Niklas' blog

From today on, some christians are upset about a day off: Whitmonday is no longer a national holiday in Sweden, as this day, the 6th of June, has taken its place. Today we’re celebrating the national day of Sweden, which really is crap. I’m not saying I’ve become a christian, neither that I’m a Whitmonday fan, but that I strongly dislike nationalism in all forms.

The only reason people are celebrating the national day is the fact that we’re more special than everybody who’s not living in Sweden, because…they’re not living within the border of our country. That’s just lovely.

Hence, we’re celebrating the fact that we’re separated from other nations. That’s special. Especially stupid, you celebrating morons! Dagens Nyheter has already reported [in Swedish] of extremist right-wingers who’ve paraded the streets of Stockholm. That’s worth celebrating, right? You cretins.

Statement 1: “You should be proud of living in Sweden.”

My sentiment: why should I be more proud of living in one geographic location than in another?

Statement 2: “Patriotism is love for your country.”

My sentiment: why should I ever feel more love and/or devotion for this piece of soil than any other on Earth? Besides, suck on this for a deep after-thought.

The country of Sweden is defined by one single border, separating our nation from every other one. Crossing that border by one single meter into any neighbouring nation, for example, Denmark, will not change my mood/ways/ideals in the least. Hence, nationalistic borders are simply placed where they are because of monetary reasons. Is that a reason for celebration?

Think about it: what single, unifying feeling triggered the Italians to chant en masse to the tone of Mussolini? Which -ism helped Dubya win over people to vote for his homicidal government (and made them stop thinking) more than any other, after 2001-09-11? What’s the reason of the Darfur massacres? What shouldn’t be allowed to breed in any form as it effectively kills intellectualism wherever it reigns?

Nationalism.

Think hard, think again, and come to terms: there is no intellectual reason to celebrate a national day. Imagine the introduction of a national holiday for smoking Swedish cigarettes: it wouldn’t help anybody except the big companies and government (because of the taxes, et al), but you’d be special, in that inflamed, moronic way. It’s exactly the same way the national day of today works.

But OK, you want to be special? Try any of these simple suggestions, and see if you can spot the moronic ones:

* Donate money to Amnesty International
* Tattoo a swastika and a Star of David on your forehead
* Start your own blog and tell people what you think is right and what’s wrong, by saying they’re morons if they’re against you
* Donate old clothes to charity
* Help homeless people
* Watch LOTR and The Matrix. Simultaneously.

By the way, I’m not letting DN off the hook. They seem hell-bent on being merry about this hail-Sweden-fest, and have asked 24 famous Swedes, of which a total of three are born outside of Sweden, if they’re “happy about being Swedish”. What a lovely question. Here’s what Bo Sundström, singer of the crap group Bo Kaspers Orkester, has to say when he’s asked said question:

For everyday use, yes. We live in one of the most wealthy and safe societies in the world. But not very proud [sic]. We are egoists and racists who walk around thinking we’re better than everybody else.

I’d like it if people suddenly thought that the reason for having a national day would be to stamp it out, to make the country they live in closer to the rest of the world. Take a deep breath and read the “CONCLUSION” part (at the end) of this transcript of Bill Hicks’ “Revelations”-gig. Then read it all from the top.