Warning: When I first started writing I didn't stop until I had written a short novel here. Mods, feel free to split this into a separate topic to keep things tidy.
To be honest, I don't know. It might have had something to do with the fact that we are a bit isolated here to the north. Norway, Sweden and Denmark are all very similar countries, but that's because we are basically the same people. The languages are similar enough that anyone from any of the Scandinavian countries can understand each other. We do have a bloody history if you go back 1000 years, but after the viking era it seems like we calmed down quite a lot.
We are not without our problems, but the traditional social democratic governments here seem to have managed to pull us through tough times without struggling too much. There has been some recent unrest with the immigration, although Sweden seem to have been hit the hardest. Here in Norway I don't recall any big issues except a few angry comments in online newspapers and social media. But in all honesty, I have no idea. I'm just trying to look at the larger picture here in an attempt to find anything.
I have to admit that our media is deserving of thanks, even though I personally think they have a tendency to create huge issues of small things. But at the same time, our media is very good at putting the spotlight at any misconduct or misbehaviour from politicians. Other cases that have required public attention have also been brought into public view by the media.
Keep in mind that I'm trying to find all the positive sides here, we have our fair share of negative traits too. Not too long ago, there was a group who called themselves "Soldiers of Odin" who started patrolling the streets at night in response to the increased immigration. They claimed to only want to ensure safety on the streets at night, but most members were known to be supporters of right wing extremist organizations and there were even a few neo-nazi members as well. But after a few months of media attention, it all seemed to die down. I want to point out that the majority of the population was not interested in having a group like this "protecting" people. They did thankfully not have the support of the general populace.
This country is also (in my opinion) a bit too involved in warfare in other parts of the world, but I guess that is to be expected as a NATO member.
On a personal level, I believe that we simply don't like conflict in general. Most people here are content to live their lives as they wish, and don't really mind how others choose to live (provided the same respect is shown in return). I suppose we are lucky.
As for religious matters: We have a state church in Norway and a lot of people are member of the church, but that is just tradition. Most people here are not particularly religious. I only have one personal acquaintance who attends church, at least that I know of. Religion is considered a very private thing. It's not something people talk about. In most situations it would be considered rude if you ask someone directly about their religious beliefs. That actually reminds me of a previous prime minister we had roughly a decade ago. We were at the time sending fighter jets to participate in NATO operations in Afghanistan. The prime minister at the time was from our only political party who are focused on christian values. The prime minister was having a public speak as the military planes were sent off, and he talked about god in this speak. There was a huge negative reaction from the public and the media because of that. People did not like how he was involving religion into the speak related to a war effort, and people also felt it was insulting to those in the population who didn't share the same belief. He never held a similar speak after that. I thought this was a good example of what relationship people have to religion here.
But like I said, we also have a lot of problems and even extreme tragedies. And no matter where in the world you are, you can't escape the occasional lunatic who just wants to bring the world down. It's not too many years since the tragedy with the bombs in Oslo and the following shooting at Utøya. But when it comes to people like that, I don't think there is anything that could have been done to make them reconsider such actions.
You know, now that I really think about it, it seems like it could just be that we are so small. We have tragedies, but they are rare because compared to most other countries, we have such a low population. It's easy to keep things sane on a small scale. We are currently at roughly 5,2 million inhabitants.
Whew, that's a lot of words without really saying anything, haha. Any ideas, observations, or questions are of course most welcome.
