Sweden's herd immunity plan worked - they didn't lock down, the pandemic is behind them, and their economy survived. The mainstream media has responded by labeling calls for herd immunity dangerous and ignorant, and now by outright claiming Sweden's plan has failed - and that Sweden has quietly resorted to lockdowns! But do they substantiate any of that bold talk?
To back up the claim that Sweden's plan failed and they've switched to lockding down their citizens, a single "expert" opinion is called forth. They begin by pointing out "Sweden's per capita death rate from COVID-19 is the 15th highest in the world". That's true, and it sounds alarming, but the full story is that Sweden's deaths are all behind them. Almost nobody dies from this virus in Sweden anymore, because all their vulnerable people have already been exposed (or moved to isolation). Infections continue, but symptoms are rare, and deaths are almost unheard of.
Last time I reported on the per capita death rate, Sweden was at #13:
And the time before, they had just fallen to #6:
Sweden is doing far better, now, than the USA and continues to be overtaken on this list by other countries, most recently Argentina.
Flip-flopping on Strategy?
Did Sweden really just decide to issue lockdowns for the first time? No. The article goes on to say Sweden "has empowered regional health authorities — in consultation with the federal public health agency — to instruct citizens to stay away from crowded spaces like shopping malls, museum, gyms, and concerts, and avoid taking public transport or visiting the elderly. However, there will be no legal or financial consequences for non-compliance."
The federal government decentralized the power to issue restrictions (without consequences) to the regional governments. That's it!
Next, the expert said Sweden's internal data shows they are "nothing close to herd immunity" and "they realize they can't go for herd immunity. It's going to kill too many people. It's already killed almost 6000 people in a population of 10 million."
Big Pink Elephant in the Room
Okay, the expert won't say it, for some reason, so I will:
NOBODY IS DYING IN SWEDEN!
That's up-to-date, and it's something the media is disingenuous for not talking about! "It's going to kill too many people," they threaten, without any evidence, or any mention that the death rate has fallen to essentially nil.
"90 per cent of the deaths were in the elderly, so most people didn't see it."
90% of flu deaths are the elderly, too. And most people don't think about that very often, either. Many pathogens kill off the weak elderly, a sad reality humans have always had to contend with.
Masks aren't mandatory - or even recommended - in Sweden, and the expert thinks this is foolish. Studies back up the need for the entire population to wear masks, according to the expert, but no specifics are given.
So there's NO lockdown in Sweden. They just delegated the ability to issue voluntary restrictions, instead of having the federal government handle it for all the regions. The legacy media is desperate to maintain as much support for the lockdowns as possible.
After all, they just announced a "second wave" here in BC (after 2 deaths last weekend), and today threatened a new lockdown is coming soon.
Not issuing wedding licenses or permission for funerals is on the table. "Every gathering needs to be our own household only." Doesn't sound like much of a "gathering" if you can't include anyone from off the property. "Save it for next year," they say. And they told us in March a couple weeks could flatten the curve, and then restrictions would be eased. But here we are.
"With the global pandemic and cases surging all around us... we need to take those measures now."
It's an extra dose of fear, to go along with the push to accept lockdowns (because they tried that in Sweden and it didn't work!).
Tucked away in the second half of the article is "The death toll remains unchanged at 256." Almost nobody in BC is dying, either. Here's Canada's latest death numbers:
Thus far, this tiny second wave doesn't justify the lockdowns - in Quebec and Ontario, people are confined to homes, no visitors allowed, all businesses are closed, mandatory contact tracking apps on your devices, warrantless home invasions, protest banned, etc. And they're saying that's coming here to BC next.
So the heavy propaganda telling us "Sweden should have locked down" is a complete lie, but necessary to do whatever possible to bring up support for the draconian lockdowns coming over the winter holidays.
Consider getting your various preps and affairs in order.
DRutter
