Sweden, Sweden, what has become of us –
Everything we dreamt and spoke about?Huddinge, Huddinge by Hoola Bandoola Band (paraphrased)
There’s many good and beautiful things about society, but a lot of it is also bleak or outright garbage, in my opinion – and perhaps it’s difficult, if not impossible, to not have this outlook on the world if you’re a communist. I don’t particularly support the Soviet Union, or modern day China or North Korea, but perhaps it’s somewhat understandable that many socialists do, because what else is there? Where else is socialism being furthered?[1]I’m of course aware that there are also many who consider that these places aren’t “really socialist,” but they at least have the veneer of red flags and socialism, undeserved or otherwise.
Sweden is a capitalist country like many other capitalist countries. We consume like there’s no tomorrow, we whinge about how bad our jobs and how terrible our bosses are, we have our celebrities and our monarch. It’s might be a bit strange that this is how it is, since a (nominally) anti-capitalist party has been in government for a majority of our 100 years spent as a democracy. Right now I feel as if there’s this great apathy in our society, like we don’t want something more – or perhaps that we do but we’re afraid to dream of an alternative to the free-market capitalism before us. I must say that I’ve come to loathe this “capitalist realist” notion that “history has ended.” As well, in my own apathy I find a restlessness – a want to to change the world, and a want to resist this “end of history.” It’s been said that “communism is resistance,” and there’s something to it.
Huddinge, Huddinge (1975) by Hoola Bandoola Band resonates with me. It’s a song about a society at a standstill and the monotony of the everyday. It’s also a song about resistance and restlessness, not least of which stemming from and aimed at the everyday. The solution to a toxic work-environment, endless consumerism, and the existence of a monarchy isn’t more apathy and procrastination, and it’s questionable whether or not these things will be solved at the ballot-box. I’m not dismissive of the latter, but we also need action outside of the legislature; society isn’t an issue for just politicians to solve, because it affects all of us – and in the end, society is not made up of the 349 people in the Parliament, but a little over 10 million non-binary, women, and men, young and old, poor and rich. Society is shaped by us, not solely our elected representatives.
That said, it seems as though people need to be made aware of the immense power in their hands. To that end, allow me to conclude with this:
A spark can start a forest-fire
A drop can cause a dam to explode
A word can give strength and clarity
And show one that which is true
See also
References
| ↑1 | I’m of course aware that there are also many who consider that these places aren’t “really socialist,” but they at least have the veneer of red flags and socialism, undeserved or otherwise. |
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