Sick benefits

A Swedish heavy metal fan has gotten his music interest officially classified as a disability. The result from a psychological evaluation has enabled him to supplement his income with state benefits.

Because heavy metal dominates so many aspects of his life, the Employment Service has agreed to pay part of Tullgren's salary. His new boss meanwhile has given him a special dispensation to play loud music at work.

What is wrong with people? If I got to decide food, wine, books and travelling would dominate my life, but somehow I know I have to have a job and earn money. Money which I can use learning about food, wine, read books and travel.

But his sessions with the occupational psychologists led to a solution of sorts: Tullgren signed a piece of paper on which his heavy metal lifestyle was classified as a disability, an assessment that entitles him to a wage supplement from the job centre."

I signed a form saying: 'Roger feels compelled to show his heavy metal style. This puts him in a difficult situation on the labour market. Therefore he needs extra financial help'. So now I can turn up at a job interview dressed in my normal clothes and just hand the interviewers this piece of paper," he said.

What kind of psychologist would encourage an addiction instead of trying to cure it? Will the next thing be giving out money to a gambler and send him the racetrack? For me this is undermining the system. A system that is quite bad to start with, but still does help people. So having a heavy metal addiction classified as a disability is just someone ridiculing and using the system. In short, either this person is very smart or very ill. Personally I would go with the first choice.