<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/sweden" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sweden</a> published new treatment guidelines that abandon the model of care that &#8220;affirms&#8221; a child&#8217;s chosen transgender identity with medication.
The Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare (NBHW) <a href="https://www.socialstyrelsen.se/om-socialstyrelsen/pressrum/press/uppdaterat-kunskapsstod-for-vard-vid-konsdysfori-hos-unga/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">published</a> new treatment guidelines for youth with gender dysphoria last week that explicitly instruct medical providers that psychosocial support should be the first line of treatment. The updated guidelines follow a 2021 <a href="https://segm.org/Sweden_ends_use_of_Dutch_protocol" target="_blank" rel="noopener">policy change</a> that jettisoned the use of puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones to treat gender dysphoric youth, outside of a clinical research setting.
“Psychosocial support that helps the young person live with the body&#8217;s pubertal development without medication needs to be the first option when choosing care measures,” the guidelines read, according to the Society for Evidence-based Gender Medicine. 
The NBHW “deems that the risks of puberty suppressing treatment with GnRH-analogues and gender-affirming hormonal treatment currently outweigh the possible benefits, and that the treatments should be offered only in exceptional cases.”
Sweden seemed to dismiss the West’s preference for &#8220;gender identity&#8221; ideology, a set of beliefs that are not recognized by science, for gender dysphoria, a well-documented psychiatric condition.
“The NBHW still considers that gender dysphoria rather than gender identity should determine access to care and treatment,” the report said.
The update is a marked detour from Sweden&#8217;s prior 2015 guidelines that relied on World Professional Association of Transgender Health&#8217;s (WPATH) “Standards of Care 7,” parting ways with a &#8220;gender affirming&#8221; model for a more cautious approach that emphasizes the importance of psychotherapy.
WPATH has since been <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/new-declaration-launches-opposition-to-leading-transgender-health-association" target="_blank" rel="noopener">denounced</a> internationally by medical and mental health professionals for its “adherence to ideological views unsupported by evidence, its exclusion of ethical concerns, and its mischaracterization of basic science.”
Three key reasons listed for the change were a lack of reliable scientific evidence, evidence of detransition, and an unexplained sharp rise in prevalence of youth gender dysphoria, especially in adolescent girls without prior history of gender distress.
&#8220;Although the prevalence of detransition is still unknown, the knowledge that it occurs and that gender confirming treatment thus may lead to a deteriorating of health and quality of life (i.e. harm), is important for the overall judgment and recommendation,&#8221; the guidelines said.
Adolescents &#8220;will need to be offered other care than hormonal treatments,&#8221; and only in exceptional cases where gender incongruence that begins in childhood and persists until puberty, and causes &#8220;psychological strain&#8221; will puberty blocking drugs and cross-sex hormones be considered, provided only in research settings. Six Swedish pediatric gender clinics are set to be merged into three.
The Society for Evidence Based Gender Medicine (<a href="https://segm.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SEGM</a>) gave a <a href="https://twitter.com/segm_ebm/status/1604233730473590784?s=20&amp;t=UceAWzRh2deFpRiQjncQDg" target="_blank" rel="noopener">preliminary analysis</a> of the 6-page English summary and is currently translating the full document for a more detailed analysis.
Sweden, along with health authorities in Finland and the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/englands-national-health-service-abandons-gender-affirming-model-of-care" target="_blank" rel="noopener">U.K.</a>, are part of a growing international consensus that minors experiencing gender dysphoria should be treated with psychotherapy first, not medical interventions.
In the United States, with the <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/every-tomboy-is-tagged-transgender-transsexual-gender-dysphoria-children-hormones-clinic-terminology-expectations-11663872092" target="_blank" rel="noopener">broadening of the definition</a> of what it means to be “transgender,” as determined by &#8220;gender identity&#8221; ideology rather than persistent gender dysphoria, more children are in danger of becoming lifelong medical patients.
The gender-affirmation model, applied widely across the U.S., prevents medical professionals from questioning a child’s self-reported transgender identity, and from exploring possible underlying factors causing their dysphoria. The standard protocol for gender affirmation is administering puberty blockers, followed by cross-sex hormones and then surgery, if desired.
According to such influential American organizations and medical institutions as Planned Parenthood, American Psychological Association, American Psychiatric Association, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, their websites now define “transgender” as an “umbrella term” that includes mere gender nonconformity, or the rejection of stereotypical preferences and behaviors commonly associated with one’s sex.
At least <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/hospitals-clinics-are-promoting-services-to-gender-nonconforming-kids-here-are-47-of-them" target="_blank" rel="noopener">47 pediatric gender clinics</a>, many at prominent children’s hospitals, have broadened the scope of their patient criteria to include not only transgender-identified children, but those they describe as “gender creative,” “gender diverse,” or “gender nonconforming.” Some of these programs see patients as young as two and three years old.

Swedish nation flag in sunlight

Sweden’s New Pediatric Treatment Guidelines Ditch ‘Gender-Affirming’ Medication For Psychotherapy

Sweden's New Pediatric Treatment Guidelines Ditch 'Gender-Affirming' Medication For Psychotherapy

Puberty blockers

Social Issues

Sweden

Transgender

World

Authorities in <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/denmark" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Denmark</a> revealed on Tuesday that “powerful explosions” caused damage last month to the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/nord-stream-pipeline" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nord Stream</a> pipeline system.
The pipelines, which carried <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/oil-and-gas" target="_blank" rel="noopener">natural gas</a> under the Baltic Sea from <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/russia" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Russia</a> to <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/germany" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Germany</a>, have been the center of geopolitical strife since the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/ukraine-russia-war" target="_blank" rel="noopener">invasion of Ukraine</a>. Russia nixed shipments through Nord Stream 1 several weeks ago, while Germany blocked the adjacent Nord Stream 2 from beginning shipments days before the war started. Sweden and Denmark <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/nord-stream-pipelines-see-unprecedented-damage-after-cia-warned-german-government-of-sabotage" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> damage to the pipelines on September 26 as the system operator confirmed that the destruction was “unprecedented.”
The Danish Police Intelligence Service released a <a href="https://politi.dk/koebenhavns-politi/nyhedsliste/pet-og-k%C3%B8benhavns-politi-neds%C3%A6tter-f%C3%A6lles-efterforskningsgruppe-i-sagen-om-gasl%C3%A6kager-i-%C3%B8sters%C3%B8en/2022/10/18" target="_blank" rel="noopener">statement</a> announcing that preliminary investigations of the “crime scenes” confirm “extensive damage” to the pipelines caused by “powerful explosions.”
Denmark suggested that cooperation with the United Nations’ International Court of Justice, headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands, could be on the table as other countries carry out their own investigations. Swedish authorities said that evidence “has strengthened the suspicions of gross sabotage,” while the “continued preliminary investigation must show whether someone can be served with suspicion and later prosecuted.”
Footage shot by a Norwegian robotics company and <a href="https://www.expressen.se/nyheter/forsta-bilderna-fran-sprangda-gasroret-pa-ostersjons-botten/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">published</a> this week by the Swedish newspaper Expressen showed a massive tear in Nord Stream 1, with parts of the pipeline lodged in the seabed and over 50 meters of the system missing.
&nbsp;
<div id="attachment_451870" style="width: 992px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-451870" loading="lazy" class="wp-image-451870 size-large" src="https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/GettyImages-1243616290-982x576.jpg" alt="" width="982" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/10/GettyImages-1243616290-982x576.jpg 982w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/10/GettyImages-1243616290-300x176.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/10/GettyImages-1243616290-768x451.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/10/GettyImages-1243616290-1536x901.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/10/GettyImages-1243616290.jpg 2032w" sizes="(max-width: 982px) 100vw, 982px" />Gas leak causes bubbles on the surface of the water at Sea in Sweden on September 30 (Swedish Coast Guard Handout/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)</div>
Meanwhile, the European Commission announced <a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_22_6238" target="_blank" rel="noopener">details</a> of a proposal meant to increase security for infrastructure in the European Union. Ministers are encouraged to conduct stress tests on entities operating critical infrastructure while authorities in Brussels assume a “stronger support and coordination role” among member states and allies.
While some European ministers said Russia may have destroyed its own pipelines to increase gas prices, others <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/tucker-carlson-fuels-suspicion-u-s-behind-nord-stream-sabotage" target="_blank" rel="noopener">blamed</a> the United States for the damage, which caused natural gas to spew toward the surface of the Baltic Sea. Disabling the pipelines would remove the possibility of Germany caving to Russia and ending sanctions in time to import energy for the winter.
Footage of President Joe Biden threatening to oppose the Nord Stream 2 pipeline days before the beginning of the war <a href="https://twitter.com/Partisangirl/status/1574685985115607040?s=20&amp;t=exDoFSWQyGXDG_Cpl8TgOQ" target="_blank" rel="noopener">resurfaced</a> on social media after the pipelines suffered damage. The commander-in-chief had initially <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-sanctions-russian-owned-company-behind-nord-stream-2-pipeline" target="_blank" rel="noopener">waived</a> sanctions against the Russian-owned company behind Nord Stream 2, although he reimposed sanctions shortly before the conflict began.
&nbsp;
<div id="attachment_451871" style="width: 992px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-451871" loading="lazy" class="wp-image-451871 size-large" src="https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/GettyImages-1243616157-982x576.jpg" alt="" width="982" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/10/GettyImages-1243616157-982x576.jpg 982w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/10/GettyImages-1243616157-300x176.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/10/GettyImages-1243616157-768x451.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/10/GettyImages-1243616157-1536x901.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/10/GettyImages-1243616157.jpg 2032w" sizes="(max-width: 982px) 100vw, 982px" />A fourth leak was reported on September 30 in the Nord Stream gas pipelines off the coast of Sweden (Swedish Coast Guard Handout/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)</div>
“If Russia invades, that means tanks or troops crossing the border of Ukraine again, there will no longer be a Nord Stream 2. We will bring an end to it,” Biden said earlier this year. After a reporter pressed him, Biden responded: “I promise you, we will be able to do it.”
The destruction of the Nord Stream pipeline system threatens to worsen the energy supply crisis facing much of Europe. Natural gas shipments from Russia, which had already paused exports through Nord Stream 1 before the pipeline suffered damage, accounted for 40% of the European natural gas supply last year, a rate that had <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/european-union-social-market-economy-might-redistribute-fossil-fuel-profits" target="_blank" rel="noopener">dropped</a> to 9% as of last month. Germany, the continent’s largest economy, has seen dependence on Russian natural gas decrease from 55% to 35%.
The European Union is currently weighing <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/european-union-questions-russian-oil-price-cap-considers-making-fossil-fuel-companies-pay-a-solidarity-contribution" target="_blank" rel="noopener">various measures</a>, such as consumption limits, to help member states triage their power supplies through the winter. Several nations, including France and Spain, have already called for residents to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/french-president-calls-for-10-cut-in-energy-use-will-ration-power-as-a-last-resort" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reduce</a> power consumption.

Denmark reports leak in Russian Nord Stream 2 offshore gas pipeline

Danish Police Reveal Cause Of Nord Stream Pipeline Damage

Preliminary Investigation Shows Nord Stream Pipeline Destroyed By 'Powerful Explosions'

Denmark

Nord Stream Pipeline

Oil and Gas

Ukraine-Russia War

Superstar Drake got everyone&#8217;s attention when he shared a post about being &#8220;detained&#8221; in Sweden after his team denied reports that the rapper had a run-in with police.
The <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/drakes-rep-denies-reports-rappers-been-arrested-in-sweden">35-year-old</a> Canadian star&#8217;s <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CgHcMDsNBY0/">Instagram post</a> Sunday included a photo of a letter with the Swedish word for police at the top and a message that read, &#8220;Information for Those Suspected of a Crime and Subsequently Detained.&#8221;
The image the performer — born Aubrey Drake Graham — shared talked about detainee&#8217;s rights as well as those of a person who is &#8220;not a Swedish citizen.&#8221; The letter in the photo noted what one can expect during detainment, including that there is a maximum number of hours you can be interrogated for before you are &#8220;taken into custody&#8221; or released.
The photo of the police form also stated that should be a person be requested to stand for a &#8220;court trial,&#8221; the court &#8220;must examine the matter of your detention&#8221; no later than &#8220;96 hours&#8221; after being arrested or &#8220;otherwise detained.&#8221;
<blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CgHcMDsNBY0/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14">
<div style="padding: 16px;">
&nbsp;
<div style="flex-direction: row; align-items: center;">
<div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div>
<div style="flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;">
<div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div>
<div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div>
</div>
</div>
<div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div>
<div style="height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div>
<div style="padding-top: 8px;">
<div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div>
</div>
<div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"></div>
<div style="flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;">
<div>
<div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px;"></div>
<div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"></div>
<div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px;"></div>
</div>
<div style="margin-left: 8px;">
<div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"></div>
<div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent;"></div>
</div>
<div style="margin-left: auto;">
<div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent;"></div>
<div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px;"></div>
<div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent;"></div>
</div>
</div>
<div style="flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;">
<div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"></div>
<div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"></div>
</div>
&nbsp;
<a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CgHcMDsNBY0/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by champagnepapi (@champagnepapi)</a>
</div>
</blockquote>
The superstar performer&#8217;s post also included a handful of pictures assumed to have been taken during his trip in the country. He captioned his post, &#8220;I wanna see Ibiza Chubbs fam …&#8221; The reference to Chubbs pertains to a video he shared showing his pal Chubbs dancing at a club, <a href="https://pagesix.com/2022/07/18/drake-posts-about-being-detained-in-sweden-after-arrest-denial/">Page Six</a> noted.
The rapper&#8217;s comments seemed puzzling following an earlier report that the &#8220;Jimmy Cooks&#8221; hitmaker&#8217;s team &#8220;categorically&#8221; denied the arrest reports, as the <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/music-news/drake-not-arrested-sweden-1235180976/">Hollywood Reporter</a> previously noted.
The outlet wrote that, Drake&#8217;s team said the Grammy winner was in his hotel in the Swedish capital and that he had not been arrested, as <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/drakes-rep-denies-reports-rappers-been-arrested-in-sweden">The Daily Wire</a> previously reported.  It is worth noting that the rapper&#8217;s team said nothing about if the rapper had been detained.
It came after the singer started trending on social media with the hashtag #FreeDrake going viral as speculation surfaced about his possible run-in with authorities Thursday night at a nightclub in Stockholm, <a href="https://www.tmz.com/2022/07/17/drake-confirms-swedish-police-encounter-after-team-denies-arrest/">TMZ</a> noted.
The superstar reportedly started sharing posts on Instagram Wednesday showing him in the country after landing at Sweden&#8217;s Arlanda airport courtesy of &#8220;Air Drake,&#8221; his personal baby blue Boeing 767, the report noted. After the rapper arrived, local media reports stated that Drake had stopped by the trendy Ostermalm district of Stockholm and hit up Ciccio&#8217;s restaurant.

Drake-2

Drake Shares Post About Being ‘Detained’ In Sweden After Rep Denies Run-In With Police

Celebrities

Entertainment

Rapper

Superstar Drake&#8217;s representative is shooting down claims that the &#8220;God&#8217;s Plan&#8221; rapper was arrested Thursday night at a nightclub in <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/sweden">Sweden</a>.
The 35-year-old Canadian star, born Aubrey Drake Graham, lit up social media when his rap name started trending with posts claiming the &#8220;Jimmy Cooks&#8221; hitmaker had been arrested by police at a club in Stockholm, the <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/music-news/drake-not-arrested-sweden-1235180976/">Hollywood Reporter</a> reported in a piece published Friday.
The outlet noted that, Drake&#8217;s team &#8220;categorically&#8221; denied the arrest reports and said the Grammy winner was in his hotel in the Swedish capital.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Drake’s Team Denies Rapper Was Arrested in Sweden <a href="https://t.co/hhQ2k0eEfo">https://t.co/hhQ2k0eEfo</a>
&mdash; The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) <a href="https://twitter.com/THR/status/1547804104868503555?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 15, 2022</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The hitmaker reportedly started sharing posts on Instagram Wednesday showing him in the country after landing at Sweden&#8217;s Arlanda airport courtesy of &#8220;Air Drake,&#8221; his personal baby blue Boeing 767, the report noted.
Not long after, local media reports stated that Drake had stopped by the trendy Ostermalm district of Stockholm and hit up Ciccio&#8217;s restaurant.
The report noted it is unclear exactly what the entertainer&#8217;s plans are in the country.
Earlier this week, Drake appeared on a video on <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1tpGn_TV5k&amp;feature=emb_title">YouTube</a> showing him and fellow rapper and pal French Montana at the roulette table and winning upwards of $25 million, <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/drake-won-25-million-help-235958851.html">Yahoo.com</a> noted.
Drake noted that he started out the night with $8.5 million in his online casino Stake account. Then he won $12.96 million and $11.95 million on separate bets on the same number.
&#8220;You know what that deserves? Ah haaan!&#8221; Drake shouted in reference to Montana&#8217;s signature adlib. &#8220;And I got my special guest in the building, take a seat. Ladies and gentlemen, I&#8217;m here with my brother, my twin, my lookalike Montega.&#8221;
However, as the evening went on the winning came to an end with Drake ending the night with $1,879 in his Stake account, the piece noted.
On Wednesday, the superstar performer shared details about an upcoming music festival being held in his hometown of Toronto next month. The &#8220;October World Weekend&#8221; is set to take place July 28-Aug. 1, and includes such stars as Chris Brown and Lil Baby, along with a reunion with Young Money featuring Lil Wayne and Nicki Minaj.
Last month, Drake dropped his seventh-studio album titled &#8220;Honestly, Nevermind,&#8221; which debuted at the top of the Billboard 200, the report noted.

Drake’s Rep Denies Reports Rapper’s Been Arrested In Sweden

Marijuana

Music

As the U.S. barrels toward allowing more children with gender dysphoria to get medical intervention to affirm their new <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/gender">gender</a> identities, several European countries that have been ahead of the U.S. on this issue are pumping the brakes.
Some <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/europe">countries</a> initially embraced puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones for children several years ago, but are now taking a step back.
The United Kingdom, Sweden, Finland, and France have all taken steps recently to pull back on transgender medical treatments for seemingly gender-dysphoric children.
Sweden has been one of the most progressive nations on transgender health care for decades. Back in 1972, Sweden became the first country to allow transgender people to change their legal gender.
Last year though, Swedish hospitals <a href="https://segm.org/sites/default/files/Karolinska%20_Policy_Statement_English.pdf">halted</a> the use of puberty blockers in five of the country&#8217;s six clinics for minors with gender dysphoria. The last clinic only uses puberty blockers in clinical trials. The country now emphasizes psychotherapy for minors with gender dysphoria instead.
The Swedish hospitals cited a U.K. court ruling in their decision.
The U.K. took a step back in December 2020 when the High Court in London effectively suspended prescribing puberty blockers for children 15 and under and recommended that teens ages 16 to 18 get court approval before going on hormones. However, that decision was <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-58598186">overturned</a> in September.
The case was brought by Keira Bell, who argued the U.K.’s <a href="https://tavistockandportman.nhs.uk/care-and-treatment/our-clinical-services/gender-identity-development-service-gids/">only</a> youth gender identity clinic should have pushed back more when she expressed her desire to transition to male as a teen and had surgery to remove her breasts.
In April of last year, before the U.K. court&#8217;s initial decision in favor of Bell was overturned, the U.K.’s health advisory board, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/health-56601386">found</a> that the evidence for prescribing puberty blockers to minors with gender dysphoria was &#8220;very low&#8221; and studies of the treatment were small and &#8220;subject to bias and confounding.&#8221;
In France, the country&#8217;s National Academy of Medicine warned medical professionals in a March <a href="https://www.academie-medecine.fr/la-medecine-face-a-la-transidentite-de-genre-chez-les-enfants-et-les-adolescents/?lang=en">press release</a> that the spike in young people saying they want to medically transition genders may be due to social contagion and urged medical personnel to approach this issue with extreme caution.
&#8220;Whatever the mechanisms involved in adolescents &#8211; excessive engagement with social media, greater social acceptability, or influence by those in one’s social circle &#8211; this epidemic-like phenomenon manifests itself in the emergence of cases or even clusters of cases in the adolescents’ immediate surroundings,&#8221; read the Academy&#8217;s press release.
&#8220;Great medical caution must be taken in children and adolescents, given the vulnerability, particularly psychological, of this population and the many undesirable effects and even serious complications that can be caused by some of the therapies available,&#8221; the press release said.
Finland has walked a similar path. In June 2020, Finland began deemphasizing medical treatment for children with gender dysphoria and recommended prioritized psychotherapy instead. Finland did not ban puberty blockers outright, but said they should be prescribed on a case-by-case basis after &#8220;careful consideration.&#8221;
&#8220;Surgical treatments are not part of the treatment methods for dysphoria caused by gender-related conflicts in minors,&#8221; <a href="https://palveluvalikoima.fi/documents/1237350/22895008/Summary_minors_en.pdf/aaf9a6e7-b970-9de9-165c-abedfae46f2e/Summary_minors_en.pdf">said</a> Finland&#8217;s Council for Choices in Health Care, which issues recommendations on public health care.
The Council also said more information is needed about the &#8220;effects of different treatment methods on the mental wellbeing, social capacity and quality of life of children and youth,&#8221; as well as on the &#8220;disadvantages of procedures and on people who regret them.&#8221;
&#8220;It is quite clear that some of the most progressive countries in Europe are choosing to reconsider their use of medicalizing children’s identities and, in Europe, puberty blockers are fast becoming the most controversial aspect of gender treatment paths for children,&#8221; said Stella O&#8217;Malley, a U.K.-based psychotherapist and author who works with young people.
O&#8217;Malley added that &#8220;we simply don’t know who will go on to transition as adults and who will come to accept their bodies as they are,&#8221; she told The Daily Wire.
While some of Europe has pulled back, other countries allow children to access transgender hormone therapy at disturbingly young ages. As of 2018, Denmark and Slovenia <a href="https://fra.europa.eu/en/publication/2017/mapping-minimum-age-requirements-concerning-rights-child-eu/access-transgender-hormone-therapy">allowed</a> 15-year-olds to obtain hormones without parental consent, while Latvia allowed 14-year-olds to do so, and Poland and Spain put their minimum age only slightly higher at 16.
Canada has <a href="https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/canada-transgender-treatment">rushed</a> to <a href="https://www.cmaj.ca/content/191/3/E69">promote</a> gender dysphoric children receiving hormone treatments, as well as permanent procedures like double mastectomies.
In the U.S., the issue of medical intervention for gender dysphoric children has pitted opposing government forces against one another.
The Biden administration has promoted “early” transgender surgeries and hormone treatments as “crucial” for the health of minors who identify as transgender and non-binary.
Meanwhile, last year, Arizona, Alabama, Arkansas, and Texas banned minors from receiving surgeries related to gender transition. The last three states also banned cross-sex hormones and puberty blockers for minors. Only Alabama&#8217;s law is still standing, however, after the others were struck down in federal court. At least 15 states are considering similar pieces of legislation relating to gender dysphoric minors and medical treatments.
Critics have warned that research and data on gender dysphoric children and how various treatment paths affect them is limited. One recent <a href="https://www.heritage.org/gender/report/puberty-blockers-cross-sex-hormones-and-youth-suicide">report</a> even suggested that puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones in teens could actually increase the teen suicide rate, rather than decrease it as advocates claim.

International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia

Europe Dialing Back Shocking Policies On Transgender Kids And Medical Intervention

Europe Slowing Shocking Policies On Transgender Kids And Medical Intervention

Europe

Gender

Gender Identity

LGBTQ

Medical

U.K.

The Swedish intimate health brand Intimina is promoting Period Crunch, a new product with bright red, uterus-shaped cereal pieces meant to promote menstruation conversations at the breakfast table.
While Metro <a href="https://metro.co.uk/2022/05/25/intimate-health-brand-launches-uterus-shaped-cereal-to-encourage-period-chat-16710792/">noted</a> the cereal was a publicity stunt and Period Crunch will never take up shelf space next to Cheerios at the grocery store, it appears that interested parties can request a box to have in their homes if they want. The box includes conversation prompts to inspire discussions about periods. It also has a diagram of the female reproductive system.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
&#39;UTERUS-shaped&#39; cereal aims to normalise conversations about periods at the breakfast table <a href="https://t.co/LvpWc4cSje">https://t.co/LvpWc4cSje</a>
&mdash; Daily Mail Online (@MailOnline) <a href="https://twitter.com/MailOnline/status/1529479925094391810?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 25, 2022</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The publication noted that Intimina created the cereal after discovering that 82% of people cannot correctly identify where the uterus is, while 48% are too embarrassed to talk openly about menstruation.  The company also found that 77% of respondents have never discussed periods at the kitchen table.
Intimina gynecologist Dr. Shree Datta said: “I’m delighted that Intimina has taken the bull by the horns and developed Period Crunch to help raise awareness of the ongoing social stigma around periods.”
“Periods are a natural part of who we are, so it’s deeply concerning to hear that so many people remain uncomfortable discussing them when they are just another part of our health,” she continued.
“It’s heartbreaking to hear that 25% of people have taught themselves about periods when there is support available. I look forward to Period Crunch kickstarting conversations and breaking down barriers over the breakfast table,” she added. 
Period Crunch is part of the brand’s Seen + Heard period positivity campaign, which “aims to normalize and increase the visibility of menstrual wellbeing,” according to Metro U.K. 
Brand spokesperson Danela Zagar said, “Periods are normal and talking about periods should be normal. But because of the ongoing stigma around menstruation, period conversations remain difficult and embarrassing for people, even with loved ones.”
“There’s not a more normal and everyday a scene than the whole household sitting down together at the kitchen table and talking over a meal. And if period conversations were truly normalized then they wouldn’t be off this table – or off any table for that matter,” she added. 
She continued, “But as our research shows, conversations about periods at home are few and far between. For the sake of our physical and mental health, we need to talk more about our menstrual health – and that’s what Period Crunch cereal is designed to raise awareness of and make a statement about.”
Intimina sells menstrual cups, kegel exercisers, and feminine moisturizers on their website.

cropped view of white hand holding tampon on pink background with sanitary napkins, paper cut female reproductive internal organs and blood drops

‘Period Crunch,’ A Uterus Shaped Cereal, Aims To Bring Menstruation Conversations To Breakfast

'Period Crunch' Aims To Bring Menstruation Conversations To Breakfast

Culture

Food

Women

A 700-year-old ship that archeologists believe played an important role in a burgeoning European trade system has been discovered in Estonia, just five feet under the street. 
The 80-foot long ship <a href="https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/weird-news/ship-forged-empire-dates-back-26752743">found </a>in Tallinn, Estonia’s capital, is believed to be one of the best preserved ships ever found from around the 13th century. Early dating has placed the ship’s construction at around 1298. 
“It’s believed to be a Hanseatic cog once owned by the Hanseatic League, a powerful merchant alliance spanning several European nations,” Metro U.K. <a href="https://metro.co.uk/2022/04/20/tallinn-700-year-old-ship-found-5ft-under-street-by-construction-workers-16498703/amp/">reported</a>. “The whole area used to be undersea, with the ship sinking close to the Härjapea river mouth.”
Larger than the average Hanseatic cog, archeologists believe that the newly discovered ship had sails allowing it to sail with less manpower and also was able to sail into shallow areas due to its flat bottom. 
“The boards are intact up to three meters from the bottom of the ship,” archeologist Mihkel Tammet explained. “It is built using massive oak logs and planks. The ship has overlapping planking, sealed with animal hair and tar.
Construction workers stumbled upon the ship while working on new office buildings in the area. In 2008, another historic ship was discovered just 164 feet away from the new discovery, also during construction. 
Tammet explained that the area where the ship was found used to be  submerged by several feet of water.
​​&#8221;There were probably shallower underwater sand ridges which were hard to map because they changed their shape and location because of ice drifts and storms,” Tammet explained. “Our ship was found on one of these ridges under the sediments. It sank close to the Härjapea river mouth.”
The Hanseatic League, <a href="https://www.worldhistory.org/Hanseatic_League/">dominated</a> by Germanic towns and cities, involved what is now the Netherlands, Britain, and Scandinavia in a vast trading network. 
“By the time of its formal founding it had already established a monopoly on trade in the Baltic region through their center on Gotland Island in Sweden. From Gotland, the Hanseatic League was able to make firm trade alliances and secure even more lucrative arrangements with other nations,” the World History Encyclopedia <a href="https://www.worldhistory.org/Hanseatic_League/">explained.</a>  
The league grew quite profitable and remained quite powerful for about two hundred years, before starting to diminish in about the 15th century before disappearing in the 19th century. 
Tallinn government archeologist announced that the ship would be moved from the construction site and likely to either a museum or a wreck preservation area. 
“The wreck will be removed from its current position to allow the construction work to continue,” Ragnar Nurk, an archeologist, said according to The Mirror. “There are two main options currently: it will go to the maritime museum or to the wreck preservation area in Tallinn Bay near Naissaar Island.”
The ship will not be able to remain fully intact for the moving process. 
“Unfortunately the size and restricted conditions of construction do not let us to move the ship away in one part,” Nurk stated.

Nachbau einer Hansekogge

Hanseatic Cog Found 700 Years After Last Trading Expedition Five Feet Under Street

Germany

Great Britain

History

Museum

Netherlands

Russian President Vladimir Putin&#8217;s invasion of Ukraine is going to likely result in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) expanding its alliance from 30 nations to 32 nations with Finland and Sweden set to join the organization as soon as early summer.
&#8220;U.S. officials said NATO membership for both Nordic countries was &#8216;a topic of conversation and multiple sessions&#8217; during talks between the alliance’s foreign ministers last week attended by Sweden and Finland,&#8221; The Times <a href="https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/finland-sweden-set-to-join-nato-war-ukraine-latest-7m8bn6mf8">reported</a>. &#8220;Finland’s application is expected in June, with Sweden expected to follow.&#8221;
“How can this be anything but a massive strategic blunder for Putin?” one senior American official said.
Kremlin propagandist Dmitry Peskov <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/russia-peskov-warns-sweden-finland-joining-nato-1696947">responded</a> to the news by telling reporters on Monday, &#8220;We have repeatedly said that the alliance remains a tool geared towards confrontation and its further expansion will not bring stability to the European continent.&#8221;
Finland Prime Minister Sanna Marin <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/finland-nato-membership-putin-warnings-backfire-ukraine-1694731">said</a> earlier this month that the country&#8217;s decision to join NATO would be made &#8220;thoroughly but quickly&#8221; this spring, adding that the reason was that &#8220;Russia is not the neighbor we thought it was.&#8221;
&#8220;If the president or I voiced strong opinions on the issue, it would be the end of the debate [&#8230;] I believe it&#8217;s very important that all of Finland&#8217;s most central institutions are involved in the ongoing debate,&#8221; she said.
&#8220;The secretary for Sweden&#8217;s ruling Social Democratic party, Tobias Baudin, told local media outlets that it was reviewing its international security policy, and would discuss whether or not to join NATO,&#8221; Newsweek reported. &#8220;That review should be complete within the next few months, he said.&#8221;
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova issued a threat, saying that Russia would respond if the countries joined NATO.
&#8220;Clearly [the] accession of Finland and Sweden into NATO, which is first and foremost a military alliance, would have serious military-political repercussions that would demand a response from our country,&#8221; she said.
The Daily Mail <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10668961/Russian-fighter-jets-violated-Swedish-airspace-earlier-month-equipped-NUKES.html">reported</a> at the end of March that amid heightened tensions between Russia and the two nations that the Russian military flew two planes, which violated Swedish airspace, while reportedly carrying nuclear weapons.
The report stated:
<blockquote>The flyover near the island of Gotland on March 2 was a deliberate act designed to intimidate Sweden, according to Swedish news channel TV4 Nyheterna. 
A total of four planes had taken off from the Russian air base of Kaliningrad. 
They consisted of two Sukhoi 24 attack planes, which were escorted by two Sukhoi 27 fighter jets. 
It was the two attack planes which were, according to TV4 Nyheter sources, equipped with nuclear weapons.
The violation of Swedish territory lasted for about a minute. 
The country&#8217;s air force deployed two JAS 39 Gripen which took pictures of the intruders. 
It was then, say Swedish media, that it was confirmed the Russian planes were equipped with nuclear warheads. </blockquote>

NATO Counter Intelligence Centre of Excellence opens in Krakow

Two European Nations Set To Join NATO In Matter Of Weeks; Russia Issues Stark Warning

Finland

NATO

Russia

Ukraine

The Swedish government announced Thursday that it would not be recommending COVID-19 vaccines for children&#8217;s ages 5-11 because there is not sufficient evidence that the benefits of the jabs outweigh the risk of infection, according to the country&#8217;s health agency.
&#8220;With the knowledge we have today, with a low risk for serious disease for kids, we don&#8217;t see any clear benefit with vaccinating them,&#8221; Health Agency official Britta Bjorkholm <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/sweden-decides-against-recommending-covid-vaccines-kids-aged-5-12-2022-01-27/">said</a> at a news conference on Thursday.
&#8220;As before during the pandemic, children are at a significantly lower risk of developing severe COVID-19 disease compared with adults,&#8221; the Swedish government <a href="https://www.folkhalsomyndigheten.se/nyheter-och-press/nyhetsarkiv/2022/januari/ingen-allman-vaccination-mot-covid-19-bland-barn-5-11-ar/">added</a> in a press release. &#8220;In general, the younger the child, the lower the risk. Since the end of October 2021, the Swedish Public Health Agency has been recommending general vaccination against covid-19 from the age of 12 in Sweden. This is based on the benefit to the individual child.&#8221;
&#8220;Discussions about the decision have been held with the Pediatricians&#8217; Association, the School Medical Association, the National Association of School Nurses, the Child Psychiatric Association, the Swedish Society for Infectious Diseases, vaccine coordinators within the regions, Swedish Municipalities and Regions (SKR), the Medical Products Agency and the Swedish Medical Council (Smer),&#8221; the government added.
The decision comes as states like New York are <a href="https://www.governor.ny.gov/news/governor-hochul-announces-vaxforkids-campaign-increase-vaccination-rates-among-children-five">pushing for all children</a> ages five and up to be vaccinated. In early January, New York Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul launched a #VaxForKids campaign, urging parents and medical doctors to promote vaccination against COVID-19 for children between the ages of 5-12.
&#8220;The best protection for our kids is to ensure they get vaccinated and keep up with all recommended vaccine doses,&#8221; Hochul claimed. &#8220;As COVID-19 continues to spread, the best armor for our children is the vaccine. It’s safe, effective, free, and over a half million children in New York between 5-11 years old have already gotten their first dose so far. With the #VaxForKids campaign, we are doubling down on our efforts to get this critical message out to even more parents and guardians.&#8221;
New York&#8217;s Acting State Health Commissioner Dr. Mary T. Bassett also said, &#8220;Since the emergence of the Omicron variant, COVID-19 cases and even hospitalizations are rising among children. There has never been a more important time for pediatricians, parents, and guardians to ensure children five and older get vaccinated and stay up-to-date with all recommended doses.&#8221;
&#8220;Vaccines have been the backbone of pediatric care for decades, protecting our children against countless diseases. The COVID-19 vaccine is no different,&#8221; Basset added. &#8220;I urge New Yorkers to make sure their children get fully vaccinated – and their third dose when eligible – so they have meaningful and continued protection against the virus.&#8221;
In late November, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2021/s1102-PediatricCOVID-19Vaccine.html">said</a> that the vaccine was safe for children age 5 &#8211; 11:
<blockquote>
COVID-19 vaccines have undergone – and will continue to undergo – the most intensive safety monitoring in U.S. history. Vaccinating children will help protect them from getting COVID-19 and therefore reducing their risk of severe disease, hospitalizations, or developing long-term COVID-19 complications. Getting your children vaccinated can help protect them against COVID-19, as well as reduce disruptions to in-person learning and activities by helping curb community transmission. 
</blockquote>
<div class="css-j7qwjs">
<div id="post-body-text">
<div class="e1nzmkc90 css-ip02xz">
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="css-issjf2">
<div></div>
</div>

Swedish Flag

Sweden Decides Not To Recommend COVID-19 Vax For Kids Ages 5-11

Children

COVID-19 Vaccine

Perhaps no nation has respected its citizens’ freedom during the COVID-19 pandemic more than Sweden. While Australia quarantines close contacts who test negative for the virus in <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/viral-tyranny-the-worlds-most-oppressive-covid-19-policies">fenced camps</a> and Austria prepares to <a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/austrias-vaccination-mandate-to-apply-from-february-1/">mandate vaccination</a> for all adults on February 1, Sweden has spent two years informing its citizens on best practices — and respecting them to observe them. Throughout Sweden, schools have remained open, public health police have been absent from public life, and masks are virtually nowhere to be found. Supporters held Sweden up as a model for enlightened statesmanship; opponents worried the policy would turn the nation into a Scandinavian slaughterhouse. How have those measures fared compared to other nations?
How did Sweden respond to COVID-19?
At the outset of the COVID-19 global pandemic, Sweden&#8217;s top health official, state epidemiologist Dr. Anders Tegnell, encouraged citizens to wash their hands regularly, observe social distancing, and limit contact with other people. Those who could worked from home. But Swedish police handed out virtually no citations to anyone caught violating his stipulations; Sweden trusted its citizens to do what is in their best interests.
Given the limited threat posed to schoolchildren, Sweden’s schools remained open for students through age 16. Secondary schools and universities switched to remote learning — but by June 15, 2020 the government <a href="https://www.government.se/articles/2020/06/minister-for-education-on-the-swedish-decision-to-not-close-down-schools/">announced</a> &#8220;that upper secondary schools can return to regular instruction on the school premises.&#8221;
Not only did the government not mandate that people wear face masks, but some cities <a href="https://www.theweek.co.uk/951949/why-swedish-towns-banning-face-masks-slow-vaccine-rollout">temporarily banned</a> the use of masks and PPE. While its neighbors had temporary government lockdowns, Sweden never closed down businesses or public life.
Tegnell and other state authorities crafted the policies with the foresight that politicians could not legislate the COVID-19 pandemic out of existence in 15 days. “We will have the virus in our societies — nationally, globally — for many years. How are we going to live our lives for such a long time — and not just surviving, but living?” Sweden’s Health Minister, Lena Hallengren, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xLjSMuROgk">told </a>France 24 news. “I think that has been very crucial for the authorities.”
Some cite the fact that on January 12 the government <a href="https://www.government.se/articles/2022/01/stricter-infection-control-measures-to-be-introduced-on-12-january-2022/">reduced</a> the number of people allowed to attend private gatherings from 50 to 20 as proof that the Swedish approach failed. What do the data say?
What were the results?
All in all, Sweden’s COVID-19 results remain <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/so-was-sweden-a-covid-success-or-failure/2021/10/14/fe2747f6-2cb8-11ec-b17d-985c186de338_story.html">firmly in the middle</a> of the global pandemic, without many of the harms caused by overly zealous attempts to lock up Americans, of all ages and health statuses, in their homes.
Voluntarily compliance: Even without the threat of <a href="https://www.libertarianism.org/topics/coercion">government force and coercion</a>, Swedes <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-53498133">voluntarily reduced</a> their social interactions by <a href="https://thehill.com/changing-america/well-being/prevention-cures/510922-the-problem-with-holding-up-sweden-as-an-example">70%</a>, according to Tegnell. Trusting citizens to govern themselves worked especially well in Sweden, a <a href="https://ourworldindata.org/trust">high-trust society</a> that values <a href="https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/10/05/sweden-and-the-world-historical-power-of-conformity/">conformity</a> of action.
Economy: Sweden’s economy contracted by <a href="https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.KD.ZG">2.9%</a> in 2020, less than half the rate of decline suffered by the European Union as a whole (6.0%) or the United Kingdom, and less than the U.S.
Children’s health: “Closure or not of schools has had little if any impact on the number of laboratory confirmed cases in school aged children in Finland and Sweden,” <a href="https://www.folkhalsomyndigheten.se/publicerat-material/publikationsarkiv/c/covid-19-in-schoolchildren/">found</a> a <a href="https://www.folkhalsomyndigheten.se/contentassets/c1b78bffbfde4a7899eb0d8ffdb57b09/covid-19-school-aged-children.pdf">study</a> from Sweden’s Public Health Agency of Sweden (the Folkhälsomyndigheten, or FoHM) in July 2020 — an assessment that held steady.
“Despite Sweden’s having kept schools and preschools open, we found a low incidence of severe Covid-19 among schoolchildren and children of preschool age during” the first year of the pandemic in 2020, a group of Swedish scientists <a href="https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMc2026670">wrote</a> to the New England Journal of Medicine. “Among the 1.95 million children who were 1 to 16 years of age, 15 children had Covid-19, [Multisystem inflammatory syndrome], or both conditions and were admitted to an ICU, which is equal to 1 child in 130,000.”
That amounts to 0.0000077% of Sweden’s children. There have also been <a href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/1107913/number-of-coronavirus-deaths-in-sweden-by-age-groups/">15 deaths</a> of children under the age of 20 (birth through 19), as of January 10, 2022.
Death rate: Sweden’s current <a href="https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/data/mortality">COVID-19 death rate</a> (151.91 per 100,000) is worse than Germany (139.92) but better than countries with much harsher lockdown policies, including the United States (261.32), Italy (235.84), the UK (229.49), and France (191.83).
Sweden’s COVID-19 death toll actually <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9855651/Mask-free-Sweden-close-ZERO-daily-Covid-deaths.html">fell to statistical zero</a> (less than one death on average for two weeks) from mid-July to early August. The United States had 329 deaths a day during the same period; the UK averaged 74 deaths a day.
Mental health: Unlike the United States, where attempted suicides among teenage girls <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/06/11/suicide-attempts-among-young-girls-surge-by-more-than-50percent-during-pandemic-cdc-says-.html">rose 51%</a> during the pandemic, Sweden’s <a href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/529034/sweden-suicide-rate/">suicide rate</a> remained essentially unchanged.
Social cohesion: Swedes seem happier with their COVID-19 regimen than citizens of other nations, such as the <a href="https://www.dw.com/en/germany-thousands-protest-against-covid-measures/a-60270076">thousands of Germans</a> who closed out 2021 by protesting in the streets against the latest <a href="https://www.dw.com/en/omicron-germany-to-limit-private-gatherings-after-christmas/a-60206476">tightening</a> of public health restrictions. Swedes have <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/hundreds-gather-illegal-covid-19-182558692.html">mostly</a> eschewed the kinds of anti-lockdown protests have taken place everywhere from <a href="https://yle.fi/news/3-12106388">Finland</a>, <a href="https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/protest-in-netherlands-against-coronavirus-measures/ar-AASPLj7">the Netherlands</a>, and <a href="https://thehill.com/policy/international/568843-hundreds-arrested-in-anti-lockdown-protests-in-australia">Australia</a> to the <a href="https://www.fox43.com/article/news/health/coronavirus/anti-covid-vaccine-march-dc-sunday-robert-f-kennedy-jr/65-a322944c-851a-4f81-a7a3-07457f360621">United States</a>.
Health care rationing claimed many Swedish lives — especially the elderly
The story of Sweden’s success has a horrifying component: Its national health care system rationed care, denying treatment to the elderly and overweight — the very people most vulnerable to dying from COVID-19.
Sweden’s National Board of Health and Welfare <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-52704836">instructed</a> hospitals to “professionally weigh the potential benefits” of providing care to patients. In practice, emergency rooms denied admission to elderly patients, sometimes <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-52704836">as young as 65</a>, or to anyone who had a Body-Mass Index over 40. Stuck in nursing homes, elderly patients received <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/coronavirus-is-taking-a-high-toll-on-swedens-elderly-families-blame-the-government-11592479430">palliative care and morphine injections</a> instead of potentially lifesaving oxygen and intravenous nutrition/hydration treatments.
In order to spare the nationalized health care system, Sweden’s nursing homes drugged the elderly and let them suffocate to death.
Juliana Jihem is one of the people who <a href="https://www.france24.com/en/20200916-they-sacrificed-the-elderly-how-covid-19-spread-in-sweden-s-care-homes">blew the whistle</a> when her 72-year-old uncle, Moses Ntanda, died in a nursing home. “I felt that they sacrificed the elderly, and it’s very wrong, ‘cause I think that you should give everyone a chance to survive,” she told France 24.
<iframe loading="lazy" title="‘They sacrificed the elderly’: How Covid-19 spread in Sweden’s care homes" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/AAlE6M8pZ2I?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>
&#8220;We did not manage to protect the most vulnerable people, the most elderly, despite our best intentions,&#8221; <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-52704836">admitted</a> then-Prime Minister Stefan Löfven.
“Swedes pay some of the highest taxes on earth in exchange for extensive government services, including state-furnished health care,” <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/08/world/a-wave-of-death-in-swedens-nursing-homes-has-exposed-holes-in-a-famously-generous-safety-net.html">reported</a> The New York Times. Yet when those services were most needed, the government guidelines led care to be withheld and damned its elderly citizens to an excruciating death.
No nation with that on its conscience can call its approach a complete success.
The views expressed in this piece are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

Readers-Pass—Johnson—What-Happened-To-The-Country-That-Refused-COVID-Lockdowns

What Happened After Sweden Took A Hands-Off Approach To COVID-19?

COVID-19

Mask Mandate

Readers Pass

Socialized Medicine

Vaccine Mandate

Magdalena Andersson made history on Wednesday when she was sworn in as Sweden’s first female Prime Minister. Just hours later, she resigned.
CNN <a href="https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2021/11/24/europe/sweden-first-female-prime-minister-intl/index.html">reported</a> that Andersson wasn’t even fully in office because she “had not yet had counsel with the King.”
Andersson reportedly resigned because lawmakers chose her opposition’s budget bill over her party’s. Andersson’s Social Democrats party will remain as “an interim government until a new government is in place,” said Sweden’s Green Party, who formed a coalition with Andersson’s party.
Reuter’s reported that Andersson told Sweden’s speaker of Parliament that she hoped a “single-party, Social Democrat government” would reappoint her as prime minister.
&#8220;There is a constitutional practice that a coalition government should resign when one party quits,&#8221; Andersson said Wednesday. &#8220;I don&#8217;t want to lead a government whose legitimacy will be questioned.
&#8220;I have told the speaker that I wish to resign,” Andersson told reporters, <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-59400539">according to BBC News</a>.
The outlet added that Andersson “resigned after her coalition partner quit the government and her budget failed to pass.”
“Instead, parliament voted for a budget drawn up by the opposition which includes the anti-immigrant far right,” the BBC added.
More from CNN:
<blockquote>She replaced <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2021/06/28/europe/sweden-stefan-lofven-resignation-intl/index.html">Stefan Löfven</a>, who recently stepped down as both the country&#8217;s premier and as leader of the Social Democrats party.
All the other Nordic countries &#8212; Finland, Denmark, Norway and Iceland &#8212; have previously elected female national leaders.
As Prime Minister, Andersson was preceded by 33 men. She previously worked as deputy director general of the Swedish Tax Agency, according to her CV on the <a href="https://www.government.se/government-of-sweden/ministry-of-finance/magdalena-andersson/cv-magdalena-andersson/">Swedish government website</a>.
She holds a master&#8217;s degree in economics from the Stockholm School of Economics and has served as Sweden&#8217;s finance minister since 2014.
She is also the second woman to head up the center-left Social Democrats party, according to Sweden&#8217;s Twitter account.</blockquote>
Andersson’s appointment as Sweden’s first female prime minister, only to resign hours later over a budget defeat, is especially ironic given Sweden’s long boasting of having the “first feminist government in the world.”
Under Swedish law, Andersson only needed a majority of members of parliament to become prime minister. Of the 349 members, 174 voted against her and just 117 voted for her, but since 57 abstained, she was able to win in an 11th-hour deal with the communist Left Party.
As the BBC reported, despite Sweden’s boasting of a feminist government, it was the only Nordic state to never have a female prime minister until Andersson.
Bloomberg <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-11-25/after-shock-resignation-of-sweden-s-prime-minister-what-s-next?utm_source=google&amp;utm_medium=bd&amp;cmpId=google">reported</a> on what happens next for Sweden’s government, writing that Andersson would “likely be re-appointed next week.”
“The resignation was a necessary formality after the Greens pulled out. The parliamentary speaker will call a new vote on her candidacy after consulting with leaders of the eight parties in parliament. The Greens and two other parties have indicated they will abstain, but not oppose her. That means it is likely that she will be re-appointed, although not exactly with much support,” the outlet reported.

Sweden’s first female PM Andersson resigns hours after appointment

Sweden Voted In Its First Female Prime Minister. She Resigned Hours Later.

King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden has denounced his country&#8217;s relaxed COVID-19 policy, blaming it for the high death toll among the elderly.
“I believe we have failed,” the king said in a special Christmas broadcast that will air on December 21. “We have had a large number of deaths and that is terrible. That is something that brings us all suffering.”
Though Sweden has more deaths (7,800) per capita than its lockdown-embracing Nordic neighbors, the country&#8217;s death toll is still lower than Britain, Italy, Spain or France, &#8220;which have all opted for lockdowns,&#8221; as reported by <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/sweden-king-failed-coronavirus-policy_n_5fdc966ac5b650b99adbb44c">Reuters</a>.
According to <a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-europe-denmark-coronavirus-pandemic-sweden-07036f948f51217b1d75e577d18a406a">The Associated Press</a>, however, Sweden has adopted stricter COVID-19 measures due to the recent spike in cases, though it resisted a full-scale lockdown.
&#8220;Sweden is tightening nationwide coronavirus restrictions by requiring many people to work from home and reducing the number who can gather in restaurants, shops and gyms starting next week, but the government decided against ordering the country’s first full lockdown to control a recent spike in virus cases, the prime minister said Friday,&#8221; reported the outlet.
Prime Minister Stefan Lofven said that the situation remains &#8220;very serious&#8221; regarding the country&#8217;s healthcare system while noting that lockdowns would be a tremendous burden on the population.
“We believe that a lockdown is a burden for the population,” Lofven said. “We are following our strategy.”
Face masks will soon be mandatory on public transportation while bars and restaurants will now have a cutoff time to stop selling alcohol. Schools will also implement distanced education.
Earlier this year, Sweden&#8217;s top epidemiologist, Anders Tegnell, expressed skepticism that face masks were enough to halt the spread of the coronavirus, arguing that it would create a &#8220;very dangerous&#8221; sense of security.
“It is very dangerous to believe face masks would change the game when it comes to COVID-19,&#8221; he said, noting that countries with mask mandates were still seeing spikes in COVID-19.
“Face masks can be a complement to other things when other things are safely in place,” he said. “But to start with having face masks and then think you can crowd your buses or your shopping malls — that’s definitely a mistake.”
According to the <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2020/p0714-americans-to-wear-masks.html">CDC</a>, cloth masks are an effective shield against the spread of COVID-19:
<blockquote>This review included two case studies out today, one from JAMA, showing that adherence to universal masking policies reduced SARS-CoV-2 transmission within a Boston hospital system, and one from CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), showing that wearing a mask prevented the spread of infection from two hair stylists to their customers in Missouri.
Additional data in today’s MMWR showed that immediately after the White House Coronavirus Task Force and CDC advised Americans to wear cloth face coverings when leaving home, the proportion of U.S. adults who chose to do so increased, with 3 in 4 reporting they had adopted the recommendation in a national internet survey.</blockquote>
In the early stages of the pandemic here in the United States, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, argued against wearing masks before reversing that position several weeks later. Fauci, however, maintains that he was simply following CDC guidelines to preserve PPE.

SWEDEN-ROYALS

Sweden’s King Denounces Country’s Relaxed COVID-19 Measures: ‘We Have Failed’

COVID

Menu