Each of the eight countries visited this past three weeks (Norway Denmark, Germany, Poland, Estonia, Russia, Finland, and Sweden) are having similar issues, and the people in all these countries are making similar comments.
Climate:
By far the most pressing issue on their minds ,as for the past three months all this region has been undergoing extreme heat and drought. Century old records are being, not just broken, they are being shattered, by double digit temperature increases. What were regularly beautiful summers are now hot and humid to everyone's dismay. Most all th population has no air conditioning.. they have never needed it.. no longer.
Forest fires are now occurring in areas where they never did before..and they are ill equipped to handle the growing crisis.
Evacuations ordered in Sweden as fires rage as far north as Arctic Circle.
There's growing concern across the region that 'Climate-Disruption' has brought us to a new era that we are ill prepared to enter.. and it is going to be getting much, much worse as temperatures steadily keep rising year after year.
The Growing Challenge of Living and Working on a Sweltering Planet
Tourism:
Since the last time we traveled to Europe a decade ago, the surge in tourism has been remarkable!! The numbers of people swarming over towns and cities is staggering. The major tourist draws are packed, to the point of being 'unfriendly.'
An unfair paradox: summer is when most people take vacations, but summer is also pretty much the worst time of year to visit a lot of places. Now visiting Europe in the summer is a lot like visiting Disney World in summer: unbearably hot, you have to wait in line for everything, and it's crowded shoulder to shoulder with other miserable people who just wish they could go somewhere with a/c.
Easiest way around this is to travel during the shoulder season in spring and fall, when the weather is still good but the hordes haven’t yet arrived, or have gone.
We.decided that should we return to this part of the world once again, it would not be during the very crowded summer months.. climate and swelling tourism are just becoming too much to handle, and definitely negatively impact the overall travel experience.
Over-tourism: a growing global problem.
Immigration:
For the most part these are progressing thinking societies that care for their populations and the people of other countries. And they have an inner desire to help and lend assistance whenever they can. But these beliefs are now being challenged, as the needs of so many are pushing the boundaries of fiscally being able to afford the growing need.
Overwhelmed by Refugee Flows, Scandinavia Tempers its Warm Welcome
Inequality:
Likely to seriously surprise some people. Scandinavian inequality seriously stands out. The top 10% of wealth holders in three Nordic countries (Norway, Sweden and Denmark) hold between 65 and 69 per cent of those nations' wealth. In a major economic downturn, with governments necessary belt-tightening, this could spell real trouble for the general populations within these countries.
Why Socialist Scandinavia Has Some Of The Highest Inequality In Europe
'Trumpocracy':
Most all the people with whom we spoke very much like Americans, but have a general disrespect and fear of the current administration, unlike the previous Obama administration.
Lengthy anti-Trump hysteria has struck home with Scandinavia's traditionally left-leaning population. Opinion polls indicate increased fears among the Nordics. Forty percent of Norwegians believe the risk of WWIII has increased with Trump as POTUS, and his increasing ties with the Russia-Putin dictatorship significantly worry them.
Trump is feared to make a new dynasty take root in the US. His overwhelming power in office, which no US president has enjoyed since the 1930s is greatly feared. At present, the Republicans enjoy a majority in all instances, and their dominance may be further enhanced as Trump is poised to nominate a new judge to the Supreme Court.
In Norway's neighbor Sweden, the percentage of panic-mongers appears to be even higher. A total majority of 83% of respondents voiced concern about the implications of the Trump presidency.
Fears of 'Trumpocracy' Sweep Scandinavia
************************
What makes sense for the common good.. the general population... NOT one small, rich & powerful segment of society. Call it liberal.. progressive.. socialistic.. call it whatever you like.. all I know is that when there are 40+ MILLION Americans living in
poverty, in what is supposed to be the richest country on the planet...
while spending two-thirds of our annual budget on war and the
military... there's something SERIOUSLY wrong with our politics and government.
Having just returned from visiting these eight European countries over the span of our three week trip, they all are
in shocked disbelief what is happening to us.. and they are VERY
concerned about the world's future.
Russia & China are now licking their chops, reaping huge benefits from our sheer arrogance & stupidity... and unless we send this cabal of 'leaders' to the trash heap... the
grim future they see for us just might be our continuing reality.
