Tuesday, September 19, 2006
Aftermath - or rather afterpoetry
Two images, two kinds of metaphors reoccurred over and over the last two days, after the election. Just as most polls indicated, the center-right alliance won the day. And it sparked of some reactions, of course. Here I will not discuss the stock market or international media coverage. Not even the actual political outcome, even. Now, it is personal remarks, by friends, bloggers and newspaper columnists alike that have caught my interest. A non-Social Democratic government somehow seems surreal to Swedes... as a flower-sprinkled life-style magazine ad or an eerie, disturbing, substance-fueled nightmare. Depending on preference.
Let's start with the rosy red, or rather baby blue, phrasings of the winners' side:
"Like a fresh breath of air" or "The air feels a little easier to breathe..."
There you have it. The crisp Nordic autumn air outside the window. Maybe with a scent of freshly ground coffee beans for the obligatory latte. Election time as rentrée, where finally your choice of clothes contains the colour of the season... New IKEA catalogue, new government.
The other side (and this have to be a composite of many short mutterings, and, in fact, instant messaging status bars):
"Hung over. Pissed of. Damn."
OK, so: To wake up in the morning with a haunting feeling - No, it was not a dream... it's real... amid the empty pizza boxes... treachery... defeat... ruin and decay. And maybe a bad cold on top of everything to make things worse. And soon enough it'll be winter.
It seems, whether it is a win or a loss... the experience is personal. And expressed in familiar terms. I don't want to trivialize the contents of Swedish politics. It just occurred to me that this observations maybe say something to the outside spectator. Let's leave it at this for now.
Let's start with the rosy red, or rather baby blue, phrasings of the winners' side:
"Like a fresh breath of air" or "The air feels a little easier to breathe..."
There you have it. The crisp Nordic autumn air outside the window. Maybe with a scent of freshly ground coffee beans for the obligatory latte. Election time as rentrée, where finally your choice of clothes contains the colour of the season... New IKEA catalogue, new government.
The other side (and this have to be a composite of many short mutterings, and, in fact, instant messaging status bars):
"Hung over. Pissed of. Damn."
OK, so: To wake up in the morning with a haunting feeling - No, it was not a dream... it's real... amid the empty pizza boxes... treachery... defeat... ruin and decay. And maybe a bad cold on top of everything to make things worse. And soon enough it'll be winter.
It seems, whether it is a win or a loss... the experience is personal. And expressed in familiar terms. I don't want to trivialize the contents of Swedish politics. It just occurred to me that this observations maybe say something to the outside spectator. Let's leave it at this for now.
# posted by Gabriel : Tuesday, September 19, 2006
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