"The central zone" - examples of political influence, agenda and lobby in Sweden
In 2002, sociologist and free-market conservative opinion-maker Hans Zetterberg made a presentation in Stockholm at the free-market leaning Market Economy Club (Marknadsekonomiska klubben) called “The central zone sets the tone” (Den centrala zonen sätter tonen). Zetterberg was one of the most contemporary influential right-wing political theorists in Sweden and became known as “the father of (moderate) liberal-conservatism” ideology in the Moderate (Conservative) Party.
With references to sociologist Edward Shils, Zetterberg argued that “the central zone” is vital and critical for successful political development and governance. The meaning of the central zone is about institutions and networks where “the political agenda” is created. I
USA and Europe as examples
In his description of the central zone of Sweden, Zetterberg used words such as power, wealth, knowledge, culture, and spirituality. According to Zetterberg, the central zone was not about “the central part” of a country and not about geography in general. He referred to the USA as an example where commerce and financial trade is taking place in New York and Chicago while main politics are done in Washington.
According to Zetterberg, Sweden’s biggest part of the central zone is based in Stockholm and the zone was not about “Greater Stockholm (region) voters” but about elites, institutions, and networks. Thereby, Zetterberg pointed out that the central zone was not about “ordinary citizens” but about elite individuals. Concerning Shils argument that “the central zone sets the tone”, Zetterberg wrote that:
“Not a single lead columnist, political party secretary, PR agent or intellectual writer can change the situation.”
As historical examples of the central zones, Zetterberg referred to the reformation process and struggle between protestant churches and the Catholic Church in Europe during the 16th and 17th centuries. He concluded that one of the main results of this development was cuius regio, eius religio - meaning that the sovereign, as a state, decides which religion will be practiced by a population within society. In the case of Sweden, Zetterberg wrote that there was no majority position among the subjects/peasant population to stop practicing Catholicism and embrace Lutheran Protestantism but it happened anyway.
Social-Democratic Party and its influence
When it comes to Sweden during the 1990s and early 2000s, Zetterberg referred to the educational/school value-system that he described as “covert word for the central zone’s values”. Even today, many right-wing Swedes would claim and say that the educational system and universities are “left-wing”. Another example of the central zone’s values, according to Zetterberg, was the market economic expansion, commercial advertising, private mass media and popular culture - also referring to Sweden’s abolishment of TV and radio monopoly during the early 1990s.
Zetterberg also made the same conclusions as many other right-wing opinion makers, both liberal and conservative ones, made as during the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s and what many are still doing today - the Social Democratic party is setting the tone in the central zone as via different networks, institutions and organizations in fields of welfare, labour movement, higher education, culture, NGOs. Zetterberg used words such as bishops, universities, Supreme Court, writers, artists, theater directors, and mass media editorial boards to describe members of what he saw as the social-democratic central zone:
“The long-term control by Social Democrats of the central zone has also resulted in all parties in Sweden being social-democratic”.
Democracy vs central zone?
Another main point of Zetterberg’s reasoning why that the central zone is so strong that “it could change the strongest ideology of our time” - democracy.
One reason for this conclusion was that, according to Zetterberg, democracy has a history of being a protest movement against the dominance of the central zone, thereby against certain dominating elites and institutions. Zetterberg also argued that there was a difference between popular understandings of democracy, as electoral majority rule, and definitions in political science:
“The political scientists’ first reformulation into a more central zone-adapted version of the idea of democracy as an executor of the will of the people sounds like this: Society is changing and modernizing. Then, new classes, needs and interest groups arise. The politically active within these groups develop political demands. They unite in parties. The democratically elected politicians realize these activists’ ideas through new arrangements, grants or favors in legislation.”
Zetterberg also referred to the liberal economist and philosopher Joseph Schumpeter, famous for “creative destruction” formulation, that:
“Democracy is a competition between elites and the electorate acts as the jury in this struggle. It is the ideas of the elites, meaning the ideas of the central zone, that become the main content of politics, not the jury. This notion of democracy fitted well into our political rhetoric in the middle decades of the 20th century. Democracy was redefined as a method of mediating or choosing between different elites in the central zone.”
One of Zetterberg’s main points was that the central zone’s development always influenced how democracy is defined, perceived and conducted before, during and after electoral periods.
Liberal-conservative opinion-making and the battle of ideas
In his article, Zetterberg also wrote about Sture Eskilsson, who was one of the main right-wing and pro-capitalism intellectuals in the time when Sweden was dominated by social-democratic governance, popularly known as “DDR (East Germany) Sweden” in right-wing networks. According to Zetterberg and many others in Sweden would agree on this, Eskilsson, who created the famous think-tank Timbro, realized the importance of “the central zone values” and promoted a long-term value-driven opinion-making debate agenda and lobby. Regarding Eskilsson, Zetterberg wrote that:
“To win the battle of ideas in Sweden, the opposition to social democracy must not only win the headquarters of companies, banks and commerce, but also win the rest of the central zone, i.e. the large public offices, the royal academies and preferably some central trade union organizations. One by one, they should be converted to the ideas and values of the new freedom.”
Regarding his own movement and ideological networking, Zetterberg was very critical of several right-wing individuals and their behaviors in making decisions to abandon ideological struggle and opinion-making. For example, he wrote how several of earlier activists and personalities were not holding opinion-making congresses nor conducting awareness campaigns about “the blessings of the market economy”.
Furthermore, when it comes to the central zone, Zetterberg wrote that:
“The theory of the central zone should, in the era of increased media globalization, be expanded with a ring that points to the impact throughout the world of values that dominate in great powers, nowadays the United States in solitary majesty.”
Formation of the liberal-conservative alliance
One thing that Zetterberg promoted, and which later became a political success, was an alliance between the Conservative (Moderate) Party and other right-wing parties. However, he was also critical about using the term “borgerlig” meaning bourgeois, non-socialist, right-wing and more of a class identification for liberals and conservatives.
Winning the central zone was also about “Marxist language” - conquering the central zone and carrying out a march through the institutions. Zetterberg argued that being non-socialist and right-wing was not the best way to fight for the central zone and also wrote that “a new umbrella is needed”:
“And under the umbrella a certain ideological purification and a reorganization so that networks become supportive, not just party hierarchies. The personal voting choice needs to be given a more prominent place so that we can vote for the networks of candidates that are closest to us.”
Zetterberg concluded that fighting for control of the central zone is the surest path to the victory of ideas but not by holding to the purity of ideas since coalitions and compromises are vital for success. For him, pragmatism was more important than dogmatism and he referred to Die Grünen (Greens) in Germany “as a contemporary example.”
Is the central zone still the case in Sweden?
In his article “The central zone does not set the tone” (Den centrala zonen sätter inte tonen) my intellectual friend and opinion-maker Waldemar Ingdahl wrote that Zetterberg was wrong in some points regarding his reasoning about the central zone.
For a start, Ingdahl takes the example of former Swedish prime-minister Fredrik Reinfeldt (Moderate/Conservative Party) who changed the Moderates' profile by creating “the New Moderates,” resulting in the party adopting more or less the social democrats' view of the welfare state. This development confirmed Zetterberg’s demands for adoption and compromises, promoting “pragmatism” and reducing the role of ideology, concerning the perceived central zone.
In practice, the New Moderates would promote more privatization, liberalization and market development, also with arguments that such a process would lead to more resources and revenues created for public welfare. The process was also done without earlier demands for “abolishment” and “radical changes” of the welfare state (one has to keep in mind that in young age Reinfeldt was more of a right-wing libertarian and inspired by the famous British conservative politician Margareth Thatcher). Ingdahl writes that:
“The central zone would not have to fear awkward changes and by delivering the same range, with a little more freedom but mainly more efficiency, voters would make the Moderates into the state-bearing party.”
At the same time, one of Ingdahl’s main points is that adaptation and pragmatism is not enough because ideas, visions and arguments are very important and critical for many reasons:
“Without an intellectual base of either followers or thinkers, politics becomes a mass of policies for the moment that no one is really willing to stand up for. Since no one has thought them through or tested them in public, they have much less impact and less popularity when they are brought forward.”
Furthermore, Ingdahl argues that globalization, automation and cultural transformations had an impact on the different elites in Sweden and that their power has changed since those in power today are more limited in what they can do while the risk of losing political power is greater as when it comes to globalized economic development.
Such impacting and transformational processes were among the reasons why contemporary governments as in Europe have become technocratic by necessity, partly since most citizens do not understand how extensively the state is regulated. Still, even if knowledge increased, it is not certain that it would mobilize large coalitions of voters.
According to Ingdahl, parties can be perceived as "owning" a political issue. Still, the case is often that “issues own parties” or that a party owns an issue through the connections with the stakeholders within the social sphere. Ingdahl made a similar argument as for example political scientist Peter Mair by stating that the political parties in Sweden have gone from being “society’s voices in the state” to increasingly becoming the state's extension into society:
“Tax policy, welfare policy, environmental policy, energy policy, school policy, business policy, etc. govern the voter's daily life, but there are no stated opinions about what would constitute a coherent agenda in these areas. Without that, politics becomes system preservation.”
Ingdahl also focused on arguing that the national political power is in decline, as is Zetterberg's view of a nationally marked central zone, and that is one of the reasons for the apocalyptic nationalism that is in vogue in Sweden marked by the rise of Sweden Democrats. According to Ingdahl, what previously constituted the central zone does not have the same strength and many fall outside:
“In matters of culture, identity and ethnicities, debaters do not need the expert knowledge that comes from long immersion in other political areas. Careers can still be built there. In an unclear social debate, offended quarrels also give energy and meaning to one's own shaky worldview. The cult of the strong leader who solves complicated problems with simple solutions is a symptom of a frustrating problem from which the nation-state cannot extricate itself.”
Ingdahl also referred to the post-modern philosopher and historian of ideas Michel Foucault, famous for the term “gouvernmentalité” and who presented a view of power in which it does not need a center of power. Ingdahl’s argument is that traditions, practices, skills, beliefs or principles can be obeyed without being shaped by a central zone. Furthermore, if the state, society, nation, culture, market or civil society are not assumed to exist as large orders or spheres, one must examine what actually happens in concrete situations.
According to Ingdahl, continuing to think that the administrative system that was inherited does not allow for innovation, we are condemning ourselves to a long period of missed opportunities and lost hope - since the future is about building your own ideas, your own institutions and your own networks for political ideas leading to new emerging processes and complexity.
In my view, the future is about people creating their own “central zones”, locally as well as globally, especially concerning decentralized technology such as blockchain, self-sovereign identity and cryptocurrencies.
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