In the U.S., “socialism” is often spoken like a threat — a red flag waved to distract from deeper failures. But we should be asking:
Who is it actually scary to?
Not the person drowning in student debt.
Not the parent skipping their own meds to pay for their kid’s.
Not the worker calculating if they can afford a broken arm.
And certainly not someone like me — who just wanted to breathe.
After recovering from COVID, I noticed I was struggling with my lungs again. I tried to book a follow-up with my pulmonologist in the U.S. — and was told the wait time was 8 months.
Eight months. For someone whose lungs weren’t working right.
I canceled the appointment.
Because I was moving to Sweden.
Here, I was seen almost immediately. No financial anxiety. No waitlist limbo. No fight with insurance. Just care. And ongoing treatment.
That’s what they call “socialism” here.
But let’s be honest: it’s not scary to me. Or to anyone who’s ever rationed an inhaler, skipped a therapy session, or tried to choose between groceries and medicine.
It’s only scary to the people who profit off our vulnerability.
So again:
Who’s really afraid of socialism?
Not those of us finally catching our breath.
Swedish Word of the Day: välfärd – welfare / well-being
(Det är inte socialism som är skrämmande. Det är likgiltighet.
– It’s not socialism that’s frightening. It’s indifference.)
Swedish Wanderlust 