- published: 21 Oct 2015
- views: 90863
Sweden (i/ˈswiːdən/ SWEE-dən; Swedish: Sverige [ˈsværjɛ] ( listen)), officially the Kingdom of Sweden (Swedish: Konungariket Sverige (help·info)), is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland, and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Øresund.
At 450,295 square kilometres (173,860 sq mi), Sweden is the third largest country in the European Union by area, with a total population of about 9.4 million. Sweden has a low population density of 21 inhabitants per square kilometre (54 /sq mi) with the population mostly concentrated to the southern half of the country. About 85% of the population live in urban areas. Sweden's capital city is Stockholm, which is also the largest city.
Sweden emerged as an independent and unified country during the Middle Ages. In the 17th century, the country expanded its territories to form the Swedish Empire. The empire grew to be one of the great powers of Europe in the 17th and early 18th century. Most of the conquered territories outside the Scandinavian Peninsula were lost during the 18th and 19th centuries. The eastern half of Sweden, present-day Finland, was lost to Russia in 1809. The last war in which Sweden was directly involved was in 1814, when Sweden by military means forced Norway into a personal union. Since then, Sweden has been at peace, practicing "non-participation in military alliances during peacetime and neutrality during wartime". However, Sweden has been a member of the European Union since 1 January 1995 and is a member of the OECD.
Stefan Basil Molyneux (born 24 September 1966) is a blogger, essayist, author, and host of the Freedomain Radio series of podcasts, living in Mississauga, Canada. He has written numerous articles and smaller essays which have been published on libertarian websites such as LewRockwell.com, antiwar.com and Strike The Root, recorded over 2000 podcasts, produced over 800 videos, and written several books which are self-published except for his first, which was published by Publish America. In 2006 Molyneux quit his previous job in the field of computer software and works full-time on Freedomain Radio, a philosophical community website which is funded through donations. He self-identifies as a full-time parent and philosopher.
Freedomain Radio is primarily an online podcast, however Molyneux also uses essays, videos, books, articles, interviews, and public speaking to deliver his content. The regular content of the show covers topics such as anarcho-capitalism, ethics, Austrian economics, atheism, religion, education, family, philosophy and politics. Each Sunday Molyneux conducts a call-in show where listeners can talk with him about either a set topic of discussion, or their own. Freedomain Radio also has an online community message board for listeners to discuss Molyneux's content as well as related topics.