As if there weren’t enough reasons to buy Betsson and NetEnt, here’s another compelling one. The Swedish government looks to be about the only one in the world right now that hasn’t gone completely totalitarian. There is no lockdown, the Swedish economy is still functioning, people are going out to restaurants and malls without being fined or arrested or bludgeoned with stocks (India), employees are showing up at work as usual, and nobody is freaking out.

Yes, rational precautions are being made. It’s not like authorities are completely ignoring what’s going on or trying to claim that COVID-19 is no big deal. They’re just advising people nicely and treating their population like adults. Take reasonable precautions like washing hands, wear a mask outside if you have one, work at home if possible, advising the elderly and sick to stay home for safety, and everyone chill out. It’s Sweden. It’s chilly. It comes naturally to them.

One would think that such lax standards would lead to the mass infection of the entire country by now, but no. Just 4,028 infected as of March 30 out of a population of about 10.2 million. Neighboring Norway has 4,462 so far and half the population, so more than double the infection rate, and Norway is on lockdown. Infection rates are 100x less than Italy per capita, and Italy was the first country in Europe to go on lockdown and its government is now risking losing control of the population. That’s much worse than even a 100% coronavirus infection rate.

Obviously none of this is a scientific analysis, just anecdotal evidence that forced lockdowns from the top down may not be the best solution to this problem. In locked-down countries, the weak sectors of society who may not have died from the virus could become impoverished and could even die from the loss of their livelihoods.