May Day Reflections from a President—and a Student

The former President of Finland, Sauli Niinistö, was both a lawyer and a politician during his career. That combination is not particularly rare, but what is unusual is a former head of state openly sharing memories from his student days.

Niinistö was likely inspired by the upcoming May Day Eve, which in Finland is a celebration not only for workers but also for students. That was already the case during his own time as a law student, when the festivities would begin well in advance.

One year, however, the student celebrations in Turku took a turn when a law students’ organization was caught selling alcohol illegally. Niinistö didn’t elaborate on the consequences but did offer a cryptic comment: the festivities didn’t end there—“lawyers always find a loophole.”

As a student, Niinistö lived mostly on study loans but worked whenever he could. He was willing to take on any job, so the future MP, minister, and president gained some early experience in the political trenches—by, for example, repairing sewers.

Looking back, he described the most valuable lesson of those years as learning, little by little, to recognize different kinds of people—and to understand that “in the end, we’re all carved from roughly the same wood.”

One of the president’s most poignant international memories was connected to the Prague Spring—the Czechoslovak uprising of 1968. Niinistö had a couple of Czech friends who, inspired by the movement, returned to their homeland that spring and disappeared. As he put it: “the guys went to Prague in the spring, and nothing was ever heard from them again, even though they were passionate fellows.”

That story reminds us of the cruelty inflicted by the Soviet-led socialist dictatorship within its sphere of influence. And it strengthens our resolve to ensure that Europe is never again divided into spheres of influence between the West and Russia.

With these presidential memories, I wish all readers of this blog a joyful May Day! Enjoy the spirit of spring—whether you are a worker, a student, or simply a fellow human being. And always stay on the right side!

Previous thoughts on the same topic:
Brianna Wu's advice and the reality of Finnish politics
Finnish horror gallery and reality
What seemed to be impossible just two years ago is going to happen in very near future

Acts of Vandalism Against a Political Party

Societal polarization is increasing around the world. Unfortunately, the same trend can be seen in Finland.

One recent example of this was an act of vandalism targeting the office of a Finnish governing party, the Finns Party, in Finland's fifth-largest city, Turku. The party's local leader reported that "at around 1:30 AM, two individuals dressed in black with hoods over their heads threw rocks and pieces of concrete at the office window dozens of times."

The rocks pierced the newly installed triple-glazed window, but the perpetrators did not gain entry. However, they left a message on the window containing a grammatical error: "rasisti pellet" (racist clowns).

The same party office has been the target of vandalism before. According to the local leader, "almost every month we experience some kind of graffiti or written messages."

He also rightly stated that "all political parties should condemn such actions. This kind of behavior has no place in Finnish society or politics. Regardless of one’s opinion, it should be possible to engage in politics safely."

The Finns Party’s secretary, for his part, stated that "a police report will be filed regarding the incident. For now, we will let the police do their job and hope the perpetrators are caught." This is the third police report concerning acts of vandalism against this particular office in this decade.

I would also add that I personally expect our country's most prominent media outlets—Yleisradio (the Finnish Broadcasting Company) and Helsingin Sanomat—to clearly and unequivocally condemn this act in their editorials. These outlets have often written very negatively about the party now targeted by vandalism, which has likely not discouraged those inclined toward such actions. This is an excellent opportunity to correct that mistake.

Previous thoughts on the same topic:
Over a Hundred Child Abusers Caught, and the Far-Left's Paavo Arhinmäki Gains Followers in Finland
The demands of the vandals
Is the Finnish left-wing radicalizing?

A Finnish Deputy Mayor Wanted to Ban an Old Board Game from Children

The peak of the woke phenomenon has already passed, for example, in the United States. As evidence of this, many companies have begun removing the peculiar features inspired by the movement from their operations.

In Finland, however, woke activism continues, as demonstrated by a recent debate concerning daycare centers in Turku. It so happened that Turku’s Deputy Mayor, Piia Elo (Social Democrats), expressed her opinion that a popular board game from the 1950s, The Star of Africa ("Afrikan Tähti" in Finnish), should be removed from daycare centers.

The game is set in colonial-era Africa, where players search for a mythical diamond while traveling across the continent’s map on foot, by boat, and by airplane. Along the way, they discover treasures of monetary value but occasionally fall victim to white bandits.

Deputy Mayor Elo made her suggestion after the issue was raised by Paco Diop, an alternate council member representing the far-left (Left Alliance) in Turku. He pointed out that the game’s cover illustration depicts a stereotypical African figure characteristic of the colonial era.

Fortunately, not all Turku residents are as misguided as Elo or Diop. The Mayor of Turku, Minna Arve, correctly noted that The Star of Africa is a game developed in the 1950s. She explained that "It is a product of its time, and its illustrations and themes reflect the worldview of that era. Some of the imagery does not align with today’s values, and it’s worthwhile to discuss how to address such matters when teaching children how to play."

However, she added, "I consider it excessive to suddenly start removing games. I understand Deputy Mayor Piia Elo’s perspective, but I think the reaction was hasty, and I do not support political directives to daycare centers regarding individual games—for me, that is not the right approach."

Time will tell whether the words of Turku’s woke-inspired Deputy Mayor carry more weight than those of the pragmatic Mayor. For my part, I would like to say that the game is enjoyable to play with children—most of whom enjoy it—and provides educators with an opportunity for the kind of social interaction with kids that digital platforms cannot offer. At the same time, educators can, if they wish, teach children about the dark history of the imperialist era.

Previous thoughts on the same topic:
Three Islamists Arrested in Finland on Suspicion of Belonging to a Terrorist Group
Eurovision Song Contest Funding Faces Pushback Due to Woke Ideology
Finland’s Minister of Finance Believes Not All Cultures Are Equally Good

Three Islamists Arrested in Finland on Suspicion of Belonging to a Terrorist Group

Finland's National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) has arrested three foreign men suspected of involvement in the activities of the Islamic terrorist organization ISIS. Two of the suspects were born in the 1980s and one in the 1990s.

The police are not commenting on the possible crimes committed by the men, but under Finnish law, merely participating in the activities of a terrorist group can lead to a conviction. At this stage, however, nothing suggests that there has been a terrorism threat directed at Finland.

If the men are found guilty of involvement in a terrorist group, they will be sentenced to a minimum of four months and a maximum of eight years in prison.

So far, Finland has only had one Islamist terrorist attack. It occurred in Turku in 2017 when Abderrahman Bouanane, a Moroccan who came to Finland as an asylum seeker, randomly stabbed people, killing two of them.

For this act, Bouanane was sentenced to life imprisonment, from which the president can pardon him if desired—usually no earlier than after 12 years of imprisonment. It remains to be seen whether Finland’s first Muslim terrorist will ever be released.

In this regard, it is interesting that - relative to the size of Finland’s Muslim population - the country sent the highest number of terrorists to ISIS's caliphate in Syria and Iraq during the last decade. However, none of them have yet been convicted for their atrocities there. Additionally, the police have not suggested that the arrest of the current suspects is in any way related to ISIS’s caliphate.

Previous thoughts on the same topic:
The Stabber Killed Three People in an Extremely Multicultural City
Cancellation of Taylor Swift's Concert in Austria Was a Success for the Terrorists
Two out of three Palestinians support October 7 attack

A stupid thief and vandalizing celebrators

Vantaa is a more than 200 000 inhabitant town in Finland. Few days ago its Lutheran congregation faced a loss as someone had stolen a copper-made decoration of its chapel next to a medieval stone church. The stolen materials weighed 950 kg and were worth of at least 100 000 euros. 

Today we heard that the stolen property was found and brought back to the chapel. In addition, police had arrested a suspected thief. The official authority have not revealed details except that the arrested person is not a citizen of Finland. 

During recent years it has been a common practice in Finland to steal copper parts from buildings, often by Romanian citizens. Therefore it would have been weird - or stupid - if the area of the chapel with its 100 000 euros decoration would not have been under a camera surveillance.

The congregation, however, seems not to have been stupid, as police caught a criminal in just few days. Therefore, we should look for the thief, and conclude that his head seems not to have been filled with very brilliant brains. In contrast, he can be considered as type example of an idiot conducting crimes.

* * *

Also another interestingly stupid case happened during last weekend as Finland won the world championship in ice hockey by beating Canada in a thrilling final. That led to massive celebrations in the big towns. 

One would think that after such an occasion people would be happy and full of joy. However, it turned out that a considerable number of celebrators had weird ways of showing their happiness.

In the capitol of the country - Helsinki - some of the people climbed on the roof of a historically valuable building of the restaurant Kappeli, which had just been opened after renovation. As a result of their "joyful celebration", terrace furniture was broken and various wires were torn out of place. Also the roof itself was damaged.

Along the same lines, tens of ice hockey fans climbed on two pavilions under construction in the former capitol of Finland - Turku -  causing damage to at least one building. As a result, the city has asked police to investigate whether the fans were guilty of a crime.

If the copper thief from abroad was not among the most brainy persons, the same can be said about the people climbing on buildings and causing damage. And these people were almost certainly Finnish citizens. 

The question is the following. Why some idiots want to express themselves even in the most joyful moments of the nation? And why there always have to be those, whose destiny is to spoil otherwise memorable historical events?

Previous thoughts on the same topic:
Demonstration of one´s own stupidity is a sign of western values
Current status of mankind and its culture