We Americans have the Constitution to protect us, and we understand that we must be eternally vigilant, as the price of liberty. It most certainly cannot happen in the United States.

And yet it has.

Now, please excuse me while I put on my mask, drive to the grocery store, and get yet another faux-vaccine booster shot — all after showing my vaccine papers to the proper authorities. Heil Brandon! Sieg Heil!

“Government is important. If mankind wants a society”

There will be society, and there will be culture, the question is who and what flavor of power will own and dominate it?

Look into the future and see who and what is attempting to line up to dominate.

“The distribution of God knows how many billions of your tax dollars should be trusted to a system that is transparent. Yours is anything but. ”

Our system is perfectly transparent: The Democrats and the Leftist and the RINOS that go along with them are in the process of attempting to seal the funding for their social welfare system of perpetual influence in political power for eternity. And that goes back to my initial point, who gets to control the power and say what is what.

Our American Constitutional system is built for political warfare every day. And in that system is our only (And your only) hope to remain free to the degree that we are. If and when there becomes some other power in the world to enslave and dominate both America and Sweden or any other entity that is the day that freedom, your freedom ends.

Is our system crazy and corrupt? WITH OUT DOUBT!

But my suggestion is that you learn to embrace and hold dear that degree of corruption and crazy and the Constitution that ensures, even demands it.

“The best argument against Democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter.”

“Indeed it has been said that democracy is the worst form of Government except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time.”

There exists one force on the planet that ENSURES that this insane form of governance exists. The human race is entering a truly paradigm changing mode in its evolution both in technology and in governance. And whom ever rises to dominate that new paradigm will write what the future of humanity will be.

Try not to only see what is before you in your good life today, attempt to peer into the future that is not so far off.

And, stay tuned.

And that can happen, even with the best of intentions on their part … because they simply lack the insight and flexibility to reliably get the decisions right for you, if those needs differ significantly from the norm.

We both have already seen the potential for regulatory obstruction with SpaceX and the LA/Long Beach ports … I’ve seen how a welfare state can’t craft its rules to reliably discern the truly needy from the merely greedy … I’ve seen how media-amplified shifts in cultural norms can quickly erode law enforcement and even support for free speech.

Don’t think it can’t happen in Sweden.

We in the West have been lying to ourselves regarding our responsibilities, our capabilities, and who we should place our trust in as individuals.

In One weekend, Gouverneur Morris from Pennsylvania, who was called the PenMan of the Constitution: he took the approved 10,000 to 20,000 words that had been voted as the constitution and cut combined and arranged the form of the less than two thousand that is our founding underlayment.
He was the ONLY person who when scheduled to give convention speeches of four to six hours, the other conventionors would show up to, in mass.

We probably agree on more points than we disagree upon.
I remember my father calling both Nelson Mandela and his wife terrorists back in the 70s/80s.

If Islam ever achieves its ultimate goal, the the 9/11 terrorists will become heroes.

( For the record, I have issues with all religions, not just Islam. )

Government is important. If mankind wants a society, we need a process to keep the power on, keep the roads in order, keep the trains running, healthcare, indeed welfare for the poor and underprivileged. I’m not sure who said it, but there is a quote out there that a society should be judged by how it treats it’s poorest members. If you consider this to be true, then the US is quite far down the world ranking.
Government is important, but it has to be transparent. I don’t mind paying my large tax contribution because I can, should I wish, investigate where every last dollar is spent. I’m guessing the same does not apply over there.

The whole point of democracy is that we, the people get to choose who redistributes our taxes. That is pretty much all it comes down to. Over there you have 2 choices. Here we have many. I personally vote either green, or the “left party”… ( Nothing to do with your loony left, who have poisoned the term “left”), and I have representatives in government who fight for the ideals important to me. They mostly do not win, to be honest, but they are there fighting for my corner. This is democracy, and I see very little chance of it falling any time soon. I also see absolutely no need for any reason to allow an armed rebellion to be written into law.

Regarding your headline…. That simply would not happen here. The fact it happens over there is worrying. It kinda shows the cracks in the US system. But as I have said over and over, the pendulum is swinging back. If you had a more democratic system, this sort of rubbish would be rubbed out. The majority of people do not want this “cancel culture” , they might want a more socially inclusive government, but without the bullcrap that is currently hooked to it… Because you only have 2 options in elections. Left or right. Biden or Trump… Jeebus…. I’m pleased I didn’t have to pick a side in that race.

The distribution of God knows how many billions of your tax dollars should be trusted to a system that is transparent. Yours is anything but. Even if you don’t like my socialist leaning, you should be outraged by the lack of transparency in your governments redistribution of your tax dollars. The amount spent on foreign interventions could feed all your poor easily.

Sleepy Joe seems to be trying to pull your troops out of theaters where you have no chance of winning… Credit to him for that. I just hope that the billions of dollars saved get redistributed to the people that need them the most, that they end up in the pockets of the poor, and help them out of the poverty trap. There are few poor folk that want to be so. A little help and they could become active workers and tax payers. This is MY left, the government supplies a fishing rod, the starving man gets to catch fish.

“HOROR! Biden Regime Sends FBI Jackboots to Break Down Door of School Board Activist Sherronna Bishop – Cuff Her and Abuses Her Children”

That is a headline today in America. What do you think that is about?

Question: George Washington, domestic terrorist? Or Freedom fighter?

Who makes up the “Urban police army”?

And those in the military do not swear an allegiance to a person or a political party, they swear an allegiance to the Constitution.

And at some point they might also have to choose. Why?

Because that is how the system is designed to right itself should that day arrive. And the Founders knew that it would some day arrive.

Why? Because that is the nature of man as it relates to power and governance.

But if it came to that point where it needed to, then that would be different and the militia would exist to do what the Founders intended it to do. Good, Bad or otherwise.

Government needs to be fearful of the people. And I do not mean that in a negative way. I mean it in a healthy way. That is a fundamental concept that the Founders enshrined in the Constitution. Its a concept, its a new kind of thinking in governance.

As to Sweden and your happy life. If and when the Globalists / Socialists are successful and destroy America and its Constitution, then you and your children and me and everyone else will in time become a slave and you and your children and me will do as you / we are told or you, me and all others will be frozen out of civilization and society and isolated until we comply, or worse. And that is their goal whether you realize it or not.

Look into the future a bit and not just myopically at your current happy life. Because that is the trend and you can clearly see it in the irrational rhetoric and actions of our current administration and what the corporate media is attempting to pump into the brains of the public in order to accomplish THEIR agenda and concept of what the world should look like.

And those who will remain free will be with the militia, where ever that militia exists, and they will remain free as long as they can do so. But you, your children and maybe I and many others will be slaves. Slaves to a government that has flipped the original concept that the Founders of America were able to manifest. (And it amazes me still that they were able to do so)

Again, the American Constitution is a concept based in real world understanding of human nature as it relates to power and governance.

Do you really think your government is scared of an uprising of the people? The police are an urban army…
You can convince yourself all you like that you have to hold your government in check by the threat of your “well armed malitia” … But your wrong. It wouldn’t happen.

And regarding the US providing Sweden its freedom… How so ?

And can you argue against any of my comments above regarding you guys not having a better life than I do here in Sweden?

You deviate…. But I’m with you….

I carry a probably 4″ knife with me at all times at work… A knife was man’s first tool, and.probably still the most useful. It’s perfectly legal to carry around with me as long as I’m working, or traveling to or from work. It’s kinda obvious if I’m wearing my work clothes. If I was just in my everyday clothes it would be different.

And it’s hard to shoot someone with a knife

The people are the owners of America (That is the concept anyway).

And that being said and understanding the nature of what government and the empowered that populate it is, and that is that they will without doubt abuse that power and over power the people and flip that concept of ownership.

The government as a general rule MUST fear the people ultimately.

And in that model we will somehow move positively into the future, even though there is and can be chaos and confusion.

Lee, you freedom in Sweden relies on America and how free we are. Like it or not.

“A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”

No offence my friend… ( I actually think we would have a nice evening over a beer or two and civil conversation )

I really think a well regulated militia might have been a good idea a few centuries ago, but perhaps not such a good idea these days…. You guys have even militarised your police… In case of a well organised militia?

And sorry to put words in your mouth, I was only commenting on what ever crazy reason you guys convince yourself it’s ok to carry deadly weapons around. The rest of the free world thinks it’s probably not ok. Indeed, the rest of the free world thinks that it’s a very bad idea. The statistics prove the rest of the free world to be correct.

You live in thrall of a document written centuries ago, it had some good ideas, but the world has changed ( in case you haven’t noticed ) . The Taliban live under the doctrine of a document written long, long ago. That was probably relevent at the time, but today?

The US is in danger of falling into chaos because of your insistence of clutching onto an ancient document. If you don’t believe me, read the news.

And do not judge me, or the country I chose to live in before having a good long look at yourself. I have visited many countries, and seen many possibilities (including the US …) , And I choose to live in Sweden.

Because I know my life will be better here, and more importantly, my children will have a much better life here in their childhood, and heading into adult life, they will have a head start. Down to the tax I, and every other wage earner in Sweden pay.

You call it “government control” , I call it a country investing in its future.

Funny story: I carry a pocket knife and I use it every single day, 5 times a day. It is small, with a 2.75″ blade, perfectly legal, a nice Benchmade. Several years ago when I first got it I was speaking with an older friend on the street and for some reason which I can not remember I had occasion to show him said knife.

https://www.harrysarmysurplus.net/assets/images/benchmade/698_2.jpg

He was a steam powered old timer, a dock builder who I had worked for when I was 16 or so. A man of substance, not for one second would you consider him a non Conservative, looked like, Randolf Scott.

So I take the knife out and hand it to him, and I expected that he would appreciate it it is very nicely made, not un-expensive. But as he is examining it he unhesitatingly says: Thats a weapon! (Which really surprised me)

And being a dock builder he always wore Dickies overalls, and he of course always had a pen, a couple of sharpened pencil’s and a small note pad in the breast pocket.

And so I unhesitating say to him: Really? What if I took one of those sharp pencils out of your pocket and killed you with it right here on the street. Which one, the pencil or the knife is the weapon now?

The point as it were was made.

What exactly is a “Weapon”?

“I know you don’t wanna hear me cryin’
And I know you don’t wanna hear me deny.
That your satisfaction lies in your illusion,
But your delusions are yours, and not mine….”

A case study in a country that is obliterating itself…..

The Islamic State of Sweden
Paul Joseph Watson (2018)
https://youtu.be/iERLyAxddVE
9:43

The government gives a great amount of help to business… That is exactly why we pay taxes. To make the place I live in a pleasure to live in, a land of opportunity, where everyone has a chance to better themselves, education for all, healthcare for all, clean and safe streets for all,.a good life for all.

And yet I am constantly berated for being some kind of fool for my approval of the way my country of choice is managed.

Open your eyes, my USA’n friends….. Can you even consider for a moment or 2 that your system might not be the best in the world? Your healthcare, and the poverty in your first world country would be a laughing stock around the rest of the world, if it wasn’t so tragic. But believe me, it is noted and discussed.

I know most of you would rather stick needles in your eye than admit the US system is broken and wrong. But it is. As the late great Leonard Cohen said ” it’s coming to America first, the home of the best and the worst”

Judge yourself before you judge me.

REF: “I do not know which bit of Swedish legislation covers freedom of speech, although I’m sure it’s in there somewhere.”
Again, our 1st Amendment is short, sweet, and to the point. “It’s in there, and I know where it is….”

REF: “Regarding your God given right to carry arms ( or whatever it is ) ”

Don’t put words in my mouth, you’re jumping to conclusions. That would be the 2nd Amendment:
“A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”

Working Class Hero
https://youtu.be/iMewtlmkV6c?t=124

“And you think you’re so clever and classless and free,
But you’re still {Brandon} peasants, as far as I can see….”

I have a representative in government I voted for. I live under a system of government I agree with. It is VERY democratic, and transparent enough that I can rest easy there was nothing dodgy in the results of any election, at least since I moved here 20 years ago.

There is no one in the US that can make the same claim. You can fool yourself that you are free and live in the land of the free as much as you like. But the facts still remain. You have a stunted government.. ( only 2 choices… Really??), You are all in thrall to the words of your constitution, but millions in your country live under the poverty line. Yet you sleep easy every night whilst children go hungry.

I know I can never change any minds around here… Because USA… but as a compassionate man I feel it’s my duty to pop in from time to time and remind you guys that the USA is slightly broken, and it has nothing to do with socialist ideas, it has everything to do with the misguided idea that the USA is the only repository of ideals.

A good introspective look in the mirror would do wonders for your great country.

Until it doesn’t for you. Because the decision-making technocrats (who can’t tell you apart from one ballot in a truckload of ballot boxes) decide that what you need is not in your, or in the public’s, interest to provide … or as cultural norms shift, provide YOU specifically … with.

And as I always ask, what is your work-around when that happens, when they take so much of your resources and/or limit your options in the process?

And what opportunities to make things better, for you and your neighbors, do you miss out on – perhaps without even knowing you are missing them as they pass – because you have ceded so much of your authority and resources to a relative few that only they get to do the thinking and act upon it in your society?

This isn’t about politics. This is about the easy road to dependence upon the elite few, versus sustaining resilience and fault-tolerance in a society by citizens who retain the responsibility, authority and resources to implement what works best for them … including helping their neighbors when they are in need.

Here we have the the essential difference between the US and Sweden, ( and many other countries ). I do not know which bit of Swedish legislation covers freedom of speech, although I’m sure it’s in there somewhere.

The reason I don’t know it, is because I don’t need to. I have freedom of speech.

Think on that for a second or two.

Regarding your God given right to carry arms ( or whatever it is ) , is, as I have stated here many times here, looked upon with amazement by pretty much the rest of the world.

It is a genuinely stupid law, ( or right, or whatever ) There is absolutely no argument that you can make that it in any way makes society safer. More guns on the street = more gun deaths. You only have to look up the statistics regarding gun related deaths in the US vs the rest of the free world to see this is true.

Our police carry guns, but if they have to use them it makes national news. It is that rare. I kinda like that.

Yet many people I know have gun licenses, small arms are not included, but hunting guns, and shotguns for sport are. The guns must be kept in approved, locked cabinets when not being used. And gun related deaths are very rare here.

I know it is too late over there to put the genie back in the lamp. Guns are ubiquitous in the US, and as I said, we over here just shake our heads.

Regarding taxation, we pay taxes all year round, and reap the benefits all year round. Here in Stockholm there is a massive infrastructure project going on at the moment. Literally thousands of new apartments being built to address a housing shortage, expansion of the tube system, expansion and reorganization of the road network. All for the benefit of the tax payers. Non of this will benefit me directly, but I am happy to pay my 30% income tax into a system that has never done me wrong. It will benefit my children, and my grandchildren in years far in the future.

I understand the American idea of people looking after yourself first, stand on your own two feet, etc, etc, but government and taxation are essential to keeping society rolling. It has to be transparent to avoid corruption. If you want to live in a society where you don’t have to break a spring driving over a hole in the road, then someone has to pay. ( We call it road tax here, it is payed by vehicle owners ).

We also have a thing called “healthcare for all” , if you are sick you can visit a doctor, you pay about $25 for your first visit, if you run up a bill of $200 it becomes free, the same applies to medication, we have a right to healthcare that won’t break your bank. Pay higher tax, and get life saving health care without having to sell your house.
And this all works. I have been accused of living in an unsustainable society many times here. By people who are so blind they cannot imagine any system other than there own.

There is no one more blind than those who refuse to see.

question:
I was not aware the Swedish Constitution guaranteed free-speech, can you point me to the relevant section?

Ours is short & sweet:

Amendment I:
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.”

Ref:
“…..the rights to carry deadly weapons and not pay taxes….”

Lee– ‘come on man,’ — all weapons are deadly, by definition.
You may not like it but depending on what State one is in, one has the perfect right to carry a firearm in the open. (One does not however, have the right to brandish or threaten anyone with said firearm. Or conceal it upon their person unless they have a permit to do so.)

“God Created Men and Samuel Colt Made Them Equal!”

As for taxes—
“The tax-collector always shows up at harvest time, but he’s never around at planting time.”

“Dutch Libertarian Party leader Toine Manders explains to socialist why taxation is theft”
(2017)https://youtu.be/h0-cgs51zEA
4:31

Enjoy your weekend with your kids.

FREEDOM

Im now free for the weekend, I have my ( now teenage kids. Don’t time fly! ) This weekend… We might go swimming in a heated pool … They might go to hang out with friends… Regardless there will be food on the table,
And I might make a fool of myself playing some form of computer game…. And we might pull out a book and have a read together… Who knows …

As far as I can tell, the only freedoms you have that I do not are the rights to carry deadly weapons and not pay taxes….

As I’ve said many times before….

I know this is a Space website…. I come for the space stuff, and occasionally stick around for the politics.

Your comment “United States has become far more socialistic than Sweden.” Betrays that you have very little knowledge of socialism or Sweden. No offence intended. Your democratic party is way further to the right than most of Sweden’s mainstream left leaning parties. ( We are lucky enough over here to not have a 2 party system. Government is generally formed by coalition, which can be problematic, but in my opinion, less so than a choice between only 2 contenders, if my party of choice gets a say in government, that is better than me having to vote democrat because I’m not republican)

We are both lucky to live in societies where free speech is a right…. And I fully support the right of anyone ( and lets be honest here, 99% of posters here disagree with me ) to disagree with me, as I said in my post above, I hope, and believe the pendulum is swinging back, and those that close down argument by being “offended” will be judged by history as wrong.

In my opinion, Facebook, YouTube and most other content hosts are corrupted, they have no integrity or interest in anything other than financial gain. Bob certainly has the right model for honest and truthful discussion here, and it will only get worse in the years to come.

Your “left” would probably try to close this forum down because of “hate speech” or whatever.

This member of the real “left” ( which to me means higher tax, a trustworthy government to spend those taxes for the greater good of everyone… Transparent government so we can see and judge how the tax dollars are spent) loves the freedom, and rules that Bob has here…. Don’t swear and don’t be abusive.

Not bad rules for life really… Whatever your politics.

What are you selling?