Can we talk about Sweden for a bit?

[BrabusMog]

I'm not sure if it's because I spent most of my adult life living in South London, but I really don't understand how you could feel unsafe at the station in Göteborg. Fair enough, there are a few dodgy looking people hanging around, but it's a central station in a modern, Western city, not a bomb shelter in Beirut. You should try driving into a few areas of Göteborg Stevanos, that would actually be cause for not feeling safe. But in the central station, nah, you're safe.

[BrabusMog]

rovermorris999 said:

Gatestone's take on Sweden, 'close to collapse' is the headline. Over-egging it or not?

http://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/6697/sweden-coll...

I'm on my way to watch football, but I'll read it and respond later. The town I live in certainly has become noticeably busier in the past few weeks with immigrants, all of whom don't seem to be working, but hanging around outside Swedbank to use their free wifi, and other Gatestone articles have certainly headlined eyebrow raising figures in terms of costs etc... To the lay person, it doesn't seem sustainable.

[Halb]

BrabusMog said:

I'm on my way to watch football, but I'll read it and respond later. The town I live in certainly has become noticeably busier in the past few weeks with immigrants, all of whom don't seem to be working, but hanging around outside Swedbank to use their free wifi, and other Gatestone articles have certainly headlined eyebrow raising figures in terms of costs etc... To the lay person, it doesn't seem sustainable.

Where do they live? How do they eat etc?

[Stevanos]

BrabusMog said:

I'm not sure if it's because I spent most of my adult life living in South London, but I really don't understand how you could feel unsafe at the station in Göteborg. Fair enough, there are a few dodgy looking people hanging around, but it's a central station in a modern, Western city, not a bomb shelter in Beirut. You should try driving into a few areas of Göteborg Stevanos, that would actually be cause for not feeling safe. But in the central station, nah, you're safe.

It may be safe, but it does not feel safe. There are beggars coming up to you now, you have groups of homeless men from eastern europe congregating and looking shifty, There have been numerous reports of pickpocketing and now you have migrants arriving from other parts of Europe there in to the company of the red cross. But to me, I don't feel safe and I know I am not the only person who feels this way about the place.

[BrabusMog]

Halb said:

BrabusMog said:

I'm on my way to watch football, but I'll read it and respond later. The town I live in certainly has become noticeably busier in the past few weeks with immigrants, all of whom don't seem to be working, but hanging around outside Swedbank to use their free wifi, and other Gatestone articles have certainly headlined eyebrow raising figures in terms of costs etc... To the lay person, it doesn't seem sustainable.

Where do they live? How do they eat etc?

We have a big building above our Systembolaget, they've started to move in there. I presume it's like student halls or similar, apparently the Hells Angels were going to take it before all of this started kicking off.

To be honest, Halb, I haven't bothered to read too much into everything with regards to the immigrant influx and how they're funded. But we were in Trolhättan to go the cinema and there was a huge queue to get into a very nondescript looking building and my fiancé told me that's where they go etc to register. So I'm presuming they get their money as benefits? Or what they've got left from their travels here.

[BrabusMog]

Stevanos said:

BrabusMog said:

I'm not sure if it's because I spent most of my adult life living in South London, but I really don't understand how you could feel unsafe at the station in Göteborg. Fair enough, there are a few dodgy looking people hanging around, but it's a central station in a modern, Western city, not a bomb shelter in Beirut. You should try driving into a few areas of Göteborg Stevanos, that would actually be cause for not feeling safe. But in the central station, nah, you're safe.

It may be safe, but it does not feel safe. There are beggars coming up to you now, you have groups of homeless men from eastern europe congregating and looking shifty, There have been numerous reports of pickpocketing and now you have migrants arriving from other parts of Europe there in to the company of the red cross. But to me, I don't feel safe and I know I am not the only person who feels this way about the place.

All I saw was the usual women who walk around shaking an empty coffee cup at you. And, as with any station in the world, you keep your valuables either in your hands or in a secure pocket. I'm not saying it's ideal, but take a trip to Malmö if you want to feel unsafe. Göteborg is perfectly safe in the centre.

Saying that, someone did get hit in the head with the handle of an axe where I live a couple of weeks ago

I genuinely believe it's still a great country and that, because it's been a socialist paradise for so long, people haven't had to face certain realties of life until recently. This isn't a swipe at people on this thread, but Sweden is still head and shoulders above the UK as a country to live in, as long as you are earning enough money to enjoy it.

[Stevanos]

BrabusMog said:

All I saw was the usual women who walk around shaking an empty coffee cup at you..

They seem to be growing in numbers and getting more pushy, their latest tactic is walk directly into your path of travel and totally obstruct you, they are doing this in pairs!

I think it is time they made the station so you can only access it with a valid train ticket.

[BrabusMog]

Stevanos said:

BrabusMog said:

All I saw was the usual women who walk around shaking an empty coffee cup at you..

They seem to be growing in numbers and getting more pushy, their latest tactic is walk directly into your path of travel and totally obstruct you, they are doing this in pairs!

I think it is time they made the station so you can only access it with a valid train ticket.

Fair enough if that's your experience, but I haven't, nor do I know anyone, who has come across this.

[Stevanos]

BrabusMog said:

Fair enough if that's your experience, but I haven't, nor do I know anyone, who has come across this.

I have been commuting in for two years, I would say it has got a lot worse since the summer. Perhaps with the whole of the Middle East and North Africa pitching up en masse the Roma are feeling a little threatened themselves about their "patch"?

[BrabusMog]

Stevanos said:

BrabusMog said:

Fair enough if that's your experience, but I haven't, nor do I know anyone, who has come across this.

I have been commuting in for two years, I would say it has got a lot worse since the summer. Perhaps with the whole of the Middle East and North Africa pitching up en masse the Roma are feeling a little threatened themselves about their "patch"?

A lot worse than what, though? People sitting down quietly and not begging in your face? Trust me, nobody hates free loaders more than I do, but if you think this is bad you really lead a sheltered life.

[Stevanos]

BrabusMog said:

A lot worse than what, though? People sitting down quietly and not begging in your face? Trust me, nobody hates free loaders more than I do, but if you think this is bad you really lead a sheltered life.

No we have gone from peaceful begging to getting quite pushy and in your face in the last few months. I come from a place where begging is illegal and utterly wrong to a place where in the last 2-3 months they are impeding me on my daily business, soon something bad will happen. My prediction will be someone will barge past them and knives will come out!

[BrabusMog]

Don't you have them begging outside your local ICA/Coop etc?

I'm sorry, but you're sensationalising what is a trivial issue. Just walk around them. It's not a big deal.

[Stevanos]

BrabusMog said:

Don't you have them begging outside your local ICA/Coop etc?

I'm sorry, but you're sensationalising what is a trivial issue. Just walk around them. It's not a big deal.

Yes I do and they just sit there, I think you are missing my point.

The ones in GBG station have started getting more aggressive in their tactics in just the last 8 weeks, I don't know why but if they did what they are doing in the UK I could see people throwing punches at them!

The sooner Sweden gets a grip the better!

[BrabusMog]

Stevanos said:

BrabusMog said:

Don't you have them begging outside your local ICA/Coop etc?

I'm sorry, but you're sensationalising what is a trivial issue. Just walk around them. It's not a big deal.

Yes I do and they just sit there, I think you are missing my point.

The ones in GBG station have started getting more aggressive in their tactics in just the last 8 weeks, I don't know why but if they did what they are doing in the UK I could see people throwing punches at them!

The sooner Sweden gets a grip the better!

wow. based on your experience of Göteborg station? wow.

[Stevanos]

BrabusMog said:

wow. based on your experience of Göteborg station? wow.

As I said earlier, it seems to be getting much more in your face and this has been noticeable since the summer and I was pondering on whether the Roma beggars are worried about the Middle Eastern crowd turning up in droves and that they might be seen as competition. As noted earlier also, the police presence is higher now so there must be some trouble happening more often now.

Sooner ticket barriers are installed the better!

[BrabusMog]

Stevanos said:

As I said earlier, it seems to be getting much more in your face and this has been noticeable since the summer and I was pondering on whether the Roma beggars are worried about the Middle Eastern crowd turning up in droves and that they might be seen as competition. As noted earlier also, the police presence is higher now so there must be some trouble happening more often now.

Sooner ticket barriers are installed the better!

The problem is, with the design of the station, how will they do it? There are far too many ways to stroll onto that platform. They'd be better expending their efforts on checking who is arriving on the trains from Denmark.

[Stevanos]

BrabusMog said:

The problem is, with the design of the station, how will they do it? There are far too many ways to stroll onto that platform. They'd be better expending their efforts on checking who is arriving on the trains from Denmark.

I think it just needs a wall building at each end and some electronic turnstiles like in Victoria.

Agree about the train from Denmark, I caught the train up a month ago and it was pretty busy with migrants on it.

[LastLight]

Unless the gangs are recent imports, it looks like the Swedes have other problems on their hands: http://www.thelocal.se/20150601/gothenburg-struggl...

Meanwhile, more about the free falling Swedish school system: http://www.thelocal.se/20150504/oecd-report-as-swe...

[Mr GrimNasty]

Knife/sword attack on a school. No news on ethnicity/motive yet.

http://www.thelocal.se/20151022/masked-man-enters-...

[BrabusMog]

Mr GrimNasty said:

Knife/sword attack on a school. No news on ethnicity/motive yet.

http://www.thelocal.se/20151022/masked-man-enters-...

It's about 15/20 minutes drive from me, it's probably the roughest part of Trollhättan.