by Søren Lauritzen, May 2020
Culture as a phenomenon interests me. I find it fascinating that what is considered “true”, “right”, “normal”, and “real” varies so greatly around the world, and that these “local realities” can profoundly influence, even dictate, human behavior.
And this tells us something: Whatever a culture believes and holds to be true is NEITHER true nor right nor normal nor real for anyone other than those who share that culture.
(Make no mistake: Culture is an expression of relativity (“something in relation to something else”, or “something at the expense of something else”), and culture is a form of consciousness programming. This makes culture just as limited and constraining as other forms of relativity and consciousness programming, but that’s another story).
This article will explore something positive about culture. More specifically, something wonderful about …
A Rather Unique Culture
For many years, I traveled around large parts of the world, so I have seen and experienced my share of different cultures.
One of these cultures, however, stands out from the rest, and that is the Scandinavian, or more specifically, the Danish culture. While the Nordic countries have their differences, we actually share many cultural traits – there is a common Scandinavian culture. But the culture I want to focus on here is the Danish one.
In light of the many diverse cultures I have encountered around the world, there are certain aspects of Danish culture that I find very appealing.
There is no reason to believe that I approach my Danish culture uncritically (yes, I am Danish, born and raised in Denmark), for as can be inferred from the introduction, I maintain a critical stance towards ALL culture.
I’m not writing what I am about to write simply because I was raised in Danish culture. No, I am writing it because Danish culture genuinely IS different in a positive way compared to many other cultures, including large and dominant ones such as the American, Chinese, Indian, Spanish, German, French, or Russian.
Just ask the American top politician Bernie Sanders, who, through his two attempts to become president, has repeatedly highlighted Denmark as a model country with free education, free hospitals, and so on.
Or ask the world-renowned author and spiritual teacher Neale Donald Walsch, who, after his visits to our small country, has spoken and written about how wonderful it is that Danes so thoroughly take care of each other.
Both believe that the world can learn a lot from Denmark. I agree. But it is up to the world, more than it is up to us.
Crises Can Reveal Hidden or Forgotten Aspects
Serious crises tend to put things into sharp focus. A crisis like the one we have now, thanks to the COVID-19 corona virus, also makes certain things very clear, such as how we Danes as a nation react when we are threatened.
Here is my opinion on that matter:
We Danes – as a people – have handled the corona virus crisis quite fantastically so far.
I truly believe that.
Four Ridiculous Blunders (At Least)
Yes, in Danish society’s handling of the COVID-19 crisis, there have been some foolish mistakes, such as:
• Ridiculous Danish Blunder No. 1: Lack of Preparation
We were not properly prepared at all (poor planning and inadequate central coordination of, for example, procurement, crisis stocks (of items such as protective equipment and test kits), communication, etc., etc.) … which is lame because we had received many clear warnings.
(We received clear warnings from, for example, Bill Gates in 2015 (Bill Gates has also written a long and good post about the current status of vaccines, etc. here), and through several years of reports from US intelligence agencies, and from the UN and Gro Harlem Brundtland as recently as September 2019, just a couple of months before the pandemic’s early beginnings in China in mid-November 2019, and six months before the pandemic hit us here in the country).
(Hopefully, we are wiser now. For we KNOW that new epidemics as well as pandemics will come. No one who understands these things has the slightest doubt about it. I hope and dream that we have become wiser, and I believe that most of the rest of the Danish population thinks so too. But it is up to our leaders, including our elected politicians, to improve Denmark’s preparedness in the future).
• Ridiculous Danish Blunder No. 2: We Have Sold off Our Infrastruckture
We had sold off vital infrastructure (the airport, energy supply, mail distribution, railways, etc.), which common sense alone says is deeply foolish.
(For example, it is simply and precisely described here). (Danish link)
It is foolish because we thereby lose control and sovereignty, and thus we no longer had our own vaccine factory (which previously was part of Statens Serum Institut) when this pandemic hit us. We had sold it. Or, perhaps more precisely: we had given away our vaccine factory (see note below about the sale).
Therefore, we now – all else being equal – have a harder time developing a vaccine, and if we do, we can no longer mass-produce it ourselves. So the state can no longer protect its citizens as well as possible in the event of a pandemic.
(But such a thing won’t happen, right? That’s what most of our politicians clearly believed (the only ones who did not vote for the sale of Denmark’s vaccine production were the political parties: Alternativet, Enhedslisten, and SF). And it should be added that both the Health Authority and the National Audit Office HAD warned the politicians (Danish link) about how foolish the idea of selling was – and the politicians did it anyway).
Politicians will likely defend their very unfortunate decision by saying that we are a small country and are better off cooperating with others. Which would have been correct if it weren’t for the fact that we are talking about infectious, deadly diseases.
IN THAT situation, you don’t need a PhD in psychology or politics to guess how different countries will react: All countries will prioritize themselves and their own citizens.
Anyone who thinks a little about human (and political) nature can figure this out. It’s not difficult, but rather completely expected and predictable.
Several countries (led by the USA), which are developing a vaccine, have announced that they will produce the vaccine for themselves first. So all others – Denmark for example – will have to wait in line.
And … this picture will be more pronounced the more dangerous the disease is. COVID-19 corona virus can be deadly, yes, but it is not nearly as deadly as, for example, Ebola or the Black Death (the plague).
In the case of a pandemic with a new, unknown, super-contagious, and super-deadly disease, it WILL be “every country for itself”.
This is not good, right, fair, or desirable, but it is OBVIOUS. Just not to a majority of Danish politicians.
Right now, we are in the situation where if the (now former) Danish vaccine factory were to develop a vaccine, which they have announced they are working on, then we risk NOT benefiting from it (Danish link) here in Denmark.
All of this is … absurd … or perhaps rather: incredibly foolish, if not incredibly, extraordinarily foolish.
Fortunately for the majority of Danish politicians, it is NEVER too late to do what one can to correct one’s mistakes!
(And while we are at it, let’s not even talk about the mistake that CANNOT be corrected, namely that the Danish state only received a pitiful 15 million kroner for Statens Serum Institut’s vaccine factory (which was valued at a three-digit million amount), or that the Ministry of Health and Elderly Affairs (under the Lars Løkke Rasmussen government, Venstre, which was the party that proposed the sale) handled the sale so poorly that the National Audit Office calculated that the sale ended up COSTING the Danish state (Danish link) between approximately 1.3 and 1.8 BILLION DKK in total).
What was once our national vaccine factory is now owned by a Saudi sheik (whose company even supports organizations that are on several countries’ terrorist lists. That’s exactly the type of owner you want of something working with deadly diseases, right? I am at a loss for words).
• Ridiculous Danish Blunder No. 3: Slow Reactions
And even when we understood that it was serious, we Danes did not react super-fast either. With a highly contagious virus, every day, indeed, every hour, matters.
(As we can clearly see in, for example, the USA, where the leadership long denied the seriousness of the situation, and where the death toll is correspondingly high and still rising. Testing and potential quarantine of returning Danes – especially those from areas where there was known to be infection – should have been a given from day one. As a Danish security expert pointed out (Danish link) as early as February 2020. It was not (Danish link) that the Danish Health Authority thought they knew better, but they were simply wrong (Danish link), which cost us (a lot).
• Ridiculous Danish Blunder No. 4: The Authorities Stumble
When we finally did react, we also made some clear mistakes along the way, not least in the health authorities’ communication to the public.
(For example, the health authorities exhibited distrust towards us by withholding facts (Danish link), and by delaying explanations of the severity of the situation as well as the reasons behind their decisions; our health authorities also refused to follow WHO’s recommendations (Danish link) for widespread testing; they gave conflicting messages and recommendations; and more.
(Some of these things have since been acknowledged and regretted (Danish link) – which is commendable and helps us accept these mistakes – it’s human to err, and of course mistakes will occur in crisis management. ALSO in crisis management).
The Point
Denmark has thought and acted terribly short-sightedly, and has NOT been a model country in handling the COVID-19 virus pandemic. This has resulted in hundreds of deaths, and it will likely cost hundreds more in the coming months.
(When I say “Denmark has thought and acted terribly short-sightedly”, I mean the Danish authorities, including the health authorities, but primarily I mean the Danish politicians, namely the majority, likely led by the Venstre and Social Democrats parties, which have been in control of governments. They have shown themselves not to be very eager to plan and prepare but quite eager to sell off Danish infrastructure).
Have there been model countries in this context? Yes, there have been. Examples of model countries in connection with COVID-19 include countries such as Taiwan, Georgia, South Korea, and Iceland.
(Singapore is also on that list, but they came close to a terrible situation because they – quite embarrassingly – completely forgot to take care of the imported labor living in deplorable, overcrowded conditions, which was an ideal place for the virus to spread, which it did) (Danish link).
Most of these countries (or all) had planned what to do in such a situation, reacted quickly, and responded appropriately, which is why they have had very few deaths so far.
Denmark is not one of those countries.
BUT!
Once we as a country understood what it was about, we came together and did what was necessary to avoid a major tragedy.
We succeeded – really well, in fact – and we can be proud of that!
Hats off to the Danes! 🙂
Blind Tightrope Walkers
Now we have entered a particularly interesting phase of the crisis: the reopening of society.
It’s somewhat like walking a tightrope blindfolded. It is very much a balancing act.
On one hand, reopening society is unavoidable. The economy is bleeding, and the psychological toll of social isolation is increasing for all of us.
On the other hand, we all know that reopening will lead to more infections and more deaths.
The goal remains unchanged: to protect the most vulnerable from infection and to prevent hospitals from becoming overwhelmed so that we can continue to treat all patients as well as possible. But exactly what will happen when we ease restrictions in one area is unknown.
We – as a society – have become tightrope walkers, blind tightrope walkers.
We need to move forward, but if we take a single wrong step and the virus flares up faster than we can control it, we risk losing everything.
The Nature of Balance: It Is Related to Wholeness and Authenticity
Balance, like wholeness and authenticity, is fascinating.
Balance is equilibrium. It’s about having some of this and some of that, but not too much of either.
In practice, balance often succeeds best in complex situations when nothing is excluded, and everything is included and accepted as it authentically is. When something (or someone) is kept out, it often causes problems in the long run.
Balance is closely related to acceptance, wholeness, and authenticity.
We can see this in how we feel ourselves: When we accept ourselves and feel whole, authentic, and balanced, everything flows smoothly. So smoothly, in fact, that we hardly notice it.
But when we do not accept ourselves, and we do not feel whole and / or authentic and / or we are out of balance, everything becomes difficult. Sometimes very, very difficult.
Whether it concerns acceptance, wholeness, authenticity, or (un)balance, it doesn’t matter if the problem is physical, mental, emotional, energetic, behavioral, or otherwise – if it is severe, we can barely function.
Fortunately, as a society, we still have acceptance, wholeness, authenticity, and balance. Because of this, we can think clearly, make (more or less) right decisions, and act sensibly. As we have generally done until now.
(But now we MUST stop selling off our vital infrastructure, and perhaps even consider buying some of it back, starting with our vaccine factory – the fantastic economic rescue packages for society show that we can indeed find the money for it. We also need to teach our politicians that ensuring the safety of the population against all eventualities is NOT a “business” that should generate a profit. In this regard, a deficit is not just acceptable but expected. Instead, ensuring the safety of the population is a matter of being foresighted, planning for what might happen, and acting accordingly – even if it costs money – and it does.)
The concepts of balance, authenticity, wholeness, choice, and action are among the things that my many years of working with personal and spiritual development – both within myself and with others – have taught me.
I have distilled it into a (very concentrated and therefore somewhat difficult-to-read-and-relate-to) core statement, and I both philosophize about it, live by it, and work from it:
A wholeness in inner and outer balance that authentically does what it is WORKS optimally.
It should be noted that acceptance is implicit in authentic, and there are several points in the statement that we won’t delve into here, such as:
– The need for balance both inwardly within oneself and outwardly in relation to the world
– The advantage of basing actions on who one authentically is, or in other words, that who one authentically is should guide what one does
– The fact that the above is actually a formula for not just what works and what doesn’t, but what works best (optimally).
We can simply observe that …
You are a wholeness, I am a wholeness, and so are our relationships, our families, our businesses, associations, organizations, as well as the entire Danish society – and the global society too. With all that this entails regarding acceptance, authenticity, balance, choices, actions – and what works versus what doesn’t.
So if we view Danish society and us Danes as a whole, we have been authentic, somewhat balanced, and have done what we are. We will return to that shortly.
Side Note: EVERYTHING Can Be Viewed as a Wholeness
Let’s briefly consider one more aspect of wholeness: namely, that EVERYTHING can be viewed as a wholeness:
An atom is a wholeness, a molecule is a wholeness, a cell and an organ in our body are whole in themselves, and our body itself is a wholeness. The solar system is a wholeness, and so is the galaxy, the local galaxy cluster (a galaxy of galaxies = “super-galaxy”), and the local supercluster (a cluster of galaxy clusters = “super-super-galaxy”).
Everything, from the smallest to the largest, can be seen as a wholeness, and BALANCE as well as AUTHENTIC BEING and BEHAVIOR are crucial.
The Point?
Here it is:
We Danes have acted as who we are: a people who understand that, regardless of age, social background, income, or health condition, we are all unique but the same. That we are all in the same boat.
We are a people who look out for one another.
And guess what:
It WORKS!
To that, we can only say (to ourselves): “Thank you, Danes, well done!”
Danes are Freedom-Loving and Individualistic, but Also Generous in a Good Way
The conviction that we are in the same boat and must take care of each other is a hallmark of our culture, and probably of Scandinavian culture in general.
Even though the Swedes have taken a different approach in the current COVID-19 crisis, paying the price in terms of lives lost.
(As of now, Sweden has had nearly 300 deaths per million inhabitants, while Denmark has had nearly 100 deaths per million inhabitants. Thus, the Swedish strategy has currently resulted in three times as many deaths as the Danish one. This is despite Sweden being much less densely populated than Denmark (Sweden has nearly 1.8 times more inhabitants than Denmark but has about 10.5 times more land).
This kind of independent approach only confirms how we Scandinavians are: we are individualists and do what we believe is right, regardless of what “others” think.
Whether the Swedish choice of COVID-19 strategy is ultimately “wiser” or “foolish” compared to the Danish strategy is still unknown, but that is not really the point.
The point, if I may speak on behalf of most Danes for a moment, is that we feel the following:
The Danish choice of corona virus strategy, where we without discussion prioritize saving lives over economic concerns and do everything we can to reach the point of having a vaccine with the fewest possible deaths, is what we are comfortable with and perceive as the most decent and right thing to do.
And it is the choice we have made.
This shows something very important about who we are.
We Danes are freedom-loving and individualistic (and somewhat short-sighted), yes, but we are also genuinely caring in a good way. In a natural, right way. Not because we have to or should, but because we feel that helping and taking care of each other is the natural and correct thing to do.
Which is what has driven us Danes in this COVID-19 crisis to make the choices we have made, to act as we have, and to achieve the relative success we have.
Because that is who we are.
Regardless of whether, or how well, we succeed with the upcoming balancing act with our eyes closed (the reopening of society), this will still be true. We have proven it.
We have proven who we are.
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