Did you think feminism was a united matriarchal front in the West? If so, this may surprise you, and give you a few good laughs on the way. Ladies and gentlemen, this is the Swedish-American cultural divide within the feminist movement. It all starts with Swedish feminists celebrating Elin Nordegren's assault on Tiger Woods:

“Swing it again, Elin!” wrote Jan Helin, editor in chief of Aftonbladet, the country's biggest newspaper, on his personal blog. One of the paper's top reporters, Ann Söderlund, proclaimed, “Thank God for girls like Elin. Next time, I hope she uses a bigger club."

Britta Svensson, a well-known columnist at the tabloid Expressen and a former U.S.-based correspondent, commented, “Our Swedish hearts are overwhelmed with pride, because our very own Elin didn’t take any s—. Just like a tough Swedish girl shouldn't. Elin is our heroine.”

Beat your man down if he's cheating on you--good idea. Of course, feminism using its funny logic, I don't suppose it would be valid for a man to beat down his cheating wife? This is the question a nervous American feminist asks herself:

If Swedish cultural commentators want the world to know that Swedish women stand for divorcing cheaters, I think that’s fine—if a bit odd. If they want the world to know that Swedish women stand for beating the cheaters and then divorcing them, I think that’s a fucked up standard to set for an entire country of girls and boys. Plenty of Swedish girls will grow up to be cheaters, too—do we want their future spouses to grow up thinking it’s empowering to physically assault them for screwing around?

What you gotta be aware of here is that the people cheering Elin's golf swinging aren't all hardcore feminists. No, they're simply ordinary public journalists. Yes, this is the Swedish cultural climate anno 2009. And the American feminists cannot believe what they read. But if Swedish feminists make American women upset, how about when strong, independent women from America--the kind of women Swedish feminists worship, come to visit Sweden? The fun never ends. I present to you Anna Anka:

Anna Anka had an interview published on the Swedish web site newsmill.se where she expressed her wish to be considered a role model for Swedish women and that Swedish men are to equal and should not become diaper- changing house maids they should instead become more like American men, who according to Anna know how to treat a woman but cannot spend more than 20 minutes with their kid without having a panic attack.

Anna Anka’s comments have caused some upset feelings in Sweden, the country of “lagom”, just enough, and “jamstalldhet” equality between the sexes. Obviously it is not politically correct to claim that being a so called house wife can be the goal in life for a Swedish woman. To also claim that such a person would be a role model for Swedish women is of course provocative.

Are American feminists reading this? Yes, it's not a joke. Suggesting that being a housewife is a good thing creates public uproar in Sweden. Not among feminists, but among millions of ordinary Swedish women. Anna Anka became such a huge media figure because of her comments that she ended up at Swedish television during Christmas prime time for several hours. How evil can this woman be? Let's look at what upset so many people, including Swedish feminists:

Anna Anka: “I want to become a role model for Swedish women. In Sweden it is allowed to let oneself degrade, as soon as one has caught a man. I feel sorry for Swedish men. They marry beautiful women that quickly turn unattractive, dress themselves in rags and ignore their husband’s needs.”

I don't know if this is specific for Swedish women, but we all know it's true. Swedish women have been told they're candy forever and only need to look after their own needs. No wonder we cannot sustain happy marriages anymore.

Anna Anka: It was so nice to come to a country [USA]where men know how to treat a woman. Here men take care of the economy, anything else would be an insult to the woman and to the man in the relationship. Overall, American men have so much more style than Swedish men. If you go to a business lunch it never happens that the woman pays, while a Swedish man does not hesitate to insult the woman by allowing her to look for money while he himself is calculating his part of the bill. American men know how to woe a woman. They are very romantic and buy expensive gifts.

Swedish men refrain from paying for dates for two reasons. One, they aren't allowed to, because that would upset their dates, who wouldn't feel "independent" enough. Two, they're afraid their dates will just screw them over on food and drinks. I bet the cultural climate here differs a lot from conservative America.

Anna Anka: Then we have the dads. Swedish dads are pathetic, changing diapers and their equality. A real American man panics if he is alone with his kid for more than 20 minutes. American dads do not cook, they do not iron their clothes, they work and support their families.

I'm not sure American men are that impotent, but what we do know is that Swedish men do everything to try to be equal. And no, it probably doesn't turn women on anyway, so it's just a waste of time.

Anna Anka: American men however, appreciate their wives, they are very romantic. They write little notes, call and leave love messages on the phone. Swedish men never do that.

Leaving notes at phones? Swedish women would call the police. They'd probably file a lawsuit about gender discrimination as well to make some cash.

Anna Anka: and the Swedish people are upset over the fact that I am married to an older man......Remember that people that try to make you look small, are really trying to drag you down to their own level, and that people have the ability to focus on the negative. No one puts up a sign saying Watch out for the nice dog!

She's hilariously clumsy, but she's right: Why are we beating down on her for working out at the gym and trying to look attractive for her husband? Why do women dress out at clubs and parties in the first place? To attract mates. Why would that condition change just because they get in relationships? This is basic evolutionary knowledge, but Sweden missed the train.

Anna Anka: Here [in the USA sic] the mums do not nag on their daughters about education and going to college, instead they encourage them to find an athlete or a celebrity! Isn’t that wonderful?

Well, in a way it is, because right now every Swedish girl growing up is told that she needs to become a college genius. Most of them will spend their time chasing careers, but missing motherhood at the age of 40. By that time they either go to Denmark to buy sperm or cyber date any random man coming along that's up for the task.
Of course, Anka says all of this about Hollywood to piss Swedish women off; what she says is half-dumb, half-true.

Anna Anka: What I would like to say is that in the USA it is all about service. It employs a lot of people who otherwise would have lived in poverty. If the Swedish people had learnt from the USA the Swedes would have time for each other. Now they come home and are in a bad mood and need to clean the house and iron clothes. There is no quality time. Then we have a gigantic problem with the new Internet generation. It is uneducated and cheap, and their lives on blogs and twitter are pointless.

Now you understand why this woman pisses Sweden off. She pushes buttons. No one wants to be told that their life is shit. But if our government-managed jobs really suck, we really don't have that much money after taxes, we really feel our family life is a drag, and if our children are already lost in cyber space and lagging behind in school--why do we try to shoot the messenger?

All of you reading are now sitting on one final question: How could Sweden get this bad? Novaseeker over at the Spearhead answers that question brilliantly:

What “works” in Sweden (even assuming it does so there … chat with some Swedish men about that … I know I have and what I have been told is not very complementary) would not in a million years work in the large, ethnically and culturally diverse Anglosphere countries. But the left, being filled with dreamy idealists, can’t see that reality beyond the end of their own upwardly-turned noses.

Like liberal democracy, socialism and Apple computers, Scandinavian feminism "works." But it won't last. We, aware citizens, are part of a once great civilization. It's sinking. We have to make sure we do not go down with it. Joyfully we anticipate the decline, because we are the few who will rise above.

HT: The Spearhead