https://swprs.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/sweden-monthly-...
This is just the first one that has hit at a time when it was politically and technically possible to shut down whole societies in fear of them.
Edit: Also, looking at overall deaths per million is not anything like comparing actual mortality rates of those infected. The baseline mortality in 1918 was already way higher and the pandemic amplified that, despite actually being less deadly than COVID-19 at an individual level. So I'd argue that the response to this pandemic was more than merited and was appropriate to the nature of the virus itself. It was not just another "asian flu."
https://www.statista.com/statistics/525353/sweden-number-of-...
It would seem unlikely that the population would notice a 6% increase against the base annual death rate. We previously tolerated hospital overcrowding and death spikes from influenza waves.
Most other countries around the world are showing a 4-6% increase. There seems to be a correlation to severity of lockdown and increased number of deaths, presumably due to factors like interruptions to regular medical treatments, and individual health deteriorating during lockdown.
Aka everybody gets it very fast and in a short time period, hospitals are easily overwhelmed and lead to even more deaths.
More interestingly, there was a dip in 2019, so 2020 was expected to be a bit high even before the pandemic.