Government official held for drugs offences

"drugs"?

I'm with you, RoyceD. This is just poor journalism. What kind of drugs? What, specifically, was the offense? There's a big difference between selling 50g of pot and 100 kilos of cocaine.

I agree with you Crofab, but sadly, many Swedes see no difference at all, primarily due to Swedish journalism perpetuating myths about cannabis. The existence of the catch-all propaganda term 'knark' in the Swedish language only worsens the matter (because 'knark' brings up the characteristics of meth or heroine, something that is highly physically addictive and that damages the body greatly, etc. etc. So Swedish journalists can call anything 'knark' to insult it and make people think that whatever they are calling 'knark' has those same serious and horrible characteristics as meth or heroine, even if it doesn't have those characteristics, like cannabis for instance).

With the global marijuana culture and legalization movement gaining steam, though, it's becoming harder and harder for the Swedish press to lie to the Swedish public, and you see more and more comments and blog entries on articles condemning the many factual errors about cannabis that appear in the media.

What's his name?

It would be no surprise to me, if he was the one behind the awfully botched decision to allow gays to marry in Sweden. You see: I knew there was a reasonable explanation for it! Let it be a lesson to us all: stay off the drugs!

Sounds like that guy that jumped the vaccination line claiming he was a very important official responsible for billions of Kronors.

What is considered a "serious drug offense" in Sweden? The Local has to be more specific in their information once in awhile.

so what he used? because if it's weed then it means he has a tough job and needs a few happy hours.

Hej crofab

There is no real distinction between "hard and soft" drugs.

The law in Sweden does not actually draw a distinction between pot, heroine, ecstacy etc just the amount that you have.

There are no different classes of drugs in this country as the goal is a "drug free society".

Not expressing an opinion here, just facts.

big and capital F you local boy, then consider alcohol as drug too, smart ass!!!

According to other news sources, the man is suspected of drug dealing. The specific drug being opium (heroine?).

Zooeden, no need to be rude, Thelocalboy was just stating how things tend to be viewed by the mainstream in Sweden. I agree that it is ridiculous that alcohol, tobacco, snus and coffee tend not to be considered drugs at all by your average 'svensson', mainly because the government and media do not call them 'knark'. Correspondingly, people also tend to think that if something is banned it is automatically and inherently more physically addictive and damaging to your health than anything that is legal.

(An interesting thing, though, is to look at the Swedish wikipedia page for 'drog' and you'll immediately see large pictures of the world's four most common drugs: coffee, cigarettes, alcohol and cannabis).

http://sv.wikipedia.org/wiki/Droger. It's too bad the Swedish media perpetuates lies and not facts when it comes to the drug issue.

What truly horrifies me is that if parents who grow a marijuana plant get caught in Sweden they risk having their children taken away from them, but if a children has alcoholic parents that is not automatic grounds to take the children away, despite the fact that it is far more dangerous to live with alcoholics than potheads. Misinformation on drugs is rampant due to the goal of a drug-free society 'justifying the means', i.e. ANY nuanced look at drugs is seen as compromising Sweden's solidarity on eliminating all illegal drugs, so there is no gray area in the Swedish media, it's mostly black and white.

However, more and more Swedish people are questioning this status quo as the global cannabis culture and legalization movement is showing Swedes that they might have been taught wrong about cannabis in particular.