Swedish autonomy also seemed to me to be much more passive than the kind of independence the Americans strive for. It is not about achieving something, striking out on your own, grabbing life by the lapels and wringing every ounce of potential from it, it is about being able to get your teeth seen to on a regular basis, for spouses to be able to take separate holidays, or for retirees to be free to decide what to have for dinner. As the authors of Modern-Day Vikings put it, “The American wants the freedom to do, the Swede wants the freedom to be.”
