Friday, May 30, 2025

Polaris of Enlightenment

Economist: Tariff turmoil temporary – Swedish economy remains resilient

Donald Trump's USA

Published 7 April 2025
– By Editorial Staff
Claes Hemberg does not believe that Swedes need to feel any long-term economic anxiety about the current customs chaos.

The announcement of Trump’s trade tariffs and the world’s response in the form of counter-tariffs have led to blood-red figures on the stock market and alarms that the world economy may be heading for a historic crash.

The fall continued on Monday, but independent economist Claes Hemberg believes that the panic is greatly exaggerated, that the crisis is temporary and that the Swedish economy as a whole is likely to do relatively well.

Hemberg compares the situation to covid and the lockdown policy five years ago and believes that we are now facing something similar where it is now tariffs instead of lockdowns that create economic uncertainty.

The economist explains that the stock market’s reaction is not due to the poor performance of individual companies, but to uncertainty about future economic developments, interest rates, household finances, international trade and politics.

– For the economy, there is probably no consequence at all, but the stock market is allowed to make a mess of things like this. It’s not strange, it happens. However, economists, politicians and business leaders must agree on how we should work going forward.

– We cannot surprise each other with different punitive tariffs or taxes, but we have to find a way to work together so that we can build relationships for the long term, because that’s how economics works. It is based on trust, not on surprises, shock therapies, false promises or false threats for that matter, he continued on state television SVT.

“A small delay”

As for the Swedish economy, Hemberg believes that the expected economic recovery is likely to be delayed due to the prevailing uncertainty, but that the effect is expected to be short-lived.

– We will probably only have a small delay. Households are waiting to start consuming, buying a new sofa or new clothes for that matter. There have been higher wages just last week, and we see that interest rates will be low going forward here.

– The tariffs are here and causing some disruption, but it’s probably a temporary issue that we’re discussing and will sort out in the near future. It shouldn’t truly affect our economy – just delay the recovery by a few weeks or maybe a month, he speculates.

“Trump is talking nonsense”

He emphasizes that the market unrest should be seen more as a reaction to the surprise element of the tariffs rather than genuine concern over the economy itself. Hemberg also believes that anyone with a 10- or 20-year investment horizon should sit tight and not panic-sell their funds or stocks, despite the steep downturn. This is because today’s developments won’t affect long-term goals.

– Sometimes there’s thunder and storms in our economy, and today is one of those days. That’s when you stay indoors, watch a movie, or maybe bake some cinnamon buns. Don’t go out now, stay home, I’d say.

Trump has also called on the US Federal Reserve to lower interest rates, something that Hemberg is very critical of.

– He’s quite consistent in claiming and pointing out things that are not a president’s business. The US has an independent central bank, just like Sweden. It’s a public authority responsible for monitoring inflation and the labor market to maintain a rate that supports society, not one influenced by White House politics

“Can’t act like this”

China has responded to Trump’s announcement by imposing its own counter-tariffs, and Hemberg believes that many are inspired by the Chinese and that the EU or Japan may make similar decisions.

– Maybe China is signaling here that they don’t support the kind of politics Trump is promoting and are responding in kind.

– That might have come as a bit of a surprise. But at some point, we also need clear signals back to the White House that you can’t act like this. If we want a society that encourages discussion, mutual trust, and the kind of global trade we so badly need, this won’t do.

“The stock market is a weather vane”

The economist believes that the stock market turmoil will continue for a couple more weeks at most and that the reason is that we simply have not been in this situation before.

– It’s not a big deal if the market jumps around a bit. It does that sometimes, and we just have to accept it. These uncertain days are often very short, intense, and uncomfortable, and they might make our stomachs churn a little.

Hemberg argues that the Swedish krona is unusually strong today and that Swedes will be able to travel more than before, that energy prices are coming down and that there are several other good economic signs.

– Just because there is a person in the White House in the United States who does not understand economics, I do not think we should be worried – even if the stock market is currently turbulent.

– Economics is something that spans over time – many generations, frankly. It’s not something we solve today or this afternoon. The stock market is just a kind of weather vane showing us where things are heading right now – and that fluctuates, and should fluctuate.

“More medicine and bandages needed”

He speculates that Trump may propose new negotiations in response to the counter-tariffs, and that there are likely to be new talks and discussions where all parties agree to back down.

– Just look at what happened five years ago when he was president. It was the same kind of tariff talk then.

– Now the tariffs are broader, tougher, and more intense, so we need more medicine, more bandages, and more talks. It’ll likely take a week or so to sort this out, but we can’t have a policy that’s so surprising or marked by such poor cooperation.

“No big surprises”

With regard to the development of inflation, Claes Hemberg believes that it simply moves in cycles and that it tends to rise at the beginning of the year, but then falls slightly in the spring.

– There are no big surprises. Energy prices are falling, gasoline prices are falling, and yes, things are looking good for our economy. The economy is hopefully gaining momentum here.

– Swedish households are quite cautious after these years of high inflation, and I understand that – that it takes time to win back their confidence again, and the Riksbank is struggling with this. That’s their main goal – to get households to come back to the shops and consume and live a normal life again, he concludes.

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Trump confronted South African president on white genocide

Donald Trump's USA

Published 22 May 2025
– By Editorial Staff
Trump says he is very concerned about the situation of South Africa's white minority.

During a meeting at the White House on Wednesday, President Donald Trump confronted South African President Cyril Ramaphosa with accusations that genocide is currently being committed against white farmers in the country.

To emphasize the seriousness of the situation, Trump ordered the lights in the Oval Office to be dimmed and showed a five-minute film detailing how South African politicians are inciting murder and systematic violence against the country’s white minority.

Trump said he had not yet “made up his mind” whether it was appropriate to use the term “genocide” in this context, but stated that “thousands” of white South Africans had so far sought refugee status in the US and that he wanted to “save lives”.

The film included clips in which Julius Malema, leader of the left-wing populist party Economic Freedom Fighters, can be clearly heard calling for murder and violence.

– Revolution demands at some point there must be killing, the notorious politician claims in the film.

Several sequences showed Malema dancing in front of tens of thousands of spectators while he and his comrades chanted “kill the Boer, the farmer!” and declared that “we are cutting the throat of whiteness!

“They’ll kill you if you’re white”

In another clip, former president Jacob Zuma (2009–2018) was seen singing a well-known black protest song that includes the same chorus with “kill the Boers”. According to critics, this song has contributed to increased tensions and more attacks on white farmers. The film also showed roadside memorials dedicated to what were said to be dozens of murdered white farmers.

Trump also criticized a new South African law that allows the South African state to confiscate unused land – land that is often owned by the white minority. Elon Musk, who was born in South Africa and is now a close advisor to Trump, was also present at the meeting and listened as the president recounted what an acquaintance had told him:

They take your land and they kill you if you’re white.

– I will say, apartheid, terrible. That was the biggest story – that was reported all the time. This is sort of the opposite of apartheid. What’s happening now is never reported, the president continued, wondering why Malema was not imprisoned when he called for genocide in front of television cameras and tens of thousands of spectators.

“Not government policy”

Ramaphosa remained very calm during the hour-long conversation held before the assembled press and firmly denied that Malema’s calls for genocide reflect the South African government’s position:

– What you saw, the speeches that were being made, one that is not government policy. Our government policy is completely, completely against what (Malema) was saying, he asserted.

In an attempt to appease the Trump administration, Ramaphosa chose to highlight the South African golfers Ernie Els and Retief Goosen, who are popular in the US and accompanied him on the trip, and to thank Trump for the US’s delivery of ventilators during the COVID-19 crisis in 2020.

South Africa’s Minister of Agriculture Jan Steenhuisen, who is himself white, also attended the conference and argued that the security situation in rural areas is indeed very poor. However, he did not want to call it genocide or even suggest that white farmers were particularly vulnerable.

– It requires a lot of effort to get on top of it. It’s going to require more policing resources, it’s gonna require a different strategy to be able to deal with it. But certainly, the majority of South Africa’s commercial and smallholder farmers really do want to stay in South Africa and make it work, he claimed.

Steenhuisen claimed that his party, the liberal Democratic Alliance, which won 21 percent of the vote in the last election, entered into a coalition with Ramaphosa’s ANC (approximately 40 percent of the vote) precisely to keep people like Malema out of power.

Malema’s EFF and Zuma’s MK, which are significantly more openly hostile and disapproving of the white minority than Ramaphosa’s ANC, together have around 25 percent of the vote.

A “violent country”

Zingiswa Losi, president of the country’s largest trade union, COSATU, had also been flown in and tried to convince Trump that South Africa is a “violent country” – and that people are killed regardless of their ethnic background.

– If you go into the rural areas where the black majority are, you will see women, elderly, being raped, being killed, being murdered. The problem in South Africa, it is not necessarily about race, but it is about crime, she claimed.

Ramaphosa himself could not deny that senseless violence and murder continue to be part of everyday life in South Africa – but he claims that this is due to “inequality and unemployment” – and that the problems can be solved by improving South Africa’s economy.

– Our main, main, real reason for being here is to foster trade and investment, so that we are able to grow our economy, with your support, and so that we are also able to address all these societal problems.

When Ramaphosa left the White House after three hours, he told reporters that the meeting “went very well”.

Mocked white refugees

However, not everyone is impressed by the South African leader’s defense, and several have pointed out how he recently mocked white South Africans who fled to the US to escape persecution and oppression.

In a speech, he claimed before a laughing audience that Afrikaners are fleeing for “fictitious reasons” – and asserted that South Africa is “united in diversity”.

– None of us should ever feel that they have lost courage and now become cowards and want to run, the president said, mocking the white refugees.

Earlier this year, The Nordic Times highlighted the Afrikaners’ uncertain future and their centuries-long history in the country in a lengthy cultural article.

White South Africans granted refuge in Trump’s US: “Genocide is taking place”

Donald Trump's USA

Published 14 May 2025
– By Editorial Staff
The first 59 white South Africans are welcomed by the US State Department.

The Trump administration has begun relocating white South Africans to the US. The president himself defends the decision by saying that the group is being subjected to genocide – but that this is being hushed up because it is white people who are affected.

Fifty-nine white South Africans have already been flown into the country and, according to the Trump administration, are the first in a larger relocation of Afrikaners – a white minority group subjected to widespread violence, persecution, and discrimination in their homeland.

The program, which was presented in February, prioritizes Afrikaners who are considered to be in constant danger due to violence and harassment in predominantly black South Africa.

– Because they’re being killed. And we don’t want to see people be killed… it’s a genocide that’s taking place. Farmers are being killed. They happen to be white, Trump said in a press statement when a journalist demanded an answer as to why the president wanted to help white refugees in particular.

Afrikaners – mainly descendants of Dutch and French settlers who came to South Africa hundreds of years ago – make up about 2.7 million of South Africa’s 62 million inhabitants.

Many live in rural areas, where violent crime against farmers is common, and although there are no longer any official statistics, it is clear that thousands of white South Africans have been murdered in recent decades.

South African government denies persecution

Trump and several of his advisers, including South African Elon Musk, have pointed out that the murders are often motivated by racial hatred and that the victims are targeted because they are white.

However, South African Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola rejects the accusations and claims that “there is no data at all that backs that there is persecution of white South Africans”.

– White farmers get affected by crime just like any other South Africans, he claims.

The South African government further claims that Afrikaners are better off than most people in the country and that misinformation and inaccurate reporting are behind the perception that the group is particularly vulnerable.

Journalists, lobby organizations promoting mass immigration, and political opponents have also reacted with dismay to Trump’s decision to focus on helping white refugees rather than people of non-European descent.

“Brutally killed”

However, Trump stands his ground and emphasizes that he is not helping the Afrikaners because of their skin color, but because they are suffering from something horrific something that is being silenced by Western media.

– Whether they are white or Black makes no difference to me, but white farmers are being brutally killed, and their land is being confiscated in South Africa.

– The newspapers and the media, television media, doesn’t even talk about it. If it were the other way round, they’d talk about it, that would be the only story they talk about. I don’t care who they are. I don’t care about their race, their color, I don’t care about their height, their weight, I don’t care about anything, I just know that what is happening is terrible.

Earlier this year, The Nordic Times highlighted the lives and history of the Afrikaners in a lengthy cultural article.

Trump wants 100% tariff on foreign films

Donald Trump's USA

Published 9 May 2025
– By Editorial Staff

Donald Trump has announced that he has initiated a process to impose a 100% tariff on all films produced outside the US that are then imported into the country. Critics warn of the consequences and argue that tariffs will worsen the situation for the American film industry.

The decision, which was announced on May 4, is intended, according to Trump, to protect the American film industry, which he believes is on the verge of “a very fast death”, reports industry publication Variety.

– This is a concerted effort by other nations and, therefore, a national security threat. It is, in addition to everything else, messaging and propaganda, Trump wrote on his platform Truth Social.

Trump said he has instructed the Department of Commerce and the US Trade Representative to quickly begin the process of imposing the tariffs.

Exact details on how the tariffs will be implemented, such as whether they will also cover streaming services or how the size of the tariffs will be calculated, have not yet been announced.

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has confirmed that the authorities are working on the issue.

“Incredibly stupid”

Many American productions are currently filmed in several countries that offer financial incentives for film production, including Canada, the UK, and Australia, and industry representatives are now concerned about how the tariffs would affect ongoing projects and collaborations.

The chair of the Swedish Film and TV Producers Association, Eva Hamilton, called the proposal “incredibly stupid” and warned that it could isolate the US culturally and economically.

It just sounds incredibly stupid, and I find it hard to see how it could be implemented. He’s right that Hollywood hasn’t kept up, but stopping all foreign expertise sounds like shooting yourself in the foot, Eva Hamilton said in an interview with Schibsted owned TV4.

Trump has previously singled out Hollywood as a “very problematic place” and, in early 2025, appointed actors Jon Voight, Mel Gibson, and Sylvester Stallone as ambassadors to promote American film production.

The American film industry has already been affected by Trump’s trade war, and China, among others, has reduced its quota for American films allowed to be shown in response to the new American tariffs on the country.

US calls on City of Stockholm to end left-liberal activism

Donald Trump's USA

Published 7 May 2025
– By Editorial Staff
A continued focus on "diversity work" is a top priority for Stockholm's leaders - and they won't listen to the Americans' demands.

The US Embassy is demanding that the Stockholm City Planning Office sign a contract committing to immediately stop engaging in left-liberal activism in the form of DEI initiatives on “diversity, inclusion and equality”.

– It’s completely bizarre, says City Planning Councilor Jan Valeskog (S).

Speaking on Swedish state radio SR, he insists that “values such as diversity and gender equality are very important to the City of Stockholm” and that there are no plans to deviate from this line.

The embassy notes that under the Trump administration, a new policy has been introduced whereby all parties from whom the US government purchases goods or services must sign the contract in question, and that the Stockholm City Planning Office has ten days to do so.

– We are absolutely not going to do that, it is contrary to everything we stand for. They should withdraw these absurdities, continues a visibly upset Valeskog in the Bonnier newspaper Dagens Nyheter.

He argues that it is the embassy that is dependent on the city of Stockholm not the other way around, and that the Americans themselves will suffer the most if the contract is terminated.

“Their headache”

– If the US terminates its relationship with the city planning office, the embassy will have a hard time getting building permits if they want to rebuild, for example. That’s their headache, not ours.

It’s not just the City of Stockholm that has been sent these contracts and accompanying requirements The policy has been introduced on a global scale and those who don’t sign up risk losing their contracts.

At the same time, there has also been some confusion about what the Americans are really after.

Just over a month ago, the US embassy in Sweden stated that the requirements only applied to companies “controlled by a US employer and employing US citizens”.

What is DEI?

DEI stands for "Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion". It is an umbrella term for various initiatives and initiatives aimed at quotas or otherwise favoring different minorities in, for example, working life and education.

Critics, however, argue that DEI is based on a left-wing ideological worldview rather than on proven methodology. There are also concerns that focusing on sexual orientation, gender, ethnicity or religion rather than skills risks undermining the meritocracy and that DEI initiatives are used to discriminate against white people.

Several studies also indicate that DEI training programs have almost no or even counterproductive effects. As these programs have become more widespread, the backlash has grown, particularly in the United States, where some universities have begun to phase them out.

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