Högertrafikomläggningen

Global standardization wish-list (driving, time, units)

• Some propose a global standard set: right-hand driving, English, metric units, ISO-like YYYY‑MM‑DD dates, Celsius, 24‑hour clock, no daylight savings.
• Others add: a single global timezone (e.g., UTC), Euros, universal healthcare, 230V 50Hz, Newspeak-style simplified English, French decimal time, specific map projections, pallet/container alignment.
• Pushback:
  • One-time changes like dropping DST or timezones are seen as low priority vs larger global problems.
  • A single global timezone is criticized as confusing for daily life; proposals to abolish timezones are called “silly” or unpersuasive.
  • Even small format changes (date, pallets vs containers) face entrenched habits and infrastructure.

Language as a global standard

• Many reject “everyone speaks English” as a primary language; they favor English as a second/operational language instead.
• Arguments against a single native language:
  • Language is tightly linked to culture, history, and intergenerational continuity.
  • Loss of language can cut people off from literature, law, and family communication.
  • Linguistic diversity is seen as fostering diverse thinking and acting as a partial “firewall” against mass propaganda or “mind-viruses.”
• Counterpoints:
  • Large shared languages historically correlate with major societal achievements.
  • Strong versions of linguistic determinism (Sapir–Whorf) are called “nonsense,” though weaker forms (language influencing thought) are defended.
  • English is already the de facto global lingua franca, including in China-facing sectors; Mandarin is seen as unlikely to overtake it soon.
• Practical workplace issues:
  • Multilingual teams using many side-languages can exclude colleagues and hurt efficiency.
  • Some advocate enforcing one common language (often English) in mixed work contexts.
  • Returning to a native-language workplace is described as a big gain in clarity and nuance.

Driving rules, parking, and Sweden’s switch

• Many countries ban parking against the direction of traffic; commenters note this is safer for drivers and cyclists and aligns with reflector placement.
• Practices differ: some Nordic and European countries allow bidirectional parking under conditions; in others it is technically illegal but weakly enforced.
• Sweden’s 1967 switch to right-hand driving (“Dagen H”):
  • Politicians went against a strong “no” referendum, which some praise as necessary long-term thinking.
  • Most cars were already left-hand drive; switching sides improved overtaking safety.
  • Short-term accidents dropped due to heightened driver attention, then reverted to trend.
  • Retrofitting or removing trams was a hidden cost, especially where vehicles had doors only on one side.
  • Commenters note that doing such a change today, with far more complex road systems, would be vastly harder.

Cultural humor and regional rivalry

• Scandinavian “dumb neighbor” jokes (Swede vs Norwegian) are discussed as historically common and often recycled from other cultures’ joke patterns.
• Some see these as lighthearted mutual ribbing; others note real derogatory effects and changing dynamics as national fortunes shift.

Traffic design odds and ends

• Some Swedish intersections and certain Thai urban connectors still use opposite-side flows locally for geometric reasons, akin to “diverging diamond” designs.
• Chaotic-looking traffic (e.g., in parts of Southeast Asia) is observed to function with few visible accidents, leading to speculation that low speed and heightened attention compensate.