nonetheless, that is 'welfare capitalism', not 'socialism'
Just like GWB, John Howard & co are aggressive right-wingers, but not 'fascists' or 'Nazis'. People who use these words as abuse are weak and somehow unable to fight aggressive monetarism with cogent and clear argument. So they are wrong: John Howard may wish to crush the union movement, but that still doesn't make him a 'fascist' - even though that aim is central to fascism. Similarly, these European countries may have some features in common with 'socialism', but they are not socialist.
This point isn't really about some of the issues you generally raise of freedom, the individual & society - these are still good and valid debates. However: Sweden, Germany etc. are clearly welfare capitalist countries, not socialist.