LunaAtlas
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1197
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Jul 27, 2026 9:54 PM
LunaAtlas
29508
1197
34
JohnSmithterms
Social democracy is the bare minimum we need
BruhForScale
Most of the social democratic countries won’t be welfare states for long if you listen to economists. Sweden is a funny example to use because they have been privatising services more and more and influencing the other Scandinavian countries to do the same. Their boomers are retiring and they have way too strict immigration so the shit will hit the fan soon
Whenthepiecesaresmalltaketwo
Social democracy is fairly different than democratic socialist. I say we try a govt like Sweden. Billionaires will hate it
huffnpuff72
"BuT mAh GunNNnZz! ThAt AiNt FrEEduMm!" Some red hat moron.
Poppypoppoppop
Even after growing up watching many American movies, I was adult years old when I discovered many Americans get drowned in medical debts and/or student loans, which none of these is a concern to me AT ALL where I live. People commenting USA is a third world country in denial, cannot be truer.
KillingTlme
Yeh, but how many billionaires do you have? Checkmate!
iidky
That sound you heard was the Socialism alarm going off at Fox News. Expect to see a two week uptick in anti European\socialism stories.
Goldensands
As a Scandinavian, I -wish- we were socialist. Alas, americas filth has destroyed any hope of that genuinely being attempted, anywhere.
JustDriftingAboutTheInterWebs
[Angry republican noises]
TalkingSnake
*hacking noises, coughing and wheezing
JustDriftingAboutTheInterWebs
Okilele
I'm french, I had 2 cancer (I'm fine), it cost me maybe 40€ (scanner every 6 month for 10 years).
I lost my job because of IA, I was a 2D game artist... I'll get 60 to 75% of my salary for 2 years and a paid study to help me find a new job without losing everything ...
HisBubbliness
You would only refuse something like this for your country if you cared only about profiting or if you don't give a shit about the people. The United States is such a special case that it refuses this for both reasons.
RealPenguin
On guns: in Sweden you can also own guns. Yes, also pistols and revolvers. And even full auto, though that is difficult and more guarded. Lots of civilian owned guns in Sweden. Almost no illegal activities with legal guns.
LunaAtlas
When a country does not keep its community healthy, it faces serious problems like rising disease rates, crashing economic growth, and severe strain on hospitals. Then there is the Economic and Country-Wide Impacts, Lower work output: Higher money costs: Fixing big health emergencies costs the government much more money than regular care. Unsafe living conditions: Weak communities struggle to handle basic daily needs, leading to poverty and social unrest; people loving in the streets.
Elsuave
It's cheaper to keep your citizens healthy.
LunaAtlas
luckiestnut419
As a government employee that requires annual physicals by Occupational Health at a government hospital, I can tell you there’s a parallel. Occupational health’s job is in risk management, ensure the employee is more of an asset than a liability. Once you shift past that midline to liability, they look to cut you loose. Employer-provided insurance is meant to keep you healthy enough to be a profitable asset. If healthcare isn’t tied to “gainful” employment, corporations lose so much power.
TorvusBull
Say YES to parental leave!
Shoutrr
what's funny is american are living in a bubble so much that what's going on in the vast majority of western countries is so unknown to them they have to fact check what it's like to live there.
chefsoda
The US has spent its entire existence both relying on public funding and infrastructure, while preaching the horror of anything other than economic independence. It’s so ingrained at this point, that the definitions and realities are meaningless to many, they simply believe that if they work hard & shun help, they will become wealthy. All the while, the wealthy take every handout & public program possible, while imploring their employers to never consider doing the same.
katemads
But how’s the weather? Asking for a friend.
SteveD31415
I keep saying this. No one in the Trump Camp cares in the least about your academically correct definitions of socialism communism or social democracy. Any system that takes labor or resources from someone and distributes them to someone who has less is communism. Thank you for your attention.
Omnimorph2112
Also worth noting, private health care doesn't just disappear in countries where you have socialised healthcare. It just becomes a premium service that people with more money can pay to get more prioritised healthcare. As with most countries with strong socialist policies, the stark comparison to the US is that the base level everyone should have is higher. People shouldn't have to ration their meds because they're too poor to afford them.
scootwhoman
If you owned a factory, you would pay to have the equipment and the building maintained. People are the most valuable resource there is, so we should take care of the people.
Funkman418
WHILE A PEDOPHILE PIG RAPIST DESTROYS OURS
EMHPicardo
/s
rareunicornmeat
with every violent thought of my being.
Nooooooooooooooooooooo
Oh I'm thinking of them alright
https://media1.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPWE1NzM3M2U1ano3MjB4aTQ2OGNuMXltMW5maGphMjdlbHU0dnd0bHh4azFicGNvYyZlcD12MV9naWZzX3NlYXJjaCZjdD1n/JsLeGG6QfNlpS/200w.webp
Kotarisu
MisterBrahanovich
LumpPump
ive heard billionaires like Sweden cause its low taxes for the ultra wealthy
LordSithis
From what I understand, only If they don't actually live there.
my1rstlaptopwas34inchscreenup
oh, i think of them often, dont worry
JeffTeck
Yes, we think about them.
...a lot 😠
Rockafella83
SavageDrums
I do, often. They are not thoughts the billionaire would like.
BeaverOnFire
robpaschal
Those poor stockholders.
spontaneous9
meanwhile in the "Land of The Free and Home of The Brave,"
VinchVolt
sweden's had its own far-right problem for a while. some of it is influenced by the american far-right, others by the hungarian far-right (orban being the flag-bearer of fascist populism in the european union), and some is just entirely homegrown (sweden being a former empire and all).
Durgon8tr
i love stuff like this, but the only people that understand this are already on board. The idiots in the US just do not believe it. FACTS have no meaning to them. i think they should have all this tattooed to their forheads
stabbermcshooty
Problem with statements like take note America and we fact checked it is the ones who’s minds need changing will listen less when told that
BillHubbard
It's missing an important bit. If you account for all the "extra" costs an American needs to make to get to the same level of social security most Americans would have less disposable income than the Swedish median income. Not even taking into account the value the Swedish extra quality of life has.
Bob12345678904
Same here. The only 'western' country that doesn't follow suit is the USA.
But congrats on the trillionaires I guess?
Comet260
It's not even a real trillionaire.
cousteau
Spaniard here. I just went to the hospital last week due to a renal colic (ouch) and yes, the hospital thing was free, but when I got out and went to the pharmacy to buy the stuff I had been prescribed, I was told that, since I hadn't done the paperwork for my medical card yet, they would have to charge me the FULL PRICE of the medicines I purchased 😭 Eighteen euros, no less! (about $20). I'm never gonna be able to recover financially.
SinStar87
Just took 40 years of franco nazi rule slaughtering all the leftists in your country for pushing for those. :) :/
wouldClimbForCash
You might need a raise. Maybe join a union? /S
FPAlpha
Do we need to start a Gofundme or just send the money to you directly? I feel very bad for you, i hope you make it!
Feralkyn
This is actually a serious point too: the US has pharma lobbies that pay politicians to ensure medical prices aren't capped even at the base point of sale. Meds in the US cost a shitton more, as do procedures, hospital stays etc., which is in part *why* insurance isn't viable there: only scam insurance can survive the costs.
BeaverOnFire
coffeeandprozac
$20 is my medication copay every month. 🥲
I'm lucky. But out of pocket, my medication would be around $500/ month. And it's a controlled substance so no bulk discount.
KingdomsCrown
Best I can give you is thoughts and prayers
BeatriceAine
If the MAGAts could read, they'd be upset.
B4r4B4d4B45tu
Ugh, el cólico renal es una mierda. Me alegra saber que está mejor.
SteveTheEgg
I just spent Saturday night in the hospital for the same thing . I might figure out how to log into my chart thing and see how much mine was. My prescription of 7 Flomax and 5 oxytocin was $19. Okay im going to go look..
Elsuave
Last year a dog ripped my lower lip off, I had 2 surgeries already, they treated me like a human in need, I paid cero. It's not only the money, I had to do cero paperwork, I'm an immigrant in Spain. I would kill and die for this country.
TinyBadger101
Lived in Japan for awhile as a kid. My sister got the flu, and my mom took her to the clinic. She was dehydrated, so the nurses at the clinic insisted that she get some IV fluids. Then they apologized profusely- because we were foreigners, and on temporary visas, we would have to pay for treatment. They were so, so sorry! It was like 2,000 yen (~$20).
Grovertrove
Similar experience as an exchange student; had a nasty upper respiratory bug, and the otc stuff wasn't cutting it, the doctor was amazing, had me use this for lack of better words: fog box (clear plastic box with some kind of vaporized medicine inside and a breath mask attached), prescribed some antibiotics and sent me on my way. 15 bucks (and when I was agog at the cost, the nurse was like "oh is that expensive?" and was shocked when I said "no, this is inexpensive!"
MarkWatneysVicodinPotato
I had a medical emergency in Canada and it cost me $3200 as a US citizen, insurance covered a bit of it though. Maybe hospitals are different or Canada is different. Either way, was still expensive.
Einstein9073
The brand name for the fog box is nebulizer.
Grovertrove
THATS the word I was looking for! ty internet stranger.
whatdoyoumeanicanttakemysweateroff
I wonder what this would cost in the states
luckiestnut419
My copay for an ER visit is $250; that’s what we paid for a trip with my littlest having anaphylaxis. I think the negotiated billing between the ER and my insurance provider was around $2,000, cash price was probably to the tune of $3,000.
luckiestnut419
Apologies; for context, she received an EpiPen from us, oral Benadryl and 3 hours monitoring at the standalone ER.
Goldensands
Life, liberty and dignity.
seriously9
lol biberdy, Canada here ya universal healthcare is so sweet. Enjoy your pedophil’s n’ rapists. Sorry.
gruntabulousbeans
One of my prescriptions is $5k a month.
crashmat
I'm in the UK, I need thyroid meds which makes all my prescription free. If not it would still only cost me £9.90 per item.
cousteau
Ouch, I'm sorry.
shameofslate
American here…
I broke my arm while staying with friends in England in 1987. Ambulance ride, ER visit, x-rays, painkillers, and antibiotics. They reset my arm, cast it, and kept me overnight. I had three follow-up visits while I was there, more x-rays, more medications.
On my last visit, they showed me the bill. It came out to about 220 pounds, which was about $400 US at the time. But they didn’t ask me to pay it.
SausageStuffer
I cut my thumb in January, here in the USA. Thought it probably needed stitches. Urgent care was closed, so I went to the ER. I got 3 stitches. It was a slow night, was in and out in 30 minutes. I got two separate bills totaling $3,400.
Lowland
What happens when you dont have that money ?
SausageStuffer
One bill from the hospital for $1800, one bill from the doctor for $1600. And almost immediate robocalls encouraging me to pay online with a credit card.
shameofslate
That’s messed up. I’m sorry that happened.
I should’ve been a doctor. I’m 62 now, and they have made a metric fuck ton of money off of me over the years.
SausageStuffer
Thanks, but I didn’t pay it. After getting nowhere with their call center in the Philippines, I did some digging to locate the right contacts, get itemized bills and find appropriate charges for the medical codes. Then wrote several letters to the contacts at the hospital and the two associated billing companies, CC’d state and US reps and the attorney general. That was 6 weeks ago, and I haven’t heard anything… We’ll see what they decide to do.
shameofslate
Fingers crossed.
onlyheretoargue
Ok, but do you have any billionaires?
SchizoidPanda
Yup. Sweden has more dollar billionaires per capita than the US, weirdly enough.
derpman4k
Ever hear of Spotify ?
There are lots of swedish billionaires, youd be surprised how many huge companies sre swedish. Ef, spotify, ikea, h&m
Also pretty sure the guy behind every 90s pop hit is up there in cash
PatrickDenStore
Unfortunately, yes. We decided that we wouldn't tax those much. It was a very stupid thing to do but we were crazy back then.
LumpPump
wild how you can seem to coexist, what laws are keeping them inline? or is it more the fact they just use your banks to store their money over seas?
PatrickDenStore
Sweden is not Switzerland... Jesus Christ...
LumpPump
i guess that means you do not have laws to keep them inline. wonder how long till it ends up like the US if no one is keeping them in check. always someone trying to roll back progress to line their pockets
PatrickDenStore
What the hell are you talking about, you mixed up Sweden and Switzerland. You're an idiot American who has no clue about anything, not even that Switzerland isn't Sweden. Please stay in school kiddo.
SinStar87
not a major investment firm block in spain I imagine. mostly seems to be owners of clothing and supermarkets and their rich kids/close families.
PatrickDenStore
Spain? What the hell are you talking about?
SinStar87
oh thought they were in a reply to the spainard's comment that I'd replied to prior.
SinStar87
Sweden's more concerning with lots of investment firm and real estate billionaires :/