Sweden: Your income is public information
Scary to see how far a socialist government with a willing, sheep-like populace can go…
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Income details are public property in Sweden - so much so that neighbourhood rich lists are regularly published in the press. Paul O’Mahony peers behind the figures to examine attitudes to a practice that is coming under increasing fire.
Every winter without fail Swedish tabloids and local newspapers splash the front pages with their annual lists of “The highest earners in your region”, “your town” or “your block”, depending on where you happen to live.
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Businessman Hans Sthlgren, for example, is blissfully unaware that he is listed in Aftonbladet as the fourth highest earner of 2007 on the opulent Stockholm island of Liding until The Local catches up with him on the phone. His reaction is one of shock.
“It feels awful. No one will publish the names of sex offenders and other types of criminals: it’s ‘23-year-old’ this and ‘24-year-old’ that. But I can’t just put a jacket over my head to protect my identity.”
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