[500 Days] Fiilistelyä

Hello friends!

I have now a long list of posts to write, but let's begin with a "feel good"-one. 

1) Google knows how to confuse (and to entertain)

2) Oh my, Google shocked me so badly that I have nothing more to say.

Just kidding. 

But let's skip the list. 

Let's see. 

Life is quite ordinary. I am starting to think that ordinary is good. The other day I noticed that I'm quite the Conservative and Unexcited. As always it was a book that gave me insight. I think monogamy is great. And so is order and following the rules. And paying the taxes. My inner rebel has been silenced. It will probably show its face when it's time to vote. 

The great question: will I vote? This is a tough one indeed. I'll actually be in Finland before the elections, so I could vote without the hassle to go to the embassy (because let's face it, Finland is so much easier to go to than central Stockholm).. One should always vote. It's a duty, a responsibility and a right, all in one. But what if none of the candidates feels right?

Just Another Day at the Office Or the Day That Putin Made My Day

I think it was Tuesday this week , October 14 to be more precise. 

That typical day at the office will be remembered for two things. Armed robbery and bomb threat in Stockholm again. That's the third time there was a bomb threat in Stockholm since I started working there in May. Those days it's not so fun to work right in the centre of the city, because where do you think the bomb threats are?

And then there was that fabulous piece of news that Putin owns land in the Åland Islands. Firstly, there is something called Hembygdsrätt on the islands, which means that it is very difficult for non-Åland citizens (and therefore Finnish citizens) to own land on the island. Secondly, after reading these very exciting reports, it turned out that it wasn't actually Vladimir Putin who owns the land. No, it is the Russian Federation. Since 1947. In 2009 the ownership was transferred from the Russian Foreign Ministry to the President's Office. That's something entirely different.

Three things came to my mind after this fabulous story: 

1. Why, in the case of Russia, is it so easy to blur the lines (in this case between the state and a the president as a private person)? I don't think that this error would be made with any other country. Somehow it feels like Russia has become a kind of entertainment news (a bit like North Korea), people are fascinated by the speculation. 
2. The current situation between Europe and Russia concerns me.  Both Finland and Sweden seem to consider Russia to be an enemy of huge proportions. And the media is playing along. People have opinions that are rarely based on any facts at all. Instead, it seems like Russia is an easy target for fear. Now voices are being raised about a new Cold War. Really? 
3.  Point 3 is a continuation of Point 2: why now? That piece of land has belonged to Russia since 1947. There must be something behind this great revelation - and this "something" probably has something to do with point 2. 

Sources in Finnish & Swedish + a lot of funny photos of Putin. 

• DN (Dagens Nyheter): http://www.dn.se/nyheter/varlden/putin-har-sjotomt-pa-aland/
• Expressen: http://www.expressen.se/nyheter/darfor-ager-vladimir-putin-en-tomt-pa-aland/
• Hufvudstadsbladet:http://hbl.fi/nyheter/2014-10-14/668186/keskisuomalainen-putin-ager-strandtomt-pa-aland
• Ålandstidningen: http://www.alandstidningen.ax/nyheter/putin-ager-strandtomt-pa-aland
• Iltalehti: http://www.iltalehti.fi/ulkomaat/2014101418744063_ul.shtml
• Helsingin Sanomat: http://www.hs.fi/kotimaa/a1413252574970
• And the original article, Keskisuomalainen: http://www.ksml.fi/uutiset/kotimaa/maanmittauslaitoksen-entinen-paajohtaja-putin-omistaa-rantatontin-ahvenanmaalla/1913789

It's Such A Small World [Healing]

The third prompt is about a helpful post or hash tag related to the coverage of the events in Ferguson. First I thought that I would write about something entirely different, my opinion was that the events in Ferguson were so far away, that there are more important things for my own personal healing.

But wait a minute. 

We live in a world where events on the other side of the planet have an impact on our lives - whether we want to or not. And maybe, just maybe, it's something positive. We learn. We keep ourselves informed. 

Swedish media covered the events in Ferguson quite extensively. In many cases, media directly discussed on the situation in the US, but also the impact of social media. However, it also arose thoughts about the current situation in Sweden and Europe. How are we dealing with issues related to race? What does racism look in our current society? The debate on inclusion and exclusion is of tremendous importance and it is a debate that we need to have.  I believe that the view on people - and their rights - is ultimately the core of the matter, it is the indicator of where society is heading and where it should head. 

And then we have the role of social media - in many ways a wonderful invention (although, I must admit, I do think it's a double-edged sword), a place where people from different backgrounds and with different experiences have the possibility to come together and make their voices heard. It is the beauty of social media, it shrinks the world.

As for healing - this feeling of togetherness is a vital factor. Together we stand. While all the participants add to the information, the knowledge, the experience, the burden becomes easier to bear. And. We learn from each other. While the events in Ferguson did not have a direct consequence on my life or the lives of my friends and family, I do hope that they have stirred something within us, increased our awareness and made us seek improvement.

It truly is a small world.

Election Time!

It is again time for elections in Sweden. Sweden will be electing a new Parliament on September 14th and I am having a lot of fun observing it. On the same day local elections will take place. As I'm not a citizen I don't get to vote, instead I have been running around like crazy, attempting to eternalise the posters.

Here's a small selection of what I've gathered this far.

The Social Democrats focus on education, jobs and safer welfare. The candidate representing the Christian Democrats speaks of tax deductions

I have noticed that the vast majority of women representing the Moderate Party (which is also the major component of the ruling government) are blondes. Not that it matters. This was speaks for a more beautiful, safer and greener Stockholm. 

Folkpartiet (the Liberal People's Party) is also sitting in the current government. However, they don't seem to have many promises for the electorate. 

And this is where all the posters go - I wonder what the Green Party has to comment on this? 

Go Vote!

Today the citizens of the European Union member states are electing their representatives to the Parliament for the next five years to come.

In previous years the participation has not been very high, with the turnout in 2009 being 43%. I personally find it quite interesting that Slovakia had the lowest turnout - a mere 19,6%.

Swedish media have given the elections much attention, and central Stockholm has been filled with political speeches and that special, jolly campaign atmosphere.

Some campaign posters in central Stockholm, May 2014

There are some hot topics that have dominated the discussion here in Sweden. Maybe a bit unexpectedly, a lot of attention has been given to pigs. Numbers show that Sweden is the EU-country that uses the least antibiotics in pig farming. The current debate revolves around banning the importation of pork from Denmark. Other issues include the rise of the extreme right in Europe and the free movement of people within the EU. The current issue with an increased number of beggars from Romania that are filling the streets of Stockholm and other Swedish cities.

I have heard people say that they will not vote because they don't believe in the European Union, because they do not want to be a part of it. Others feel that they don't have anything to say anyway, there is no way to influence EU politics. It is - excuse me for this - a lousy excuse. The moment we decide not to vote, we also lose our chance to influence who gets elected and who will make the decisions. 

Read more about....

...election statistics: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/pdf/eurobarometre/28_07/FR_EN.pdf

...pigs: http://sverigesradio.se/sida/artikel.aspx?programid=2054&artikel=5867412

...immigration and the Nordic countries: http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/05/14/uk-europe-immigration-nordics-idUKKBN0DU0EE20140514

...Sweden, Romania & the Roma Issue: http://www.thelocal.se/20140408/we-have-more-empathy-for-beggars-than-romania

International Workers' Day /Labour Day

Comment: work is a topic that I feel is important - maybe it is one of the main challenges society is facing today - that I want to write about, yet I do not know where to begin or how to formulate myself, so these thoughts will be scribbled down in some sort of order. Hopefully they will make some sense. 

Work. Work is the core of human activity, I don't think it's something we do just because of the money, but it is essential for the survival for most of us. When looking around us, there is so much work that needs to be done. A lot of the work is done well, some of it poorly. Some jobs, we ask, why do they even exist? And why do some professions (such as athletes) make so much money when their profession has no real importance for humankind? And then there are jobs that are extremely important, where people are expected to do their share, and the share of one more person, with lousy pay. 

Society looks very different than it did when Socialists and Communists fought for the improvement of the working and living conditions of the working class in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Nowadays we are faced with new challenges: jobs are transferred eastwards (it seems they always move east), globalization has multiplied the chances and ways of increasing the flows of money. While the welfare state manages to guarantee a set of rights and security for all people within its borders (who are there legally), international and global challenges are catching up. 

Most people without a job want to work. The point is that the requirements and structures sometimes make it very difficult. It makes me so angry to hear people speaking about unemployed people as "lazy", usually they are not lazy. Of course there are free-riders - there always are - but it's so easy to cast the blame on people who are under you on the ladder. There are so many factors that affect human behaviour and their perception of things. For instance, how long will a young person who doesn't get "chosen" for any of the jobs s/he applies stay motivated? Where will s/he find the motivation? Will the motivation increase if people spit on him/her, calling him/her a free-rider?

As a tax-payer I have certain expectations on the state. The state and I (the tax-payer, existing within the larger context of community) are in a relationship that we cannot get out of (unless one of us - and that would be me - decides to move), the state has a set of expectations on me, as well. However, I sometimes ask myself if I really get what I pay for? Does reality really match my expectations? See, I am more than glad to work and pay taxes. However, some of the things that are not OK include corruption, unproportionally high salaries for people employed by the state (just because they are employed by the state), the state and regional authorities encouraging solutions that worsen the work conditions for citizens as well as the spending of money on "ridiculous" things. NB: Ridiculous is a perception. I find it ridiculous that states spend billions on weapons, someone else thinks it's ridiculous to spend money on foreign aid.  

There are forces in Sweden that would like to introduce a 6-hour working day in order to guarantee more jobs. I actually haven't read too much about the topic, so maybe I should be quiet about it. However, my instinctive reaction is no. This would mean that people in jobs with low salaries would earn even less. With the risk of generalizing, I think that those people who could actually afford working only 6 hours a day work a lot more than the normal 37,5/week anyway and that those are jobs that cannot be shared or divided. And. If everyone is trying to save money now - what's the likelihood of them paying more (which two persons instead of one would entail) in salaries?

What to do, then? Unemployment is increasing, it seems. I fear that when unemployment rises (and the welfare state fails) the risk of societal unrest increases as well. I do not understand actors, whose main motivation is to make as much money as possible. Without an understanding of economics, I get that companies should make money. Of course, I do. But why as much as possible if it worsens the situation for people? Where are they planning to sell their goods if nobody can afford buying them? At the same time, it is not only the responsibility of companies to keep employment high. But - a high employment with decent salaries - that's a good thing, isn't it?

Summary: I probably need to take a class or two in economics. 

EU Parliamentary Elections: Whom Should I Vote For?

The EU member countries will be electing their representatives to the European Parliament on 22-25 May. Whom to vote for - that's the question. In the past few days several tools have been starting to pop up, offering their help in finding a suitable candidate to vote for. I decided to try some of them out and here are my findings. 

http://www.myvote2014.eu/ (European)

15 questions concerning general EU-issues such as energy, Bulgaria & Romania, and taxes. Three different options for answering the questions as per below: green (agree), yellow (no opinion), red (disagree).


Pros

• Easy to follow with clear instructions and background information on the issues at hand
• Includes information on parties, party groups in Parliament and candidates from the entire Union

Cons

• Very simplified - no room for elaboration of opinions or ideas
• Very specific questions, so values and a wider context are not taken into account

http://www.mtv.fi/uutiset/vaalikone (Finnish)

Questions concerning Finland in the EU; Finland, Russia & EU; identity (European or Finnish); financial issues; environmental issues; the role of the EU in the world; the future of the EU. Answers can be chosen on a sliding scale between "I agree (completely)" and "I disagree (completely)".

Pros

• Many questions on an extensive range of topics
• More alternatives when answering the questions, not so black and white
• Possibility to decide on the importance of an issue, there are also several options between "I agree" and "I disagree" when replying to the questions

Cons

• No background information on the questions
• Heavy influence on the relationship between Finland and the EU
• Only Finnish candidates, no info on the wider context

http://www.vaalikone.fi/suomi (Finnish)

Questions related to: the Union, finance, laws, foreign policy and values

Pros

• Very extensive questions and a wide range of topics
• Pleasant and interactive layout
• Information about Finnish parties and candidates

Cons

• Only Finland is covered, so no European context as far as parties and candidates are concerned

Summary

These tools are an interesting and useful option if one wants to spend some time thinking on political and societal issues before casting a vote. Knowledge is important for creating an educated opinion and in my opinion it's very positive to educate oneself before an election. In general it's a good idea to have an idea about what's going on in society. This might be quite difficult in terms of the European Union because the decisions are made far away in Brussels and the quantity of rules and regulations is enormous. How is a citizen supposed to keep track of things? Furthermore, there are so many candidates out there, so these tools might actually help to find a good alternative to vote for.  

However, the results very much depend on the questions and the information provided in the surveys. I got very differing results in each tool. This should obviously not be the case if the tools aim to be as extensive as possible. My favourite was the third one because it actually included "values". Values and norms are more important than we think. They are always present in the background when decisions are made and implemented. 

aktuálne čítanie [SK: current reading]

Prague was pretty back in 2013. 

Now that I spend some of my time (not enough, it feels) reading articles for my thesis, I have come across a lot of interesting texts. There are two academics/writers that I would like to mention here.

Firstly, Jürgen Habermas. Anyone having anything to do with social sciences will have heard about this man, he's one of the most known scholars in Europe today. His theories on the public sphere, democracy and communicative action are fascinating. He also has a great deal to say about the European Union.

Habermas on post-democratic Europe ->
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2011/nov/10/jurgen-habermas-europe-post-democratic

A comment on Habermas ->  http://www.thenation.com/article/168819/good-european-juergen-habermas

The second person, whose work I have been reading with great interest, is a Czech academic (hence the lovely photo from Prague) called Jiří Přibáň. His work includes topics such as the EU, the constitutional state, rule of law and post-communist Europe. 

An interview with Jiří Přibáň on the state of Europe -> http://www.radio.cz/en/section/books/jiri-priban-europe-needs-more-conflict

Dissertation: the Topic

Natalie wanted me to write a little bit more about my dissertation, so I have decided to dedicate a few posts to it.

I will start by introducing my topic.

Law and Society in Post-Communist Central Eastern Europe: Poland, Slovakia and Russia .

As you know, I’m studying sociology of law at the University of Lund in Sweden. Sociology of law deals with the relationship between law and other institutions and actors in society. I’m personally mostly interested in the interaction between people, law and politics.

When reading an article* written by one of my professors, I stumbled upon the following paragraph;

”The transition from a communist to a capitalist oriented industrial society in Eastern Europe and in the former Soviet Republic represents the same kind of tensions between the old rules of the game and a new play with a new script. These countries might face a situation where the society, the horizontal dimension, has shifted while the legal logic in the vertical dimension has not undergone the same changes.” (p. 20).

And the little nerd in my head rejoiced. Eastern Europe – yay. Former Soviet Republic – yay. This was a way for me to combine the study of the societies I like the most with a nice mix of sociology, some law and some politics. Why keep it simple?

This is a complex topic because on the one hand I need to find out what the people think and on the one hand, I need to know what the law says. And none of these two is simple. But it is very, very fascinating.  Basically – what I want to find out is whether the law fulfills the expectations that society places upon it. The reason I picked these specific countries is that they all share a piece of common history even though they are very different.

Stay tuned for more

 

* Contributions in Sociology of Law: remarks from a Swedish Horizon. Lund Studies in Sociology of Law; 29. Lund: Sociology of Law, Lund University. 2008 – available here https://lup.lub.lu.se/search/publication/1177637

Interesting Day Ahead!

Today – on the 15th March – the first round of the presidential elections here in Slovakia will take place. I have with some interest followed the campaigns and seem to have notice that common themes are justice and strength.

The leader in the polls has been Robert Fico, the current prime minister and a member of the social democratic party. There are a few other candidates:

Though the race features 14 presidential candidates, the highest number in the country’s history, opinion polls suggest that the next president will be one of these five: Prime Minister Robert Fico supported by the ruling Smer; Andrej Kiska, a businessman and philanthropist; Milan Kňažko, an actor and leader of the Velvet Revolution; Radoslav Procházka, a former member of the Christian Democratic Movement (KDH); or Pavol Hrušovský, backed by the opposition People’s Platform.

Slovak Spectator, 12th March

The second round will be held on 29th March. Here are some of the campaign posters that I have managed to catch on camera  (reading the slogans has been so much fun).

Getting the Essentials: Myslím, že potrebujem kávu. Veľa kávy. Dobré ránko!

 

It’s always positive if one knows how to express one’s need for coffee in foreign languages.

And then to a completely different topic. I’m writing an interesting essay for my advanced sociology class. The other day I bumped into a very fascinating story about Democracy in Latvia. There is a website called Manabalss, where citizens may propose and sign proposals for legislation to the Latvian parliament. 10,000 signatures are needed before the parliament will take the issue on their agenda. How cool isn’t that?

The European Union actually has something similar in the European Citizens’ Initiative.  However, gathering 1 000 000  signatures from 7 countries might be require more effort and mobilisation. I believe that the Lativan version of this idea might be more effective.

Thanks For The Reminder.

 

Sometimes almost unnoticeable things and undistinguishable details remind us of what really matters.

First things first.

Idź własną drogą
Bo w tym cały sens istnienia
Żeby umieć żyć
Bez znieczulenia
Bez niepotrzebnych niespełnienia
Myśli złych

 

Those words are from a song. A song almost like any other. But this one is in Polish. Listening to it reminded me of how much I love Slavic languages and how much I enjoy learning them.

General confusion. New place. New job. Long days. Crazy hormones. Starting everything anew. Deadline after deadline. Crappy time management skills. The constant feeling of being an alien when the only form of communication with the locals is in a language foreign to all. That’s pretty much what my life looks like at the moment.

So that song also reminded about the things I really enjoy doing. And why I’m doing them. We can’t always avoid doing things we dislike, but it would be stupid to do more of them than necessary, right?

The conclusion? Well. It’d be about time to start learning time management, because the things I do are the things I like doing and they are the activities I need in order to be happy. And there is even more I’d like to do

One thing I really want to do is learn Slovak. There are three reasons. Yes, it’s easier to live in a country if you can communicate with people. And the second reason? Well, Slovak is a beautiful language. Difficult? Too early to tell, but it shouldn’t be difficult.* Thirdly, well. It’d be nice to be able to follow local politics etc. What way better to do it than in Slovak? We can unofficially call this “Project: Za tri mesiace budem hovoriť po slovensky.”

 

*Random side note: I find spoken Slovak easier to understand than spoken Czech, but written Czech is a lot easier than written Slovak.

Just One Quote (And I’ll Be Off To Bed–Promise)

 

As MacCormick points out, the real significance of the EU is the fact that it suggests that sovereignty is being reconstituted in a way which challenges the conventional models that underpin our understanding of the domestic legal and political order.

Kanishka Jayasuriya, p. 428

12/10/2012 ... unfortunately the sun was shining in my eyes...

The European Union is going to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize this year. This has been noticed by many a commentator - some argue it's a great, others consider it an error. In a sense this prize shows that the project of guaranteeing peace in Europe has succeeded. But the EU of today looks very different from the EEC that was created through the Treaty of Rome in 1957 - the challenges Europe is currently facing are not related to the maintenance of peace among European countries. I'd rather argue that the democratic deficit and lack of transparency are some of the key issues that must be solved if the EU is going to be successful in the future. The relation between EU institutions, national governments (the nation-state) and people is diffuse at best. As one Finnish writer noted, the European Union has achieved much, but in one essential aspect the EU has failed: to create a common voice and a shared identity. Without a shared identity there is a risk that the Union will lose whatever legitimacy it is enjoying among its citizens.

At a personal level I was once again reminded of how wonderful the Hungarian language is. One would think that in a country where almost 10% of the population consist of ethnic Hungarians, there would be a chance to learn the language.

Things We Laughed About This Week

Whenever probability theory hits you, it’s time to start thinking about things more interesting than this one:

 
It doesn’t matter how much sense it makes, or how useful it is for human survival (or whatever), it’s not FUN. Not as fun as the following remarks or events:

• The leader of the Left Alliance, Paavo Arhinmäki, publically wished to give Carl Haglund, the chairman of the Swedish People’s Party, a train ticket to Siberia. It’s not politically correct, someone might even find this statement quite disturbing. Personally, I did giggle a little bit when I read the story and the reactions it caused. If Mr. Haglund doesn’t want the ticket, I wouldn’t mind using it. No problem - дайте мне! 
• Russians trying to order vodka in Russian in the middle of the (non-Russian) forest. The poor bartender was very confused. 
• Ski-jumper Harri Olli wants Finland to join Russia because Finland is such a “s**t state”. There’s nothing wrong with Russia, so no offence – but, this is a statement that will confuse and anger, rather than .make people bounce with happiness. I wonder how all this is related to ski-jumping?

NB: the purpose of this post is not to shed negative light on Russia. Rather, yours truly finds it quite interesting how Russia is used in political discourse (and apparently also in ski-jumping circles) to make fun of opponents or for social commentary.

Abortion In Poland

Yesterday Helsingin Sanomat reported that the Polish parliament had decided to continue the process of preparing a controversial abortion law. Poland, a Catholic country, already has the strictest abortion laws in Europe. The current law states that abortion is only legal in the following cases:

1. When the woman's life or health is endangered by the continuation of pregnancy,
2. When the pregnancy is a result of a criminal act, or
3. When the fetus is seriously malformed

The new law, if and when it comes into effect, stipulates that abortion will be illegal under all circumstances.

As a woman, my first instinct was to find a man (any man would do) and hit him over the head. (very constructive, I know – but this must be a man’s idea!). In my opinion, there is nobody who has the right to tell a woman what to do with her body. I doubt that the process that eventually leads to the conclusion that abortion is the best option would be easy for anyone – it’s probably a long, complicated and ethically/morally exhausting process for any woman. Just imagine what it would feel like for a woman whose pregnancy is the result of a rape, or a woman who knows that her child can never live a good life.

There are also two strong arguments that speak against this law. Firstly, a majority of Poles support abortion. Secondly, according to some sources there are 180,000 illegal abortions carried out in Poland every year. This tells us that the ideas of some politicians do not represent reality very well.

Six-pack

Yesterday it was decided what the new Finnish government would look like. 6 political parties will form the government: the National Coalition Party, the Social Democrats (6 ministers each), the Left Alliance (two ministers), the Swedish People’s Party of Finland (two ministers), the Green Party (two ministers), the Christian Democrats (1 minister).

Basically, a big majority of the elected parties are also in government – two of the big ones, the True Finns and the Centre Party were left out.
 
The big question is whether six parties with such different ideological standpoints and backgrounds will be able to govern for the next four years without falling apart.

Hasta la victoria siempre

A couple of days ago I was asked to write about the currents events in Spain. Here’s that post, a couple of days late because that’s how long it took me to figure out how to put my thoughts on paper.

In the past week or so, there have been several demonstrations all over Spain. People, being fed up with the current situation and corrupted politicians, are demanding “real democracy”. Among other things, the demonstrators ask for a fairer electoral system, something that the two main parties seem to be opposed to. Regional elections are held on Sunday, and apparently any demonstration planned for Saturday has been banned by the state’s Central Electoral Board.

The main Spanish newspaper, El Pais, has  interesting articles on the subject, they can be found here.

This post was going to be about my impressions regarding these events, described by some as a “revolution”, so here we go:

• A friend once told me: “ it’s difficult to think that Spanish people might be going through a tough time right now. Spain is palm trees and beaches, good food and party. It’s got nothing to do with economic disasters, mass unemployment and low wages”. Spain is often viewed as some kind of huge hotel resort, but the truth is that, right now, life is very difficult for a lot of people in Spain.  
• It is impressive to see so many people gathering together for a common cause. It must be emphasized that the protestors have been acting intelligently: instead of just “fighting the system” and focusing solely on the problem, they have been able to provide plausible solutions as well.
• I have personally not noticed any political polarization among people. That is very good, because when that polarization starts taking place, society will start going downhill.
• As so often happens, there are people who have been quick to judge the protestors as anti-system communists. However, to me it seems that the ones protesting represent various ideologies (if any) and that the main point is to improve the system, not abolish it.
• Unfortunately there seems to be  a great divide between those who actively seek change and the ones who don’t even know what’s going on. Social media have proven to be a great tool for this movement, but it might benefit from other ways of reaching out to more people.

 

Tomorrow and Sunday will be interesting days in Spain, so if you’re into politics or a  fan of Spain, stay tuned!

Hans Morgenthau.

IR theory. Decision theory. Psychology. Sociology. Cognitive theories. Game theory. Rational Choice-theory. Polyheuristic theory. Realism. Neo-realism. Liberalism. Neo-liberalism. Constructivism. Marxism. And the list goes on.

National interest. Diplomacy. Hegemony. International conflict. Elections at home. Leadership style. Geopolitics. Propaganda. War. Media. Globalisation. Economics. Sanctions. Peer pressure. Human rights. Legitimacy.

And somewhere in there one has to find that one, specific decision problem.

But one thing is sure. It’s time to tiptoe down to the basement, attack all the junk and wipe all the dust off Politics Among Nations.

In the meantime:

 

Political Analysis and a huge cup of tea. Cheers!

True Finns And Fake Finns

Now that the True Finns will possibly be in government,  the great question rises: who are the “untrue” Finns?

Maybe I should be really worried now? My Swedish is better than my Finnish. My home is in the not-so-loved-island-of-Åland. EU is quite a useful invention after all, a multi-cultural society is fantastic, great – not scary.  There’s not even anything wrong with foreign aid.

Well, guess what: I’m as much a Finn as everyone else living in that country. I pay my taxes, speak both national languages, an ancestor even changed his Swedish surname to a Finnish one (and thus I ended up having a pretty cool surname, if that has any importance whatsoever).

In my country colour doesn’t matter, nor does mother tongue. Every individual has the right to choose his or her religion: and it’s nobody else’s business. Selfishness and “protecting our own” is not something positive that we should aim for at all costs – we do have a responsibility to those who are less fortunate than us: to those in our own country, but also those abroad. International cooperation is far better than isolationism.

All citizens in Finland have the right to vote freely – a very big number of citizens made a decision that might seem unacceptable to the rest of the voters. But because of the democratic system, they had the right to make that decision, and it’s something that the rest of society should respect. Instead of criticizing, pointing fingers and being ashamed for the “bad publicity”, I hope that politicians and citizens can leave the pettiness aside, analyse the situation and work together for a better society.