this post was submitted on 28 Apr 2024
464 points (93.3% liked)

World News

39161 readers
1827 users here now

A community for discussing events around the World

Rules:

Similarly, if you see posts along these lines, do not engage. Report them, block them, and live a happier life than they do. We see too many slapfights that boil down to "Mom! He's bugging me!" and "I'm not touching you!" Going forward, slapfights will result in removed comments and temp bans to cool off.

We ask that the users report any comment or post that violate the rules, to use critical thinking when reading, posting or commenting. Users that post off-topic spam, advocate violence, have multiple comments or posts removed, weaponize reports or violate the code of conduct will be banned.

All posts and comments will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. This means that some content that violates the rules may be allowed, while other content that does not violate the rules may be removed. The moderators retain the right to remove any content and ban users.


Lemmy World Partners

News [email protected]

Politics [email protected]

World Politics [email protected]


Recommendations

For Firefox users, there is media bias / propaganda / fact check plugin.

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/media-bias-fact-check/

founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
 

Sweden is infamous for having some of the highest taxes in the world, and yet the country's tax agency is still one of Sweden's most trusted institutions.

The Swedish attitude towards tax contrasts sharply with many countries where taxes can be a deeply divisive issue. We investigate what this says about Swedish society and how the popularity of the welfare state might survive growing challenges in the future.

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] [email protected] 250 points 7 months ago (8 children)

Americans have been taught to hate taxes. They have been sold the idea that the original concept of "no taxation without representation" didn't include the latter two words. Decades of Republicans demonizing taxes have done it.

[–] [email protected] 60 points 7 months ago (2 children)

well swedes also get value for their taxes. I remember one who would talk about how it drove him nuts coming across pot holes and various broken infrastructure as it would be unacceptable for it to be like that for weeks were he was from.

[–] [email protected] 77 points 7 months ago (1 children)

Right, but there's a reason we don't get value for our taxes and that reason is also Republicans. Especially Reagan.

[–] [email protected] 15 points 7 months ago

oh yeah and we end up paying more in local taxes than any reduction we ever got on federal ones.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 7 months ago (2 children)

Yeah, re-paving happens all the time here. I visited Massachusetts back in 2019 and was shocked at the abysmal state of the roads.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 7 months ago (1 children)

But Massachusetts has snowy winters and icy conditions which means they need to salt the roads. This is not something that they have to contend with in check notes Sweden?

/S

[–] [email protected] 2 points 7 months ago (1 children)

This year in particular has been frustrating when it comes to snow. I live pretty far south, about two hours south of Stockholm, and we've had snow for like half of April. It all melted at the end of March, there were spring flowers, and then we had a shit tonne of snow again, which melted, followed by more snow. So many false starts. 😩

It's been snow free for a week now, I hope it holds.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 7 months ago (1 children)

Oh cool you live in old Denmark?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 7 months ago

Not that far south, haha.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 7 months ago (1 children)

yeah and that was a place with pretty good infrastructure and upkeep for the us.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 7 months ago

I've heard that MA is a pretty solid place overall. To be fair I loved my stay, but I think the main reason for that was meeting up with a very close friend of mine. I recall this crossing in particular leaving me rather exasperated.

It seems like they've since paved over it, however. It is a bit baffling to me that it looks the same in 2012 as it did to me in 2019.

[–] [email protected] 42 points 7 months ago* (last edited 7 months ago)

Nah they've been taught to hate government. Reagan finalized this with his "the scariest words you can ever hear are 'I'm from the government and I'm here to help'". He defined the government and anything the government does as bad and evil. This is the whole "get government to the size you can drown it in a bathtub". This naturally goes to taxes are feeding the big evil government, so taxes are just as bad.

[–] [email protected] 25 points 7 months ago (1 children)

That and the growing unrest due to wage gaps and our taxes not benefitting our society.

[–] [email protected] 36 points 7 months ago

Which is also due to Republicans cutting all social services and resisting new ones.

[–] [email protected] 23 points 7 months ago (2 children)

It's more like a lot of people don't feel like they are being represented. I wouldn't complain if my taxes were housing homeless people or funding space exploration, but instead they're funding 37 wars.

[–] [email protected] 26 points 7 months ago

Plenty of people would complain if their taxes were housing homeless people or funding space exploration though.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 7 months ago

Exactly. We’re also taught not to see the value we receive from our tax paying. And to fear and hate the IRS (especially since we have to file our tsxes

[–] [email protected] 11 points 7 months ago (1 children)

You can see it in the way they display prices in shops.

Always without taxes, to make sure the customer can blame the taxes for the high prices. Even though the tax directly relates to the cost of the product.

There is absolutely no reason why a shop couldn't show the total prices with taxes included. Because those taxes don't change daily, nor does the shop move.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 7 months ago

Agreed. And it should be considered false advertising. Just like how gas stations in the U.S. have all of their prices end in .9, so gas isn't $3.00, it's $3.009. Which you can't pay because you can't pay in cent fractions. It just makes the gas look slightly cheaper.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 7 months ago (1 children)

The actual reason is they’re too dumb to understand basic concepts.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 7 months ago (1 children)

The actual reason is because most of our taxes go to bombing foreign countries, subsidizing big businesses, or lining the pockets of the rich. If they went to something that helped actual Americans then I'm sure the perception would change. We need health care, public transportation, and better public education.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 7 months ago

I’m less optimistic it would change the perception of “those people”

[–] [email protected] -2 points 7 months ago

Radiation is theft seems to be far more popular. They demonize it all in all cases. Entirely brainwashed without thinking about the services that benefit them. sigh