I was in Gdansk, Poland in Sept. 2008 when the world came to a shattering financial crash that originated from United States mismanagement of certain economic sectors. For a country such as Sweden that is highly dependent upon its foreign trade where the US is a major trading partner, this financial shutdown was catastrophic, to say the least. Then and there, no one was safe and secured with their jobs and there would be no welfare to cushion the effects of a massive economic retrenchment.The most amazing thing that happened was that, no one in Sweden felt threatened with loss of job, home and financial security. There were hard measures taken by the Alliance government but they were not as drastic as those needed by other EU countries whose financial systems were collapsing.
In today's SvD opinion page, Maria Eriksson wrote a very good summary on why we should support the Alliance by voting their continuity in power. She wrote: " One election, two alternatives. One has implemented four job tax reduction incentives and intends to proceed with a fifth against three parties that will undo all these income tax incentives. An alliance that knows that it is the industries that create jobs and welfare. And a RedGreen alternative whose politics oppose private initiatives in the health and school sectors, introduce rights to fulltime yearly equality planning, wealth taxation and increased employers fee for the youth."
The latest SIFO political barometer shows a closing of the gap between the two blocks although the Alliance still has the majority. In the more recent interviews of political leaders, the central issue of the economy was somewhat sidetracked by questions on sickness insurances. Eriksson writes further, and I fully agree that the election on Sunday is not a question of reduced taxes or social welfare but of the continuity of a good economy, in private as well as in public.
"Sweden is on its way out of the crisis, according to an article by The Economist. Half of the country's economy is dependent upon foreign trade which means that Sweden was deeply affected by the world economic backlash. But as The Economist has written, Sweden this year has achieved a GNP stronger than any country in the OECD area. The Swedish voters should appreciate and reward the competence with which the Alliance handled an extremely difficult period.
That Sweden is on its way out of an economic crisis is due mainly to the performance of the Alliance government. This means that the healthy recovery of the economy should continue to be managed by the same people that got the country out of a deep quagmire. In these times of uncertain world peace and order, it is economic growth that is the best weapon against terrorism and radicalism. The opposite is poverty and desperation that induce fanaticism and bigotry.#
