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Sweden's neighbours share similar demographics, climate, legislation, administration, health care system and to a large extent also cultural traits.

Swedes do a bit more of greeting people by hugging and even cheek-kissing than Finns or Norwegians do, but they all are a far cry from Italy, France or Belgium in that respect.

Thus, with so much similarity in background variables, the policy differences towards the epidemic are highlighted.

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Only with a not-yet in effect law, which has been months in the making, will measures even approaching a full lockdown be legal in Sweden. An actual full lockdown would require constitutional level changes which has to go through multiple administrations before coming into effect.

There literally hasn't been many possible measures to take beyond those taken.

The country is also more devolved into regional administration than the neighbors. So yes, there are major differences in legislation.

This is weirdly missing from the rah-rah coming from both sides - it's not even really a tactic, but the outcome of our laws.

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