Friday, February 7, 2025

Polaris of Enlightenment

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The number of playgrounds in Sweden is decreasing

Published 28 April 2023
– By Editorial Staff
Playground in Kvidinge in Helsingborg.

Since the early 2000s, the number of playgrounds in Sweden has more than halved, according to a new study by the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU).

SLU has made a compilation of Sweden’s playgrounds that shows that the number of municipally managed playgrounds has decreased in large parts of the country since the early 2000s.

One of the reasons for compiling information on playgrounds was to see how they have developed over a longer period of time. There have been signs that the number of playgrounds has decreased, but the researchers now believe that the situation is worse than previously thought.

We now see that the declining trend is even stronger than we thought. Moreover, the decline seems to be ongoing in many municipalities, says Märit Jansson, senior lecturer at SLU, to forskning.se.

The study looked at a total of 9 590 playgrounds in Sweden that were open to the public. What they found was that in the early 2000s there were around 20 000 managed playgrounds, twice as many as today.

In the municipalities of northern Sweden, the study shows that the reduction between 2001 and 2022 was 48%. On Gotland, more than half of the playgrounds have disappeared since 2005, and the researchers also note that the quality can vary greatly depending on where they are located.

However, in some municipalities, such as Älmhult, Höganäs and Kungsbacka, more playgrounds have been created.

There are no clear answers as to why the number of playgrounds in the country has decreased, but the study suggests that one reason could be limited budgets.

The study is the first of its kind, and since there are no older compilations, the researchers had to make their own calculations. More in-depth studies are needed to establish exact figures on how much the number of playgrounds has decreased.

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Queen Silvia: “Where did the beautiful Sweden go?”

Mass shooting in Örebro

Published yesterday 12:36
– By Editorial Staff
Queen Silvia notes that Sweden is no longer recognizable.

Shootings, murders in the street and explosions have long been part of everyday life in Sweden. Recently, what is described as the worst mass shooting in Swedish history occurred in Örebro.

Queen Silvia is one of many people who are deeply concerned about where Sweden is heading, and the Queen is calling on everyone to help rebuild the badly damaged country.

The Queen and the King visited Örebro yesterday to show their support after the mass murder, and she sadly noted that she no longer recognizes the Sweden that welcomed her half a century ago.

– I have a great wish for all the Swedish people. Where did the beautiful Sweden go?

– I want to ask everyone to help rebuild it and strengthen Sweden’s good… I don’t want to say reputation, but name. Everything that it means to be Swedish. That is my wish now. A lot has happened recently, and it is my great wish, as well as the King’s, that we all come together to restore the beautiful Sweden that once was, she continued.

The King was also saddened, saying that Swedes today “live in a terrible society” and that this is a trend that must be reversed.

– We must listen to each other. We must be able to talk to each other and dare to help each other. It is something we must learn.

Outraged viewers: Swedish TV4 spreads disinformation about the mass murder

Mass shooting in Örebro

Published yesterday 11:53
– By Editorial Staff
A large number of viewers note that the person in the clip seems to be saying something completely different from what TV4's “experts” claim.

Telia-owned TV4 is now accused of spreading disinformation about the mass murder in Örebro in order to chase clicks and link the shooter to racism and “right-wing extremism”.

TV4 News claims to have analyzed an audio clip recorded in connection with the killing, and claims that the perpetrator in this is heard shouting “You’re getting out of Europe” – and implicitly then must have been driven by some kind of anti-immigration motive.

The clip is said to have been recorded by a man hiding inside a toilet during the mass shooting, and several shots can be heard being fired.

TV4 News has had sound technicians with special equipment analyze the sound and filter out noise and enhance what is said. We have let several people without prior knowledge of what is heard in the recording listen to the sound – all have come to the same conclusion. After filtering, it is possible to decipher how someone is shouting: ‘You’re getting out of Europe!’, they claim, and have also published the clip with Tv4’s interpretation added as subtitles.

Translation: Completely frivolous. So you post the clip with text to what is “said”? Of course people will hear what you want us to hear if you add text.
We will not contribute to rumor spreading, you say and publish this.

“Should be tried in court”

However, the media channel is now being accused of deliberately spreading false information to whip up hatred, with many viewers noting that it is not possible to hear what is being said at all – nor do they know who is shouting in the clip.

Don’t you realize how dangerous it is to spread this disinformation? But maybe that’s the point? This should be tried in court”, writes one outraged user.

Others point out that it appears to be someone other than the shooter who is shouting, and that TV4 simply seems to have come up with its own interpretation, which seems to be based mostly on what they themselves wish the mass murderer would have shouted.

Everyone hears that it is not possible to interpret what you claim. Think about your social responsibility. Spreading disinformation now is not very clever”, says civil engineer Fredric Morenius, who reviewed the clip himself.

The police have previously urged the public not to spread rumors and unconfirmed information from the shooting, and many point out that the establishment media should also listen to this call. It has also been noted that there is currently no indication that the perpetrator was driven by any ideological motives.

Translation: It’s not the shooter talking in the TV4 clip!
Listen to the first shot: you can clearly hear the shell bouncing on the floor several times afterwards.
The shooter is standing directly outside the toilet door and shoots. The second shell is also heard.
The voice comes from someone much further away.

Swedish police reticent on mass shooter details

Deteriorating safety

Updated today 11:27 Published 5 February 2025
– By Editorial Staff
Roberto Eid Forest, police area commander in Örebro and a blurred image of a person who could be the shooter.

Police are keeping a tight lid on the details of the shooter in Örebro – but say there is currently no indication that he acted with ideological motives.

According to the Police Authority, at least 11 people were killed in yesterday’s shooting at Campus Risbergska, an adult education campus in Örebro. The perpetrator is said to be among the deceased – reportedly taking his own life after the attack. The shooter is described as being in his mid-30s and a resident of Örebro.

– He is not previously known to the police and has no connection to any gang. What we believe is that it is a lone perpetrator, I want to emphasize that the situation can change, said Police Area Commander Roberto Eid Forest, during a press conference.

The person the police believe is the suspect is among the deceased. We do not yet know the motive for the school shooting in Örebro, but everything indicates that the perpetrator has acted alone without an ideological motive”, they wrote in a press release.

“False narratives” are being spread

The police will not comment further on the shooter’s background or identity – something that has quickly led to countless speculations on forums and social media where several people have been wrongly identified as the perpetrator.

The police also warn that “false narratives” are being spread on the internet and urge the public to rely on “official communications from the police and other authorities”.

We publish confirmed information about the incident continuously on polisen.se. Remember not to spread rumors and speculation. It can complicate the work of the police and create distrust and concern”, they write.

They also state that they do not see any increased general threat or any increased danger to the public after yesterday’s events.

Swedish state broadcaster SVT leaves X and Facebook

Published 4 February 2025
– By Editorial Staff
SVT plans to focus on YouTube and Snapchat moving forward, it is stated.

Tax-funded SVT no longer publishes any posts on X or Facebook even though these are two of the social media platforms used by most Swedes.

The state broadcaster does not want to say whether it is for political reasons they choose to leave, but only briefly comments that they will instead use Youtube and Snapchat in the future.

Anyone who clicks on SVT’s profiles on X or Facebook is greeted by the message that “we do not publish here at the moment”. Users are not told why, and when the Bonnier newspaper Expressen contacted SVT’s head of video Erica Lascelles, she did not want to elaborate on the decision.

– Overall, we want to reach more people with our news, and social media is part of our strategy. We are therefore pausing publication on SVT Nyheter’s accounts on Facebook and X, while Nyhetskoll – our brand new initiative on news for teenagers – is starting its own page on svt.se, and testing presence on Youtube and Snapchat, she says.

It should be noted that most of the major Swedish establishment media remain on Facebook but that many chose to leave X after Musk took over ownership, reduced censorship and introduced a much freer debate climate than before.

Wolodarski: “Extreme debate climate”

Omni, Bonnier newspaper DN, Schibsted-owned Aftonbladet and state radio SR are just a few examples of Swedish media that have previously left X.

– Since Elon Musk took over, the platform has increasingly merged with his own and Donald Trump’s political ambitions, while the climate at X has become more harsh and extreme, argued DN’s editor-in-chief Peter Wolodarski when justifying the decision.

However, many observers argue that it is more a case of the “legacy media” struggling to assert itself and becoming increasingly irrelevant in an environment that is not deeply marked by censorship, and where competing narratives and voices have the opportunity to be heard in a different way than before.