Newtown Quakers to Zoom, “The Nordic Secret vs. Covid-19: Trust"

Newtown Quakers to Hear via Zoom, “The Nordic Secret to Battling Coronavirus: Trust”

George Lakey, sociologist, Quaker, and former Swarthmore professor, will speak via Zoom on “The Nordic Secret to Battling Coronavirus: Trust,” Sunday, March 29, at 9:45 a.m. to the Newtown Quaker Meeting adult class (http://www.newtownfriendsmeeting.org). Worship based on expectant silence will follow via Zoom at 11:00 a.m. The Meetinghouse is remaining closed due to coronavirus.

Lakey says. “The Norwegian health care system, with the single payer (the government) using taxes to administer the program, is more efficient and less expensive than the U.S. model, with its emphasis on private health insurance companies. This means coronavirus tests and treatment are free in Norway. Everyone’s on the same side: that of the patients’ well-being, and that translates into a level of trust in the government that is not shared in the U.S.”

George Lakey is a retired professor at Swarthmore College, a longtime activist, sociologist, writer, and a member of Central Philadelphia Monthly Meeting (Quakers). His books include How We Win: A Guide for Nonviolent Direct Action Campaigning and Viking Economics: How the Scandinavians Got It Right and How We Can, Too.

Newtown Friends Meeting was co-founded by "Peaceable Kingdom" painter and Quaker minister, Edward Hicks, in 1815.