Sweden
Sweden is a small country with advanced technology. Most people don’t pay much attention to it. They should, because Sweden has a history of taking care of itself while situated in a dangerous neighborhood. In WW II, Sweden avoided invasion by Nazi Germany by attaching explosives to every single piece of infrastructure and factory of value, drafting everyone who could possibly hold a gun and telling Hitler that if he invaded Sweden, he would “win”, but since the Swedes would fight to the last man Hitler would lose a huge number of his troops and they would gain nothing because Sweden would blow up everything of value before German troops got to it. Instead, the Swedes offered to remain neutral and trade with both the Allies and Nazi Germany. Hitler took the latter deal. As a result, Sweden was not bombed, did not lose a large portion of its population and was well-positioned to achieve a socialistic paradise in the 1950s. This history lesson is to provide context for a recent announcement by the Swedish Civil Defense Minister and Commander-in-Chief:
Bohlin expressed concern that the modernisation of the Swedish civil defence system was not happening fast enough and urged everyone, from managers and local councillors to private citizens, to take action.
“Many have said it before me, but let me say it with the force of my office – there could be a war in Sweden.”, he said, adding that awareness needs to be translated into practical action.
He also drew parallels with Ukraine, which faced a full-scale Russian invasion with “total resilience”, according to him.
“Such an effort can only be made quickly enough if the vast majority of people are aware of the situation and understand what is at stake,” Bohlin said.
Commenting on Bohlin’s take on Swedish broadcaster SVT on Monday, Swedish Commander-in-Chief Micael Bydén said he agreed with what the minister said.
“On an individual level, you have to prepare yourself mentally,” Bydén said, adding, “This is a very serious situation, and the clarity yesterday was unmistakable. It is now about moving from words and understanding to action”.
Charles Szumski, January 8, 2024, Swedish minister, commander-in-chief warn of possible war in Sweden, Euractiv.
Many Swedish families have “Stugas”, cottages in the woods that they can go to in an emergency. For those who don’t, there are 7 million well-equipped bomb shelters waiting for them to go to. Sweden has a surprisingly sophisticated military given the size of the country. They make their own fighter aircraft, the Gripen, designed specifically to fight over Swedish territory. All of this is public knowledge. I suspect that preparations for war that are not public will be serious. Sweden will do what it must to survive.
Iran
The attack on Israel on October 7, 2023 by Hamas was suicidal from the standpoint of the Gazans. Obviously, they did not benefit. This could easily be foreseen. The attack was ordered by Iran who view Gazans as easily manipulated and entirely expendable. The Houthis of Yemen have launched suicidal attacks on ships in the Red Sea. The US and other western militaries have been responded by bombing the Houthis, as could easily be foreseen. The Houthis are backed by Iran. Once again, Iranian leaders have manipulated an unsophisticated people to be their catspaw. How many other chess pieces will Iranian leaders sacrifice to win? When will those who are being attacked by Iran’s pawns go for the King in Tehran? To me, this is just one of the theaters of WW III. The big show is yet to come in Asia.
Dementia Dystopia
Imagine a giant warehouse, except, instead of being filled with boxes and crates, it’s filled with thousands of older people on cots. There is an unpleasant smell that hits you as soon as you enter. The moans, groans and inarticulate mutterings of the people on the cots combine to make waves of sound suffused with suffering. As you approach closer, you see heavily tattooed workers roughly changing the diapers of the people on the cots. Crude robots, mostly carts with cameras on them, bump along crowded aisles carrying human waste to a back area. Not infrequently, a larger cart comes to pick up the body of someone recently expired. It goes to the same back area.
The United States is facing a debt crisis. The US debt is now 34 trillion dollars and rapidly climbing. How will this be paid? There is no plan. Both Social Security and Medicare will soon be insolvent. What happens then? There is no plan. Study after study has shown that being infected with SARS-CoV-2 causes damage to the brain. There is evidence that the risk for long covid goes up with each re-infection. This damage is relatively mild in young people, but it may be taking its toll. On almost every metric of cognitive and mental health, young people are struggling. We are told that this is because they had to learn remotely for a few months. Is this believable? Or is the alternative hypothesis, that SARS-CoV-2 is slowly causing an erosion of mental faculties of those it infects more believable?
Consider the following possibility: What if the brain shrinkage known to be caused by SARS-CoV-2 is responsible for the declining cognitive and mental health of people in the US? What if there is a massive wave of dementia in a few years as a result? What if Congress does not act and no funds are provided for the long term care of people with dementia?
References
Brain disorders: Impact of mild SARS-CoV-2 may shrink several parts of the brain. (2023) Kumar et al. Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews. 149: 105150.
COVID-19 Associated with Long-Term Cognitive Dysfunction, Acceleration of Alzheimer’s Symptoms. (2021) Alzheimer Association.
Medicare Won’t Have Enough Money to Pay Full Benefits After 2031: Report. April 5, 2023. Adam Hardy.
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