If you had to draw up a list featuring the top ten fruit loop nations on planet earth, a reasonable case could be made for including Sweden in it – probably in the top five actually. Of course one would also want to include other moonbeam candidates, such as the UK, Canada, the Netherlands and New Zealand. But most other Western nations would not be far behind.
What do they all have in common? Almost all of them at one point had a Judeo-Christian heritage which they have now jettisoned big time, and most of them have gone after every nut case cause and ideology, be it radical feminism, the homosexual agenda, rampant political correctness, or appeasement to the enemies of the West, most notably the Islamists.
Sweden has certainly been leading the way here in most of these categories. Sexual suicide has clearly been a big feature of Swedish life for the past half century, including radical gender-bending social engineering. Almost every progressive – or should we say, regressive – cause in the culture wars and sexual wars have been embraced by those ever trendy Swedes.
In case you question my assessment, consider one quite recent and bizarre case of Swedish insanity. It is simply the logical outworking of fifty years of radical social and cultural warfare against faith, family, and life. Here is how the Swedish press reported the story last week:
“A couple of Swedish parents have stirred up debate in the country by refusing to reveal whether their two-and-a-half-year-old child is a boy or a girl. In an interview with newspaper Svenska Dagbladet in March, the parents were quoted saying their decision was rooted in the feminist philosophy that gender is a social construction. ‘We want Pop to grow up more freely and avoid being forced into a specific gender mould from the outset,’ Pop’s mother said. ‘It’s cruel to bring a child into the world with a blue or pink stamp on their forehead’.”
Really folks, I am not making this up. The article continues, “The child’s parents said so long as they keep Pop’s gender a secret, he or she will be able to avoid preconceived notions of how people should be treated if male or female. Pop’s wardrobe includes everything from dresses to trousers and Pop’s hairstyle changes on a regular basis. And Pop usually decides how Pop is going to dress on a given morning. Although Pop knows that there are physical differences between a boy and a girl, Pop’s parents never use personal pronouns when referring to the child – they just say Pop. ‘I believe that the self-confidence and personality that Pop has shaped will remain for a lifetime,’ said Pop’s mother.
Just what is it that they are putting in the drinking water over there? Ol’ Pop will certainly be shaped by this for a lifetime alright. ‘It’ may even end up in a mental institution. Of course the case could be made that Sweden already is one big mental institution.
Indeed, it seems that Pop’s parents have plenty of supporters in Sweden: “Swedish gender equality consultant Kristina Henkel says Pop’s parents’ experiment might have positive results. ‘If the child is dressed up as a girl or boy, it affects them because people see and treat them in a more gender-typical way,’ Henkel explains. ‘Girls are told they are cute in their dresses, and boys are told they are cool with their car toys. But if you give them no gender they will be seen more as a human or not a stereotype as a boy or girl.’ She says that without these gender stereotypes, children can build character as individuals, not hindered by preconceived notions of what they should be as males or females.”
There was one voice of sanity featured in the article, but it was a non-Swede: “Susan Pinker, a psychologist and newspaper columnist from Toronto, Canada, who wrote the book The Sexual Paradox, which focuses on sex differences in the workplace, said ‘Ignoring children’s natures simply doesn’t work. Child-rearing should not be about providing an opportunity to prove an ideological point, but about responding to each child’s needs as an individual. It’s unlikely that they’ll be able to keep this a secret for long. Children are curious about their own identity, and are likely to gravitate towards others of the same sex during free play time in early childhood.’ Pinker says there are many ways that males and females differ from birth; even if gender is kept ‘secret,’ prenatal hormones developed in the second trimester of pregnancy already alter the way the child behaves and feels.”
As mentioned, this kind of madness seems to grow freely in the fertile soil produced by decades of secularism, radical feminism, moral relativism and epistemological uncertainty. All over the Western world we have traded in God, morality, rationality and common sense for utopian social schemes, political correctness, Postmodernism and cultural suicide.
The lunacy of what these parents are doing to poor Pop is simply the logical outcome of a society which has turned its back on God, and embraced the latest fads and trends, no matter how reckless and hell-bent they might be.
But don’t worry; Australia is not very far behind this madness. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if some Aussie parents were already trying to enact this idiocy on their hapless offspring. As always, it is the children who suffer most from such parental dereliction of duty and abandonment of morality and common sense.
Thus we are well on our way to declaring official war on our own children. Sweden is certainly leading the way here, but the rest of the West shows no signs of learning from its mistakes. May God have mercy on us all.
39 Replies to “Swedish Insanity and the Death of the Family”
We had two girls and a boy and they definitely behaved differently. Just one example: even when quite young the boy would hear a truck pass by and stop what he was doing to listen. The girls would not even notice.
If they only have one child they won’t be able to identify the differences because they have nothing to compare it with.
Tas Walker
Arrrgh. And guys like Richard Dawkins reckon Christians are dangerous to their childrens’ mental health…
Heartbreaking story really. As if kids don’t have a hard enough time already dealing with the social dross thrust upon them by the engineers of a new “utopia.”
Phil Twiss
These parents really haven’t gone far enough. They should be sleeping little Johnny (I mean Pop) with Rover in the kennel and feeding him dog food so that he won’t be hindered by preconceived notions of man being made distinct from the animals. The wonders this will do to little Johnny’s self-confidence and personality will surely remain with him for a lifetime!
Mansel Rogerson
Madness, madness. It reminds me of St James statment of people blown about like chaff because they have no firm foundation.
Sorry but this madness will only get worse before it gets better, however we are to challenge these beliefs at every point.
Wayne Pelling
Mother and father? Don’t you mean “parent 1 and parent 2”?
Jonathan Sarfati, Brisbane
Amen, May God have mercy on us all.
Siti Khatijah
…and yet, they probably don’t question the logical incongruity of the idea that gender roles (actually based on biological reality) are supposedly a ‘social construct’ but homosexuality (actually based on behaviour alone) is ‘genetically determined.’ Truly up is down and down is up.
Mark Rabich
Yes Mansel, as long as its a gender-neutral kennel and the parental units remove the labels to the cans before feed time.
Duane Proud
I do not have the words to say . . . I’m almost speechless on this. . . I feel bad for the child. This is so sad.
Anna Aquino
That poor child! In ethics last semester there was talk (in the lectures) of how the two genders are social constructs and in 50 years we will not be burdened by ‘male’ and ‘female’ classifications. The message was that classifying humans into the two sexes was judgmental. What is with people pulling the ‘judgemental card’ these days?
Keith Jarrett
No doubt the Swedish authorities would take issue with the Jonathan’s post as follows:
Don’t you mean “parent 1 and parent 2??
No, because (1), the word ‘parent’ implies some notion of ownership or control over the offspring, which rightly belongs to the State; and (1), the use of a post-nomenclatural digit establishes a hierarchy of positive numerical supremacy, in which a number of apparently greater numerical value is thought to be higher and thus better than the one preceding it.
Each one should be ‘procreative agent ½’
Michael Watts
Mark,
That’s a very good point. Thanks.
Mansel Rogerson
Bill,
I am offended that you cast us Swedes in bad light. You seem often to take a single example of strange behaviour and cast an entire population in the same light. It comes across like sensationalist tabloid journalism. It would be like me casting all Australians as criminals because a Swedish backpacker got assaulted.
I am visiting your country and I find Australians very friendly, good families etc., much like us Swedes. I have just visited New Zealand and I find them similar. Why do you dislike New Zealand also?
What do you dislike so much about Sweden? There are 9 million of us and we most are not like your example. We have happy normal families and stable society just like you. Why on earth do you say “Death of the Family” in Sweden because of one unusual parents? Have you been there?
Ingemar Skjöldebrand, Göteborg, Sweden
Thanks Ingemar
Yes you are quite right: if this were the only episode of Swedish silliness, then a full frontal assault on Sweden would be quite unwarranted. But sadly, as I argued, this extreme case is simply the logical outcome of 50 years of radical social engineering in Sweden. I have tried to document some of this in other articles, such as this one: https://billmuehlenberg.com/2009/04/03/the-coercive-utopia-known-as-sweden/
And of course one expects that there would be many Swedes who would be equally appalled at this sort of madness. While I have not lived in Sweden, I did live in northern Europe for five years, and they are experiencing similar sorts of problems.
But thanks for writing.
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
Daer Ingemar, Whilst Bill spoke of the extreme in this example, he has always been saying the same thing. The definition of love marriage, male, female husband wife and all sorts of related gender issues through social engineering by some quarters, minority, yet having the upper hand and calling normal people like all of us ultra conservative. Every right has become wrong and every wrong seems to have become right. He has always shown that we all are in need of reflection of what we are doing, causing harm to ourselves, our own worst enemy. just because we can do it does it mean we should? He has always shown in different articles how far away we all have drifted from God. God have mercy on us all.
Siti Khatijah.
Sweden is not an absolute disaster. It has quite sensible laws on drugs and prostitution, unlike many other Western nations.
Ros Phillips
Thanks Ros
Yes you are right; they have turned around on both of these issues in the past decades. So they have a few good things going for them. Most nations of course are a mixture of good and bad, some better and some worse than others.
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
You are right Bill…may God have mercy on us all!
Jane Byrne
Bill, good to know that something is happening positively in Sweden. I visited a Swedish (Svenska?) friend in 2001 and admired the neatness, cleanliness and “perfectness” of the country but my friend (a Christian) was dismayed by the social engineering going on in the country and pointed out to me a politician whom we walked past and who wanted participation in orgies as part of the primary classroom curriculum! Thankfully that lunacy was defeated. Can you explain or direct me to information on the good “turn around” the Swedes have done on drugs and prostitution?
Graeme Cumming
I appreciate Bill’s concern but all is not lost. The idiocy of these parents was seized upon not because it is typical of the Swedes but because it is odd, eccentric, atypical. For every case like this there are probably thousands of Swedish parents raising boys as boys and girls as girls and not something indeterminate. In other words, they have not been completely sucked in by feminist twaddle. No doubt some Swedes pay lip service to political correctness but talking is not doing. If feminist ideology is contrary to human biological nature as the sociologist Steven Goldberg argues, then feminism’s days are numbered if it does not yield and adapt to inescapable reality. The Swedish authorities should be investigating the couple for child abuse. This may be the pathological tip of a domestic iceberg of abuse.
I agree that Sweden has its problems and these appear to originate from secular irrationalisms. But I suspect the reality is more complex. Did the Swedish Nanny State originate from the efforts of leftwing secular radicals or Christian socialists or both? In the last century Sweden was largely Christian and indeed until very recently had an official State-endorsed Church. What went wrong? Why have so many Christians left the gate open for the secular barbarians (and Western secularism IS a barbarism)? Why don’t they spring to arms when Christ is portrayed as a transvestite in one of their own churches, as happened recently? Even Pontius Pilate didn’t accuse Him of that!
John Snowden
Bill,
I am surprised that you make such harsh and bitter judgments based on hearsay rather than personal experience. I sense an element of fear of the foreign, whether nation or culture. If you were to visit my country you might be surprised to find that family life and values there are very much like Australia, even though we have very different cultural backgrounds. Like Australia, we are a tolerant and compassionate society, largely accepting of the range of human diversity and religious belief, including unbelief. You would find that your sweeping claims about “Death of the Family” in Sweden are very wide of the mark.
You would be well aware that Europe has been ravaged by war and political and sectarian strife. Although I am of the Church of Sweden, I fully supported the disestablishment, which you might call secularisation. It means that no religion may promote itself as state-sponsored, and that must be a good thing, no? I don’t know of any Western country that isn’t secular, in fact you and I would surely share concerns that non-secular countries tend to be totalitarian.
There is surely room within Christianity for many different viewpoints. Ultimately all humans seek a long, healthy and quality-filled life, for themselves, their family, and the wider community. For if the community wellbeing is high we are all better off.
I hope that you visit Sweden one day. Then you might understand that it is a quality way of life, relatively free of the sectarian culture wars that cause so much bitterness, hatred and division elsewhere.
Ingemar Skjöldebrand, Göteborg, Sweden
Thanks Ingemar
Sorry, but I don’t have a fear of the foreign. Such ad hominem attacks do nothing in this debate. I quite loved my time in Europe, and would be quite happy to live there again, despite the many problems it is undergoing at the moment.
And I don’t find your reasoning very helpful here. Do you really believe that one cannot speak about something based on the reports of others, but only from personal experience? You wouldn’t be speaking about very much at all if that were true.
That means you cannot speak against rape unless you were personally raped. You can’t speak against the Holocaust unless you personally experienced it. You can’t speak against gross poverty unless you personally experienced it, etc.
And ‘hearsay’ sounds like a loaded term. But we all live and believe on the testimony and word of others. For example, my knowledge about Sweden comes from Swedes who have lived there and seen firsthand what modern Sweden is becoming. Why is this source of knowledge discredited in your eyes?
For example, Scandinavian journalist Roland Huntford years ago wrote The New Totalitarians, chronicling the ever-encroaching statism in Sweden. Another writer of Swedish background is Allan Carlson, who has written extensively on how the family has fared in modern Sweden. His many books on these topics are valuable sources of information, written by an insider.
See for example his The Swedish Experiment in Family Politics, based on his PhD. Are these and other documentary sources to be discounted Ingemar? Can I say nothing about Sweden based on what these and other authorities have said?
And I also disagree with your love of secularism. It is exactly because Europe – including Sweden – was not secular that it developed into what we call Western Civilisation with all its benefits. It was an overwhelmingly religious Europe that produced so many goods which the rest of the world has emulated and sought to enjoy the benefits of.
The very reason people have enjoyed a “long, healthy and quality-filled life” is because of the Judeo-Christian foundation of Western civilisation. Take away that foundation, and the whole structure begins to unravel. Sorry, but Swedes, like all Westerners, are living on the borrowed spiritual capital of Christianity, and both are now quickly in decline.
Have a read of some historical sociologists, such as Rodney Stark. Read for example his important 2005 volume, The Victory of Reason: How Christianity Led to Freedom, Capitalism and Western Success.
And as I noted in other comments above, to criticise the ruling elites and reigning ideology of Sweden is not to criticise the whole country. As I mentioned, I know many Swedes are not happy with where the intelligentsia have taken the country, just as many Dutch, for example, are not happy where modern Holland is at.
Moreover, bear in mind that I said on a number of occasions in my article that the entire Western world is also in deep trouble, because of its rejection of its Christian heritage.
And yes I would love to visit Sweden one day. I am sure there would be much there I would thoroughly enjoy. But that does not mean I will leave my critical faculties behind, and pretend there are no major social and cultural problems plaguing the country.
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
Thanks John
Of course nearly all of Europe was largely Christian until just recently. But it would be fallacious to therefore conclude that the present mess which Europe is now in is somehow due to that Christian past. To the contrary, it is mainly because Europe has so radically and totally rejected its Judeo-Christian foundation that so much of this lunacy is now occurring. But see my above response to Ingemar for more on this.
But you are quite right to ask why it was that so many European Christians gave the whole thing away, or did not do more to stop the rot. But that is a historical question which, while worth pursuing, is unfortunately a bit too late given Europe’s current malaise.
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
Bill, your report refers to Pop’s “mother” – I imagine it chose to have a delivering role, rather than a fertiilising role, in Pop’s procreation. Maybe next time it will choose fertilisation – or may try to, before reality (which can be so cruel!) sets in. I bet many, many more children, in addition to Pop, will have/are having their lives ruined by these wretched experimenters (individuals, and governments).
John Thomas
Ingemar, if Australians enjoy family life and values it is because of Australia’s Judeo-Christian heritage. And it is because organisations like the Australian Family Association continue to defend the institution. Certainly it is not because the forces of secularism promote dead-end de facto relationships and the dishonest make-believe of fault-free divorce. Nor is it because we have a popular culture that derides fidelity, modesty and chastity.
John Snowden
“is unfortunately a bit too late given Europe’s current malaise.”
Too late? It is not in the nature of Christianity to abjectly give up. Look at the Christians in Poland. They ultimately frustrated and brought down an oppressive, stagnating Marxist regime. They would not have gotten away with it in Joe Stalin’s time, of course. The world is full of opportunities. Secular follies might self-destruct.
John Snowden
Thanks John
But I did not mean that it was too late to turn things around in Europe. With God, anything is possible. I was instead referring to the fact that it is a bit after the fact to ponder why the church largely capitulated to the secularisation of Europe during the past few centuries.
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
Michael Watts
2.7.09 / 8am WELL SAID. Your comment and reference to a parent as ‘procreative agent ½’, exposes this foolishness for the nonsense that it is. What was that about ‘thinking themselves to be wise they become as fools…..? What else can you say…!
Michelle Shave
Bill,
If you are relying on books like Huntford’s your knowledge of Sweden is about 40 years out of date. We have progressed from the “third way” semi-socialist state of the past to be one of the most sucessful market economies in Europe, and one of the most highly privatised. Perhaps you have heard of some Swedish multi-national companies, like IKEA, Volvo, Ericsson, ABB and Saab. We even, shock, horror, have a centre-right government.
It is a common human attribute to listen only to views that reinforce our preconceptions, i.e. we are all biased and our readings are biased too, no matter how much we might claim to be objective. The fact that you totally ignore my opinions as a Swede, but trust instead the slanted writings from a past era, speaks volumes about your objectivity.
No doubt I too am biased, but that is why I suggest it is far better to form your opinions from first-hand experience rather than rely on the selected and subjective opinions of others.
I fully agree with your statements about the role of Christianity in the development of Western civilisation, but what has that to do with the question of whether a particular denomination should be privileged as “state church” in today’s world? If Christian influence is declining in Sweden and elsewhere perhaps that is because the church has failed in its role rather than because it has lost its privileged position of establishment?
Surely you don’t believe every country should have a state church? Which one would Australia have, and who would choose it? How has Christianity in England benefited from the privileged position of the Church of England?
But getting back on topic, I reiterate that our country has always had and continues to have a strong family culture, totally contrary to the harsh judgment of the title of your article. I am saddened that you are so misinformed and unwilling to reconsider your opinions.
Ingemar Skjöldebrand, Göteborg, Sweden
Thanks Ingemar
Yes I am fully aware of the more recent political shifts that have taken place in Sweden. But I have all along been speaking about the social and cultural direction Sweden has been on for some decades now, especially in terms of its views on marriage and family, its radical feminism, is push for androgyny, and so on. And again, it is the ruling elites that I am concerned about, more so than the average Swede.
No I am not in favour of state churches, and yes, one can ask why the Swedish Christians have had so little impact recently on the nation, allowing it to become so radically secular, as is most of Europe.
But at the end of the day, there are Swedish voices – not just me – who have expressed concerns about the social/cultural drift of Sweden. You are obviously not one of those, and you seem quite happy with the state of play in Sweden. In which case, there will be little that I or those Swedish commentators can say that will change your mind. So we may just have to agree to disagree here.
And of course a few months ago Sweden became the seventh nation (the fifth European nation) to legalise same-sex marriage. But given how you seem to think the family is doing so terrifically in Sweden, I suppose you are fully in favour of this move as well – just another type of family?
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
Good stuff, thanks Bill for the countless hours you spend as a ‘watchman’ on the wall.
Stan Fishley
Bill,
Radical feminism has no support in Sweden. A group called Feministiskt Initiativ tried to exploit politically recently and got only 1% of the vote. However, equality of opportunity for women has certainly made advances over many years. If that is what concerns you I have to wonder why. Are you opposed to equal opportunities for women?
As for “androgyny” I have rarely heard the term used before. I had to look up my English dictionary to see what it meant, and I am still confused that you mention it. By my observations, men are still masculine and women are still feminine in Sweden. Certainly in my family, and most others I know, my wife and I share domestic responsibilities such as cooking, cleaning and child care. I don’t feel emascualted doing what once might have been considered “women’s work”. It is simply another aspect of married love and human courtesy. And little different from what I observe in those Australian households I have been fortunate enough to visit while holidaying here. So what is it that you seem to believe is happening in Sweden that is so different and worrying?
Yes, same-sex couples now have legal status in Sweden. Some disagree with this decision, but that is democracy. Personally it has no impact on me, my family, or anyone else’s family as far as I can see. It simply establishes a legal commitment and associated legal responsibilities for the parties involved. I am at a loss to understand why the private lives of others are such an obsession for some.
I am leaving your beautiful country in a few days, returning home via the USA. I will probably have no further chance to correspond with you for several weeks. I wish you well, even as I am saddened and puzzled by some of your opinions.
Ingemar Skjöldebrand, Göteborg, Sweden
The Swedes seem to cover all bases. On the one hand they don’t want gender defined and on the other they consider gender very real and they’re willing to kill for it as they ruled in gender-based abortion: http://www.thelocal.se/19392.html
This is just shocking!
Servaas Hofmeyr
Ingemar,
I’m sure there are many fine families in Sweden. I know that there are many fine Christians.
The problem that Bill is adressing is not whether there are good families, but whether there are likely to be as many in the future.
In societies, just as in churches, the grassroots change slowly. There would be many Swedes who are conservative, but are these people thought of as “old fashioned?” When the government sets policies and the universities and media proclaim “progressive” ideology it doesn’t change the population immediately, but over time.
When feminists, homosexuals and other progressives say that a child doesn’t need both a mother and father in a stable marriage, then the idea or institution of family is under attack.
This article is an illustration of that. That a couple can be so deranged as to seriously propose that a child’s identity is independent of his gender. The rot is starting to take root in new “families”.
You may take offense at Bill’s pointing out this about your home country. Please note he points out stupidity in his own culture as well.
What I would ask you is this: Was there an uproar over this couple. Was the overwhelming tone of media reports that this couple are lunatics playing games with the emotional and mental health of their child?
If not then the family is not valued in Sweden and Bill is right.
If he is right, then I ask what are all the Swedes, like you, who love their nation and are proud of its achievements, what are you doing to protect the family, the foundational unit of society.
God Bless,
Michael Hutton
Thanks Ingemar
Ah, but now we are getting to the bottom of your cavalier attitude toward the assault on the family in Sweden and Europe. You accuse me of being biased. But it seems clear that you are such a product of the secular left Swedish and European culture, that you fully and uncritically embrace what is happening in your country. Your acceptance of any and every form of relationship as being equivalent to heterosexual marriage lets the cat out of the bag.
The truth is, Sweden – along with much of the West – is going through a period where the institutions of marriage and family are taking some savage blows. As sociologist and family expert David Popenoe has documented, “As compared with the rest of the industrial world, the Swedish now have the lowest marriage rate, the highest non-marital cohabitation rate, and possibly the highest family dissolution rate”. But evidently this does not faze you in the least.
The most important reason why we should be concerned about such trends is the very real negative impact on children. Elsewhere I have documented the mounting social science research on this. Over 10,000 international studies have shown that family structure very much matters, and kids raised in households other than married, heterosexual families on the whole suffer a number of setbacks.
The evidence for this is overwhelming. But I suspect you are not interested in such data, as you have bought the secular left dogma that there is no such thing as an ideal family structure, and all relationships are simply social constructs anyhow.
Thus I am afraid we are at an impasse here, and may simply have to agree to disagree.
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
I agree with Bill. There’s tons of evidence showing that the family is under attack. It takes different forms and is not new. For example, after Israel was founded some Jewish collective farms experimented with raising their children in a way that radically disrupted traditional family structure. The experiment failed. People returned to the norm which is not to say that attacks on the norm will not be renewed (I don’t know about the current state of the family in Israel).
John Snowden
Great article. But most people do not hear about those kind of events. I just would like to share some of those articles with my friends. Great reads.
I was just wondering is it possible to have a way to post some of these articles on sites like facebook, twiter, etc.
Edens Duphresne, Delaware, USA
Thanks Edens
On occaision I do post them on Facebook. They also tend to make it onto various other sites.
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
We had two girls and a boy and they definitely behaved differently. Just one example: even when quite young the boy would hear a truck pass by and stop what he was doing to listen. The girls would not even notice.
If they only have one child they won’t be able to identify the differences because they have nothing to compare it with.
Tas Walker
Arrrgh. And guys like Richard Dawkins reckon Christians are dangerous to their childrens’ mental health…
Heartbreaking story really. As if kids don’t have a hard enough time already dealing with the social dross thrust upon them by the engineers of a new “utopia.”
Phil Twiss
These parents really haven’t gone far enough. They should be sleeping little Johnny (I mean Pop) with Rover in the kennel and feeding him dog food so that he won’t be hindered by preconceived notions of man being made distinct from the animals. The wonders this will do to little Johnny’s self-confidence and personality will surely remain with him for a lifetime!
Mansel Rogerson
Madness, madness. It reminds me of St James statment of people blown about like chaff because they have no firm foundation.
Sorry but this madness will only get worse before it gets better, however we are to challenge these beliefs at every point.
Wayne Pelling
Mother and father? Don’t you mean “parent 1 and parent 2”?
Jonathan Sarfati, Brisbane
Amen, May God have mercy on us all.
Siti Khatijah
…and yet, they probably don’t question the logical incongruity of the idea that gender roles (actually based on biological reality) are supposedly a ‘social construct’ but homosexuality (actually based on behaviour alone) is ‘genetically determined.’ Truly up is down and down is up.
Mark Rabich
Yes Mansel, as long as its a gender-neutral kennel and the parental units remove the labels to the cans before feed time.
Duane Proud
I do not have the words to say . . . I’m almost speechless on this. . . I feel bad for the child. This is so sad.
Anna Aquino
That poor child! In ethics last semester there was talk (in the lectures) of how the two genders are social constructs and in 50 years we will not be burdened by ‘male’ and ‘female’ classifications. The message was that classifying humans into the two sexes was judgmental. What is with people pulling the ‘judgemental card’ these days?
Keith Jarrett
No doubt the Swedish authorities would take issue with the Jonathan’s post as follows:
No, because (1), the word ‘parent’ implies some notion of ownership or control over the offspring, which rightly belongs to the State; and (1), the use of a post-nomenclatural digit establishes a hierarchy of positive numerical supremacy, in which a number of apparently greater numerical value is thought to be higher and thus better than the one preceding it.
Each one should be ‘procreative agent ½’
Michael Watts
Mark,
That’s a very good point. Thanks.
Mansel Rogerson
Bill,
I am offended that you cast us Swedes in bad light. You seem often to take a single example of strange behaviour and cast an entire population in the same light. It comes across like sensationalist tabloid journalism. It would be like me casting all Australians as criminals because a Swedish backpacker got assaulted.
I am visiting your country and I find Australians very friendly, good families etc., much like us Swedes. I have just visited New Zealand and I find them similar. Why do you dislike New Zealand also?
What do you dislike so much about Sweden? There are 9 million of us and we most are not like your example. We have happy normal families and stable society just like you. Why on earth do you say “Death of the Family” in Sweden because of one unusual parents? Have you been there?
Ingemar Skjöldebrand, Göteborg, Sweden
Thanks Ingemar
Yes you are quite right: if this were the only episode of Swedish silliness, then a full frontal assault on Sweden would be quite unwarranted. But sadly, as I argued, this extreme case is simply the logical outcome of 50 years of radical social engineering in Sweden. I have tried to document some of this in other articles, such as this one: https://billmuehlenberg.com/2009/04/03/the-coercive-utopia-known-as-sweden/
And of course one expects that there would be many Swedes who would be equally appalled at this sort of madness. While I have not lived in Sweden, I did live in northern Europe for five years, and they are experiencing similar sorts of problems.
But thanks for writing.
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
Daer Ingemar, Whilst Bill spoke of the extreme in this example, he has always been saying the same thing. The definition of love marriage, male, female husband wife and all sorts of related gender issues through social engineering by some quarters, minority, yet having the upper hand and calling normal people like all of us ultra conservative. Every right has become wrong and every wrong seems to have become right. He has always shown that we all are in need of reflection of what we are doing, causing harm to ourselves, our own worst enemy. just because we can do it does it mean we should? He has always shown in different articles how far away we all have drifted from God. God have mercy on us all.
Siti Khatijah.
Sweden is not an absolute disaster. It has quite sensible laws on drugs and prostitution, unlike many other Western nations.
Ros Phillips
Thanks Ros
Yes you are right; they have turned around on both of these issues in the past decades. So they have a few good things going for them. Most nations of course are a mixture of good and bad, some better and some worse than others.
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
You are right Bill…may God have mercy on us all!
Jane Byrne
Bill, good to know that something is happening positively in Sweden. I visited a Swedish (Svenska?) friend in 2001 and admired the neatness, cleanliness and “perfectness” of the country but my friend (a Christian) was dismayed by the social engineering going on in the country and pointed out to me a politician whom we walked past and who wanted participation in orgies as part of the primary classroom curriculum! Thankfully that lunacy was defeated. Can you explain or direct me to information on the good “turn around” the Swedes have done on drugs and prostitution?
Graeme Cumming
Thanks Graeme
I have written up the Swedish success on drugs here: https://billmuehlenberg.com/2000/07/15/follow-the-swedish-model/
As to prostitution, here is one of a number of helpful summaries: http://www.justicewomen.com/cj_sweden.html
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
I appreciate Bill’s concern but all is not lost. The idiocy of these parents was seized upon not because it is typical of the Swedes but because it is odd, eccentric, atypical. For every case like this there are probably thousands of Swedish parents raising boys as boys and girls as girls and not something indeterminate. In other words, they have not been completely sucked in by feminist twaddle. No doubt some Swedes pay lip service to political correctness but talking is not doing. If feminist ideology is contrary to human biological nature as the sociologist Steven Goldberg argues, then feminism’s days are numbered if it does not yield and adapt to inescapable reality. The Swedish authorities should be investigating the couple for child abuse. This may be the pathological tip of a domestic iceberg of abuse.
I agree that Sweden has its problems and these appear to originate from secular irrationalisms. But I suspect the reality is more complex. Did the Swedish Nanny State originate from the efforts of leftwing secular radicals or Christian socialists or both? In the last century Sweden was largely Christian and indeed until very recently had an official State-endorsed Church. What went wrong? Why have so many Christians left the gate open for the secular barbarians (and Western secularism IS a barbarism)? Why don’t they spring to arms when Christ is portrayed as a transvestite in one of their own churches, as happened recently? Even Pontius Pilate didn’t accuse Him of that!
John Snowden
Bill,
I am surprised that you make such harsh and bitter judgments based on hearsay rather than personal experience. I sense an element of fear of the foreign, whether nation or culture. If you were to visit my country you might be surprised to find that family life and values there are very much like Australia, even though we have very different cultural backgrounds. Like Australia, we are a tolerant and compassionate society, largely accepting of the range of human diversity and religious belief, including unbelief. You would find that your sweeping claims about “Death of the Family” in Sweden are very wide of the mark.
You would be well aware that Europe has been ravaged by war and political and sectarian strife. Although I am of the Church of Sweden, I fully supported the disestablishment, which you might call secularisation. It means that no religion may promote itself as state-sponsored, and that must be a good thing, no? I don’t know of any Western country that isn’t secular, in fact you and I would surely share concerns that non-secular countries tend to be totalitarian.
There is surely room within Christianity for many different viewpoints. Ultimately all humans seek a long, healthy and quality-filled life, for themselves, their family, and the wider community. For if the community wellbeing is high we are all better off.
I hope that you visit Sweden one day. Then you might understand that it is a quality way of life, relatively free of the sectarian culture wars that cause so much bitterness, hatred and division elsewhere.
Ingemar Skjöldebrand, Göteborg, Sweden
Thanks Ingemar
Sorry, but I don’t have a fear of the foreign. Such ad hominem attacks do nothing in this debate. I quite loved my time in Europe, and would be quite happy to live there again, despite the many problems it is undergoing at the moment.
And I don’t find your reasoning very helpful here. Do you really believe that one cannot speak about something based on the reports of others, but only from personal experience? You wouldn’t be speaking about very much at all if that were true.
That means you cannot speak against rape unless you were personally raped. You can’t speak against the Holocaust unless you personally experienced it. You can’t speak against gross poverty unless you personally experienced it, etc.
And ‘hearsay’ sounds like a loaded term. But we all live and believe on the testimony and word of others. For example, my knowledge about Sweden comes from Swedes who have lived there and seen firsthand what modern Sweden is becoming. Why is this source of knowledge discredited in your eyes?
For example, Scandinavian journalist Roland Huntford years ago wrote The New Totalitarians, chronicling the ever-encroaching statism in Sweden. Another writer of Swedish background is Allan Carlson, who has written extensively on how the family has fared in modern Sweden. His many books on these topics are valuable sources of information, written by an insider.
See for example his The Swedish Experiment in Family Politics, based on his PhD. Are these and other documentary sources to be discounted Ingemar? Can I say nothing about Sweden based on what these and other authorities have said?
And I also disagree with your love of secularism. It is exactly because Europe – including Sweden – was not secular that it developed into what we call Western Civilisation with all its benefits. It was an overwhelmingly religious Europe that produced so many goods which the rest of the world has emulated and sought to enjoy the benefits of.
The very reason people have enjoyed a “long, healthy and quality-filled life” is because of the Judeo-Christian foundation of Western civilisation. Take away that foundation, and the whole structure begins to unravel. Sorry, but Swedes, like all Westerners, are living on the borrowed spiritual capital of Christianity, and both are now quickly in decline.
Have a read of some historical sociologists, such as Rodney Stark. Read for example his important 2005 volume, The Victory of Reason: How Christianity Led to Freedom, Capitalism and Western Success.
And as I noted in other comments above, to criticise the ruling elites and reigning ideology of Sweden is not to criticise the whole country. As I mentioned, I know many Swedes are not happy with where the intelligentsia have taken the country, just as many Dutch, for example, are not happy where modern Holland is at.
Moreover, bear in mind that I said on a number of occasions in my article that the entire Western world is also in deep trouble, because of its rejection of its Christian heritage.
And yes I would love to visit Sweden one day. I am sure there would be much there I would thoroughly enjoy. But that does not mean I will leave my critical faculties behind, and pretend there are no major social and cultural problems plaguing the country.
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
Thanks John
Of course nearly all of Europe was largely Christian until just recently. But it would be fallacious to therefore conclude that the present mess which Europe is now in is somehow due to that Christian past. To the contrary, it is mainly because Europe has so radically and totally rejected its Judeo-Christian foundation that so much of this lunacy is now occurring. But see my above response to Ingemar for more on this.
But you are quite right to ask why it was that so many European Christians gave the whole thing away, or did not do more to stop the rot. But that is a historical question which, while worth pursuing, is unfortunately a bit too late given Europe’s current malaise.
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
Bill, your report refers to Pop’s “mother” – I imagine it chose to have a delivering role, rather than a fertiilising role, in Pop’s procreation. Maybe next time it will choose fertilisation – or may try to, before reality (which can be so cruel!) sets in. I bet many, many more children, in addition to Pop, will have/are having their lives ruined by these wretched experimenters (individuals, and governments).
John Thomas
Ingemar, if Australians enjoy family life and values it is because of Australia’s Judeo-Christian heritage. And it is because organisations like the Australian Family Association continue to defend the institution. Certainly it is not because the forces of secularism promote dead-end de facto relationships and the dishonest make-believe of fault-free divorce. Nor is it because we have a popular culture that derides fidelity, modesty and chastity.
John Snowden
“is unfortunately a bit too late given Europe’s current malaise.”
Too late? It is not in the nature of Christianity to abjectly give up. Look at the Christians in Poland. They ultimately frustrated and brought down an oppressive, stagnating Marxist regime. They would not have gotten away with it in Joe Stalin’s time, of course. The world is full of opportunities. Secular follies might self-destruct.
John Snowden
Thanks John
But I did not mean that it was too late to turn things around in Europe. With God, anything is possible. I was instead referring to the fact that it is a bit after the fact to ponder why the church largely capitulated to the secularisation of Europe during the past few centuries.
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
Michael Watts
2.7.09 / 8am WELL SAID. Your comment and reference to a parent as ‘procreative agent ½’, exposes this foolishness for the nonsense that it is. What was that about ‘thinking themselves to be wise they become as fools…..? What else can you say…!
Michelle Shave
Bill,
If you are relying on books like Huntford’s your knowledge of Sweden is about 40 years out of date. We have progressed from the “third way” semi-socialist state of the past to be one of the most sucessful market economies in Europe, and one of the most highly privatised. Perhaps you have heard of some Swedish multi-national companies, like IKEA, Volvo, Ericsson, ABB and Saab. We even, shock, horror, have a centre-right government.
It is a common human attribute to listen only to views that reinforce our preconceptions, i.e. we are all biased and our readings are biased too, no matter how much we might claim to be objective. The fact that you totally ignore my opinions as a Swede, but trust instead the slanted writings from a past era, speaks volumes about your objectivity.
No doubt I too am biased, but that is why I suggest it is far better to form your opinions from first-hand experience rather than rely on the selected and subjective opinions of others.
I fully agree with your statements about the role of Christianity in the development of Western civilisation, but what has that to do with the question of whether a particular denomination should be privileged as “state church” in today’s world? If Christian influence is declining in Sweden and elsewhere perhaps that is because the church has failed in its role rather than because it has lost its privileged position of establishment?
Surely you don’t believe every country should have a state church? Which one would Australia have, and who would choose it? How has Christianity in England benefited from the privileged position of the Church of England?
But getting back on topic, I reiterate that our country has always had and continues to have a strong family culture, totally contrary to the harsh judgment of the title of your article. I am saddened that you are so misinformed and unwilling to reconsider your opinions.
Ingemar Skjöldebrand, Göteborg, Sweden
Thanks Ingemar
Yes I am fully aware of the more recent political shifts that have taken place in Sweden. But I have all along been speaking about the social and cultural direction Sweden has been on for some decades now, especially in terms of its views on marriage and family, its radical feminism, is push for androgyny, and so on. And again, it is the ruling elites that I am concerned about, more so than the average Swede.
No I am not in favour of state churches, and yes, one can ask why the Swedish Christians have had so little impact recently on the nation, allowing it to become so radically secular, as is most of Europe.
But at the end of the day, there are Swedish voices – not just me – who have expressed concerns about the social/cultural drift of Sweden. You are obviously not one of those, and you seem quite happy with the state of play in Sweden. In which case, there will be little that I or those Swedish commentators can say that will change your mind. So we may just have to agree to disagree here.
And of course a few months ago Sweden became the seventh nation (the fifth European nation) to legalise same-sex marriage. But given how you seem to think the family is doing so terrifically in Sweden, I suppose you are fully in favour of this move as well – just another type of family?
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
Good stuff, thanks Bill for the countless hours you spend as a ‘watchman’ on the wall.
Stan Fishley
Bill,
Radical feminism has no support in Sweden. A group called Feministiskt Initiativ tried to exploit politically recently and got only 1% of the vote. However, equality of opportunity for women has certainly made advances over many years. If that is what concerns you I have to wonder why. Are you opposed to equal opportunities for women?
As for “androgyny” I have rarely heard the term used before. I had to look up my English dictionary to see what it meant, and I am still confused that you mention it. By my observations, men are still masculine and women are still feminine in Sweden. Certainly in my family, and most others I know, my wife and I share domestic responsibilities such as cooking, cleaning and child care. I don’t feel emascualted doing what once might have been considered “women’s work”. It is simply another aspect of married love and human courtesy. And little different from what I observe in those Australian households I have been fortunate enough to visit while holidaying here. So what is it that you seem to believe is happening in Sweden that is so different and worrying?
Yes, same-sex couples now have legal status in Sweden. Some disagree with this decision, but that is democracy. Personally it has no impact on me, my family, or anyone else’s family as far as I can see. It simply establishes a legal commitment and associated legal responsibilities for the parties involved. I am at a loss to understand why the private lives of others are such an obsession for some.
I am leaving your beautiful country in a few days, returning home via the USA. I will probably have no further chance to correspond with you for several weeks. I wish you well, even as I am saddened and puzzled by some of your opinions.
Ingemar Skjöldebrand, Göteborg, Sweden
The Swedes seem to cover all bases. On the one hand they don’t want gender defined and on the other they consider gender very real and they’re willing to kill for it as they ruled in gender-based abortion: http://www.thelocal.se/19392.html
This is just shocking!
Servaas Hofmeyr
Ingemar,
I’m sure there are many fine families in Sweden. I know that there are many fine Christians.
You can read about one here:
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2004/jul/04070505.html
The problem that Bill is adressing is not whether there are good families, but whether there are likely to be as many in the future.
In societies, just as in churches, the grassroots change slowly. There would be many Swedes who are conservative, but are these people thought of as “old fashioned?” When the government sets policies and the universities and media proclaim “progressive” ideology it doesn’t change the population immediately, but over time.
When feminists, homosexuals and other progressives say that a child doesn’t need both a mother and father in a stable marriage, then the idea or institution of family is under attack.
This article is an illustration of that. That a couple can be so deranged as to seriously propose that a child’s identity is independent of his gender. The rot is starting to take root in new “families”.
You may take offense at Bill’s pointing out this about your home country. Please note he points out stupidity in his own culture as well.
What I would ask you is this: Was there an uproar over this couple. Was the overwhelming tone of media reports that this couple are lunatics playing games with the emotional and mental health of their child?
(reference: http://www.slate.com/id/2101678/)
If not then the family is not valued in Sweden and Bill is right.
If he is right, then I ask what are all the Swedes, like you, who love their nation and are proud of its achievements, what are you doing to protect the family, the foundational unit of society.
God Bless,
Michael Hutton
Thanks Ingemar
Ah, but now we are getting to the bottom of your cavalier attitude toward the assault on the family in Sweden and Europe. You accuse me of being biased. But it seems clear that you are such a product of the secular left Swedish and European culture, that you fully and uncritically embrace what is happening in your country. Your acceptance of any and every form of relationship as being equivalent to heterosexual marriage lets the cat out of the bag.
The truth is, Sweden – along with much of the West – is going through a period where the institutions of marriage and family are taking some savage blows. As sociologist and family expert David Popenoe has documented, “As compared with the rest of the industrial world, the Swedish now have the lowest marriage rate, the highest non-marital cohabitation rate, and possibly the highest family dissolution rate”. But evidently this does not faze you in the least.
The most important reason why we should be concerned about such trends is the very real negative impact on children. Elsewhere I have documented the mounting social science research on this. Over 10,000 international studies have shown that family structure very much matters, and kids raised in households other than married, heterosexual families on the whole suffer a number of setbacks.
The evidence for this is overwhelming. But I suspect you are not interested in such data, as you have bought the secular left dogma that there is no such thing as an ideal family structure, and all relationships are simply social constructs anyhow.
Thus I am afraid we are at an impasse here, and may simply have to agree to disagree.
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
I agree with Bill. There’s tons of evidence showing that the family is under attack. It takes different forms and is not new. For example, after Israel was founded some Jewish collective farms experimented with raising their children in a way that radically disrupted traditional family structure. The experiment failed. People returned to the norm which is not to say that attacks on the norm will not be renewed (I don’t know about the current state of the family in Israel).
John Snowden
Great article. But most people do not hear about those kind of events. I just would like to share some of those articles with my friends. Great reads.
I was just wondering is it possible to have a way to post some of these articles on sites like facebook, twiter, etc.
Edens Duphresne, Delaware, USA
Thanks Edens
On occaision I do post them on Facebook. They also tend to make it onto various other sites.
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch