On Dec 5, 9:40*pm, The Natural Philosopher wrote:
The Medway Handyman wrote:

I think Finland is a bit better, except its illegal to smile. Its
allowed in Sweden

Yes, there are two permitted facial expressions in Sweden:

1) smiling
2) completely blank and zombie-like

No. 2) is preferred on the roads. If you let someone go before you
when driving, giving a friendly hand gesture to mean "OK, mate, after
you" - the sort of thing most drivers do every day in the UK - the
Swede will look at you as though you are a space alien.

Swedish pedestrians also wait at the roadside until the lights tell
them to cross the road, even if there is absolutely no traffic.

They always go to their allotted seats in cinemas even when the
cinemas are practically empty and they're stuck half behind a pillar.

They leave their lights and heating on full all night because they
think it's cheaper. Nice little earner for the electricity companies.

If they catch you in Sweden with a facial expression other than
"smiling" and "blank", you're left alone, though, if you're a
foreigner. They just assume your facial expression is permitted in the
country that you come from.

If they thought someone was making a facial expression on the basis of
HOW THEY WERE FEELING, rather than what was OFFICIALLY APPROPRIATE in
the given circumstances, they'd probably try to burn them at the
stake.

Sweden is quite amazing - kind of covered by 10 metres of the social
equivalent of mogadon.

And yes I have lived there.
For periods adding up to several years.

Isolated cottages in beautiful countryside are very cheap though. And
Britain, as has been pointed out, is a fscking rat-infested hell-hole.

M