[timeeater]

It's not that there are no excess deaths in the US, the question is nevertheless if the scale is really so outrageous. And as I said, you have to look at the next year as well. It is not simply "Covid is fiction" vs "Covid will kill us all", it is the question of "how dramatic is it really". The narrative that every death in the world can be prevented is simply nonsense.

The change of policies in Sweden seems to be entirely political, not driven by the health authorities who stand by their decisions (I have a German article about it, but perhaps you can find something in English). The curve of deaths the second wave is much smaller than the first wave, nothing that really warrants such a change of course. https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/sweden/

As for excess deaths, you really have to look at it over the years, not just at single years. Comparisons with "neighboring" or "similar" countries don't automatically make sense, given that deaths are often driven by local hotspot events (like infections spreading in nursing homes).