Burned Bridges and a Husband Who’s Always Right

My husband is one of those rare people who always knows exactly what to say at exactly the right time.

I, on the other hand, am apparently a walking disaster who lights bridges on fire and then uses the flames as a flashlight to find my way forward.

It’s a classic catch-22:

I’m incredibly grateful to have him, because he has on several occasions come running with a fire extinguisher to save the bridges I’ve enthusiastically torched.

At the same time… it annoys me to no end that I always lose this particular competition. No matter how hard I try, he’s just better at being a decent human being. Some people get a trophy wife. I got a husband who puts out my emotional arson.

And the worst part? He’s so damn good at it.

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We Missed One Pension Plan – Apparently We’re Getting Old

There are nine years left until my remaining four private pension plans are paid out.

During the recent downturn in US technology stocks, I decided to sell off most of the funds in my two largest pension plans (which together represent almost 80% of the total value) and reinvest the money in funds with greater exposure to these stocks. With such a long time horizon, it felt like the right move.

My husband and I take great pride in having full control over our investments and pension plans. So you can imagine our surprise when he recently received a letter from Skandia informing him about a fifth pension plan that he had completely forgotten about.

Admittedly, it is his smallest one in terms of value. But after the recent reinvestments and with more than six years left until payout, there is plenty of time for the capital to grow significantly.

We really need to start compiling a complete overview of all our holdings……before the senile dementia sets in properly.

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Making Welfare Benefits Taxable – A Simple Way to Reduce Fraud

Sweden has a significant problem with welfare exploitation. This concerns both ethnic Swedes and immigrants – the issue is not limited to any one group.

Fraud takes many forms: from improper claims for care allowance to the use of multiple coordination numbers. A coordination number is a temporary identification number that can be compared to a Swedish personal identity number.

One effective way to reduce this type of abuse would be to make all welfare benefits taxable. If every form of support — income support, housing allowance, sickness compensation, etc. — became taxable income, all recipients would need to be properly registered in the Swedish Tax Agency’s population and income registers. This would make it significantly harder to maintain double identities, use fake or multiple coordination numbers, or have “invisible” recipients receiving benefits.

Making benefits taxable would not eliminate all fraud, but it would be one of the most powerful single measures to increase transparency and control. Several countries, including the Netherlands and Denmark, have moved in this direction with stricter registration requirements for welfare payments.

It’s time for Sweden to take welfare integrity seriously again.

“Varje förslösad skattekrona är en stöld från det svenska folket.”

— Gustav Möller, legendarisk socialdemokratisk före detta minister för hälsa och sociala frågor i Sverige

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Does the Interest Rate Weapon Still Work?

The Swedish Riksbank is currently led by Erik Thedéen, widely regarded as an interest rate hawk. He has maintained a relatively high policy rate despite weak growth and rising unemployment.

This stands in contrast to his predecessor Stefan Ingves, who introduced negative interest rates during a long period of persistently low inflation.

A popular saying goes: “Inflation is taxation without legislation.” It is a critical view of monetary policy — the idea that inflation allows governments to reduce the real value of money without the political cost of raising ordinary taxes.

If you have 100,000 SEK in savings and inflation is 5%, that money only has the purchasing power of about 95,000 SEK after one year. You haven’t lost any kronor on paper, but you have become poorer in reality.

The winners from inflation tend to be:

• The government (especially with large debts)
• People with big loans
• Banks and financial institutions that can protect themselves

The losers are:

• Savers
• Pensioners with fixed incomes
• Employees whose wages don’t keep up with inflation

Both Ingves and Thedéen have struggled to consistently hit the 2% inflation target. One mostly undershot it, the other first overshot it before bringing it down. The fact that two governors with very different approaches both failed to hit the target strengthens my belief that the traditional interest rate tool is losing its effectiveness in today’s economy.

We may need new tools for a new economic reality.

One possible idea could be a Swedish digital krona with built-in value preservation. A portion of the money held in this digital currency could automatically be invested in a broad, low-cost index of Swedish productive assets — such as infrastructure, housing, and technology companies. This would give ordinary citizens a simple, automatic protection against inflation, while still keeping the money liquid and accessible.

Perhaps it’s time to think beyond just raising or lowering the interest rate.

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Not All Investments Are About Making Money

Some investments are about quality of life — and they often cost more than you expect.

Both the world’s most perfect husband and I have always believed in buying quality over quantity. In the long run, it’s usually the cheaper option.

Many years ago we bought a beautiful curved Howard sofa. It has served us incredibly well… until now. After years of faithful service, it has finally worn out and needs to be replaced.

I knew sofa prices had gone up. I just didn’t know they had gone that far up. A larger, good-quality sofa now costs well over $10,000.

I guess I’m officially old now. Because when I see prices like that, my first thought is still: “That can’t be right…”

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