Snopes falsely says the reason that Sweden recently banned Christmas lights on street poles is because of “safety concerns”

Snopes recently published this article, which addresses claims by other sources which say that Sweden recently banned Christmas lights on street poles in order to avoid offending Muslims. Snopes says that, yes, Sweden did indeed recently ban Christmas lights on street poles, but also says that, no, it was not to avoid offending Muslims, and that, instead, it was for “safety concerns.”

I don’t know how long Sweden has been putting Christmas lights on street poles, but I’m guessing that they’ve been doing it for many decades. So the claim that such lights have all of a sudden become a “safety concern” is something that I am very skeptical of.

If anything, the recent worldwide switch from incandescent bulbs to LEDs should make the lights less of a safety concern, because the newer lights generate less heat, weigh less, and use less electricity.

On the other hand, given the many other recent changes to its traditional way of life that Sweden has made in order to avoid offending Muslims, such as its recent adoption of segregated swimming pools, it seems quite plausible that the real reason for its recent ban on Christmas lights on street poles is indeed to avoid offending Muslims.