AMONG THE MORE stalwart American allies throughout the Cold War and the war on terror one can number Great Britain, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and . . . Sweden. Wait! Sweden? The steadfastly "non-aligned"? Home of the cradle-to-grave welfare state, of the pacifist Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI)? The country that lambasted us throughout the Vietnam War and which has regularly criticized our actions in Iraq? That Sweden?

Yes, that Sweden. For all its obvious disagreements with the United States, Sweden served as a bulwark against the USSR from 1945 until the fall of the Soviet Union. Sweden may have been officially "non-aligned," but there was never any doubt of whose side the country was on in the Cold War. Sweden maintained one of the largest military establishments not only in Europe, but in the world, and it was not aimed at Norway, or Denmark, or Germany.

Very interesting, especially about arms exports having unexpected strategic effects in geneal and in particular considering the exports of US developed AESA radars to the next version of the Gripen fighter bomber, and how the US military-industrial complex is opposing that, in spite of the fact that it hurts US interests (oooh, who is suprised?).

A few errors when comparing F-35 and Gripen (in an unfavourable way) but I guess you can file that under "American exceptionalism" and just ignore it.

Peak oil is not an energy crisis. It is a liquid fuel crisis.

the peacenik hippy bit needed a bit more context, as it just seemed that it was a casual insult thrown at anyone who disagreed.

Any idiot can face a crisis - it's day to day living that wears you out.