The merits of the social democratic Nordic countries have once again become popular in American political discourse due to their praise by presidential candidate Bernie Sanders. This revival of the “U.S. vs. Sweden” debate reminds me of the following interview with Swedish economist Andreas Bergh:
Bergh presents a fairly clear view of the difference between what some have called the administrative state vs. the social insurance state.1 For those interested in his research–which is quite relevant to the current political climate–check out his aptly titled blog The Capitalist Welfare State.