Reason of the Reasons
Nearly one-third of all Finns could be living in poverty if not for state financial support, according to a report by the European Commission released on Monday. The report compares the social inclusion and social protection of EU member states. Finland has fewer poor people than the EU average. However, without the safety net of income distribution, that number would be higher than the EU average. In Finland, 29 percent of the population would be at risk of living in poverty without income distribution; the EU average poverty risk is just 26 percent.(YLE)Yeah... why, again, do I raise this issue? Well, my thinking is complex.
For years, I've tried to convince myself that all people in the world have the ability to live in a civilized country and all people in the world can develop a society that is modern, functioning and safe. Then, when a insignificant group of my fellow citizens claims that it is not so but a question of IQ, I've felt sad. It's been hard to keep the opinion I've had since, when you look at the map of the world, you can draw a rough parallel: the northern you get, the wealthier you get. The southern you get, the wealthier you get. So. There are lots of 'facts' for people who believe in IQ differences of races. And they are hard to oppose.
Thus, this article seems to provide some comfort. Naturally, it's a sad topic but I'm reading something truly different in between its lines. Namely, nearly 30% of Finns are not MAKING IT! We are not a nation that consists of "top-wealth-IQ-individuals", the actual percentage of such people is in fact lower than in the rest of Europe. The social network is supporting my fellows more than the social network in supporting one's fellows in, say, France.
When some patriotic politicians, workers and street men discuss nationalistic issues, they inevitably claim Finns are wealthy due to 'hard work, intelligence and individual motivation'. It now seems that we have less of those adorable 'working-my-butt-off-and-knowing-how-to-make-my-own-economy-grow" people. For me, that is good news, for most Finns bad news. Why good? I thought the success story of Finland was simply too good to be true.
posted by Anicko @ 12:09 PM
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