Hailed by Bernie Sanders and other left-wingers as a model of progress, Sweden is collapsing—and fast. The outlook is bleak.

In a controversial and desperate move, the country has begun offering immigrants who struggle to integrate a hefty sum—$35,000—to return to their home countries. The so-called href="https://x.com/visegrad24/status/1834359165202169997"> “remigration payment” is pitched as a win-win.

Immigrants get a financial cushion to start over, and Sweden is spared the long-term strain on its welfare system.

But, I ask, is it really a win-win? After all, Swedish taxpayers are the ones footing the bill for a crisis they didn’t create. Their once peaceful nation is being violently torn apart, the consequence of reckless policies from politicians meant to serve, not betray, their own citizens.

Today, suburban neighborhoods, once the picture of tranquility, are routinely rocked by explosions. Smoke chokes the air, and the sound of sirens is constant as families huddle in fear. Gang violence has reached a level once unimaginable. Rival factions are not just fighting for territory anymore; they are going after each other's loved ones, targeting schools and homes. 

What was once confined to the streets of Stockholm has spilled over into smaller cities like Uppsala and Malmö. The violence is out of control. Shootings, bombings, stabbings, and organized crime have taken root, fueled by gangs locked in a brutal war over drug trafficking and territory. In short, Sweden looks a lot like Syria. Quite literally.

The Scandinavian nation is now grappling with an alarming surge in violent crime across the board, and one of the most disturbing trends is the spike in sexual offenses. Cases of rape, aggravated rape, attempted rape, and similar crimes have skyrocketed in recent years.

Back in 2012, the country reported roughly 6,000 incidents of sexual assault. By 2023, that number had swelled to 9,300. The exponential rise in these crimes is a brutal reminder of how far Sweden has fallen from the peaceful, idyllic image it once proudly projected. It is, in many ways, the Icarus of Europe.

What makes these numbers even more troubling is the data showing that foreign-born individuals are disproportionately implicated in these offenses. The massive influx of migrants, particularly following the 2015 refugee crisis, has not brought about the positive outcomes Sweden's leaders once promised. Instead, the country finds itself paying the price for the EU’s open-door immigration policy, which saw Sweden accept unprecedented numbers of refugees from Africa and the Middle East. This decision has become a central factor in the country's unraveling. This isn’t a matter of debate—it’s a simple fact.

Nothing captures the absurdity of Sweden’s decline more than the recent case of a Syrian refugee, a 15-year-old boy who was once held up by Swedish media as a symbol of successful integration. That hope turned to horror when he was arrested for attempted murder in a school shooting. The poster child of Sweden’s progress has become a potent symbol of its epic failure.

But it gets worse. As American readers know only too well, when it comes to unchecked immigration, it always does.

Sweden’s open-door policy for low-skilled migrants is crippling the nation on multiple fronts. A staggering survey by Statistics Sweden reveals that 780,000 people between 16 and 65 are illiterate, a number that is rapidly growing. In a country of just 10.5 million, that's a shocking figure—equivalent to 27 million illiterate people in the United States. What we’re witnessing is the death of Sweden’s intellectual and economic core. 

Sweden's crisis is no longer contained within its borders—it’s spreading like a virus to neighboring nations, infecting everything in its path. Across the Öresund strait, Copenhagen is beginning to feel the ripple effects. Danish authorities report a surge in gang-related violence over the summer, with three fatalities and at least 25 violent incidents.

Malmö police officer Glenn Sjögren paints an even grimmer picture—juvenile gang crime is on the rise, with foreign-linked gangs recruiting minors into their ranks. These gangs, driven by the ambition to expand their influence, are using Sweden as a launchpad to target Denmark.

What’s unfolding in Sweden and Denmark is merely a snapshot of a broader crisis sweeping across Europe, from my homeland of Ireland to Portugal, and beyond. As I’ve highlighted elsewhere, Germany and Austria are being raped (again, quite literally) and pillaged by foreign invaders. Europe is burning, and the flames seem destined to consume a continent once synonymous with strength and stability.