The Old Country Newsletter – Shipwreck, the Oscars & Tax Cuts

My personal favorite book series of all time is The Emigrants, by the Swedish author Vilhelm Moberg. Through the four books in the series, we get to follow the triumphs and tribulations of early Swedish immigrants in America. In the first book, "The Emigrants," we meet Karl Oskar, Kristina Nilsson, their three children, and eleven others who set out from Småland in 1850, seeking a better life away from poverty, religious persecution, and social injustice.

By clicking here, you can learn more about the books and order a copy for yourself. Beyond getting your hands on an incredible book, it is also a great way to show support for this newsletter, as a few cents of each sale will help support our work.

New Discovery in Estonia Wreck Investigation: Part of Bow Ramp Found

Estonian authorities have made a significant new discovery in their ongoing investigation into the wreck of the Estonia.

During recent dives in July, investigators uncovered part of the ship’s bow ramp, a piece central to the long-standing inquiry into its tragic sinking.

The Estonia, a passenger ferry, sank in the Baltic Sea in 1994, claiming the lives of 852 people and becoming one of the deadliest maritime disasters in European history. The bow visor, which detached during a storm, allowed water to flood the ship's car deck, leading to the rapid sinking.

The newly found bow ramp, according to investigator Tauri Roosipuu, is another key element in piecing together the sequence of events that led to the disaster.

While conspiracy theories have swirled for years regarding potential sabotage of the bow ramp, no evidence has supported such claims. A formal report from earlier this year confirmed that the failure of the visor, not sabotage, was responsible for the ship’s fate. Despite being invited, Swedish officials declined participation in the recent dives.

Would you like to feel closer to Sweden? A perfect way to do that would be to have a look at Swedish broadcasts, either current or past. SVT Play is an online streaming service provided by Sveriges Television (SVT), the Swedish national public television broadcaster.

To watch it, one has to be in Sweden – or have access to a VPN provider that can connect to a remote server located in Sweden. Like NordVPN, which sponsors this segment of the newsletter.

By using NordVPN, you can access what SVT Play has to offer – including current news, documentaries about emigrants, live broadcasts from nature events, and much more – by simply connecting to a server in Sweden. Follow the link here to get 74 % off for your first two years and three months (!) of usage. By doing so, you also help support the distribution of this newsletter.

The Swedish government dropped a budget bombshell yesterday, when they unveiled a new proposal packed with 60 billion kronor in spending, with nearly half—27 billion kronor—going toward tax cuts for households.

In a sharp pivot from last year’s more conservative budget, this one’s all about economic stimulation. The big-ticket item? A series of tax reductions, including cuts to income and pension taxes, savings, and even fuel starting in 2025. While 2024 saw some tax relief, high-income earners missed out on a chunk of savings due to a paused adjustment on the income tax threshold, which cost them 13 billion kronor. This time around, the government's hoping to change that.

The aim behind these cuts is twofold: soften the blow for households hit hard by rising prices and interest rates, and pump some much-needed adrenaline into an economy currently stuck in a slump. However, the 2025 budget offers much slimmer pickings for the welfare sector, with only 7.5 billion kronor earmarked for healthcare, education, and social services—down from 16 billion last year.

The opposition's rebuttal was full of fireworks, as they demanded more funds for welfare and criticized the distribution of tax cuts, particularly the fact that high earners stand to benefit the most. Add to that a 1.3 billion kronor climate package that’s bound to get roasted for being too light, and you’ve got the recipe for a fiery budget debate.