Easy Chair No. 150, July 14, 1987 Sweden: The “New Totalitarianism” of Comfort and Conformity

In Easy Chair 150 (July 14, 1987), R.J. Rushdoony and Otto Scott interview Gary and Carlinda Mose about two years in Sweden, portraying a society that looks peaceful and prosperous yet functions as a “new totalitarianism” built not on terror but on education, conformity, and cradle‑to‑grave dependency. The Moses describe a nation where the state effectively replaces God, families are weakened by high taxes (they cite roughly 55% income tax plus a 25% sales tax) and two‑income necessity, and dissent—though celebrated in theory—is punished in practice through social shaming and even official intimidation (Gary recounts being threatened with arrest and recorded by police for quietly holding alternative placards at a public “peace” demonstration). They warn that the system increasingly treats children as belonging to the state: spanking is illegal, kids are encouraged to report parents, and welfare authorities can remove children with little meaningful appeal, while the established church is politicized and moral standards are inverted (abortion widely accepted, private Bible studies labeled “subversive”). Yet they also testify to faithful Swedish believers who pray earnestly and meet in informal “house” settings because they know only God can heal what state planning cannot—making Sweden, in their view, a sobering preview of where the wider West goes when comfort replaces conviction and “non‑discrimination” is used to silence the freedom to call right and wrong. #EasyChair #Rushdoony #OttoScott #Sweden #TheNewTotalitarians #ChristianLiberty #Family #Education #SoftTotalitarianism #FreedomOfSpeech #ChristianReconstruction"