess of a problem. Sure we want to get out, but do we leave things as is, do we stay and rectify what our presence has done, or do we “finish the job”?

As far as the populace rising up, we are all living our lives day to day. Yes, we work, we manage our finances, and we are raising our families. It’s hard to get the masses to come together when the tasks of daily life are in the forefront and the things the government has done hasn’t affected everyone greatly…yet. It’s certainly not that the innocent lives taken are not a big deal.

This is why there is so much debate on who will be in charge in '08.

34

[quote]BigRagoo wrote:
This is why there is so much debate on who will be in charge in '08.[/quote]

Thanks for stirring up hope. I have to say that I pretty much lost the faith in '04.

If history taught us anything, it’s that as long as people have food on their plate, a roof over their heads, and are not living under occupation, they will not revolt. It’s very naive of me to think that it could happen. In fact, if people didn’t revolt over the Vietnam war where drafting was in effect, why would they revolt now? Wishful thinking…

35

[quote]rainjack wrote:
I stole this from the Get A Life Forum, as I think it is worthy of some discussion - especially since our own resident Swede is so up in arms about how oppressive the US is.

Dude was arrested because he had big muscles.

If the female officer thought that guy has big muscles - I shudder to think what they would do to me.

…let freedom ring.
[/quote]

Swedes are notorious for their tendency to go obverboard with safety issues. Sweden, the country where Volvos are built.

36

[quote]kaaleppi wrote:
Swedes are notorious for their tendency to go obverboard with safety issues. Sweden, the country where Volvos are built.[/quote]

That made me chuckle.

37

What the hell do “safety issues” have to do with a dumb cop arresting a man for being too muscular?

38

[quote]Headhunter wrote:
orion wrote:
Headhunter wrote:
vroom wrote:
LOL. That’s hilarious, though incredibly wrong.

Don’t worry Rainjack, I’m sure you’d at least fail the test.

You rip RJ for putting insults into a post once in a while, then try to provoke him with a post like this. Uh…okay…

He probably benches twice your squat, 3 wheels and all.

Excuse me, but to insinuate that RJ is on the vitamin T is hardly news nor an insult.

Hmmm…Are you assuming that a muscular guy is on gear?

I said no such thing, yet you’re making the same assumption as the bitch cop. Hilarious!!

[/quote]

HH,

Normally I would make fun of you and give you shit about this (because it is fun), but in this case, I will forego that and just let you know that you are the one that has taken up an incorrect assumption. RJ has been very open and honest on these boards about his gear usage. When he has used gear and when he hasn’t. People may not agree with him on it, but he is always open, honest and direct about this subject. This is probably why he didn’t respond to vroom’s crack. That, and he just likes to dig at him.

39

[quote]rainjack wrote:
What the hell do “safety issues” have to do with a dumb cop arresting a man for being too muscular?

[/quote]

Not a damn thing! This is just another example of douchebaggery!

40

[quote]rainjack wrote:
What the hell do “safety issues” have to do with a dumb cop arresting a man for being too muscular?

[/quote]

Well, it was a precautionary measure against the possibility of roid rage. I don’t know for sure, but I do know swedes and Sweden, and that’s what I in all seriousness suspect to be the reason.