Two great stories for today – Finnish taxpayer money going to build brothels (well, not really, more like sex slaves) in Afghanistan…

Finnish officials suspect that a new women’s prison in northern Afghanistan, built through Finnish money and political will, may have been turned into a brothel. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs suspects that inmates may have been forced to sexually service guards, employees and their guests.

And an Espoo mother of two got an idea from the show, “Weeds”, to grow and sell marijuana…

A single mother in Espoo and her two underage sons intended to make the content of a popular TV-series a reality, and began growing cannabis in the home for sale.
The attempt foundered after a couple of months when police got wind of the venture after one of the boys was found in possession of some of the drug.
The mother and her boys had watched the series Weeds, starring Mary-Louise Parker in the role of the pot-growing suburban mum, on Finnish TV, and had picked up the storyline as a business idea.

Today a verdict came down of a heinous crime of smuggling in snuff in the Pietarsaari area. Now for the background, snuff is illegal in the EU except in Sweden. Its illegal to export from Sweden or sell outside Sweden commercially. So you can go to Sweden on a boat and bring in a roll, but thats it. However in certain regions, especially Ostrobothnia the snuff was already a part of the culture so these restrictions were seen unfair and the system continued.

For smuggling in some 500 000 cans of snuff the main culprit was sentenced to two years four months unconditional jailtime, and to pay the government 1 084514 euros of source tax along with his codefendant who got a two years probational jail sentence. Some ten gas station owners were sentenced to probational jail time and day fines for entry on smuggled items, selling substances prohibited in the law etc.

Meanwhile elsewhere a gang who raped a 15-year old girl got 2 years ten months and to pay 24 000 in damages… a drunk driver who ran over and killed a pedestrian got 2 years in jail, added with the probationary 60 days he got two days before the accident for… drunk driving…

While bringing in snuff is worth a bit over a million, burning a church when you’re 18 brings you 6,5 years in jail and 4,3 million euros in damages. If you keep your flame under the lid and molest a number of 6-12 year old children in the time frame of 10 years you get 7,5 years in jail and to pay 80 000 in damages.

Liberty and justice for all.

The Finnish gun control debate got fuel from the recent school shootings that were placed a year apart. A lot of discussion was made about school bullying, alienated youth and the evils of the internet as well as the downsizing and lack of funds in youth mental care. Calls were made for the government to give more funding – of course this being a cosmetic fix as the whole mental health programme has slowly been cheesesliced silly.

Yesterday brought again some news showing that the welfare society isn’t faring that well. Two middle-aged couples were found dead in their homes. In Porvoo a policeman and his wife in their 40’s had both committed suicide by the man’s quite legal hunting weapons leaving a note. They police say both had been depressed also with physical ailments and there has been speculation that the suicide may have been triggered by the social welfare removing three foster children they had been caring for . Meanwhile in Helsinki two schoolage kids were orphaned when their parents were found dead in their home. The police have stated that the neighbours called the police after hearing a row and shots, the man apparently shot the women with an army service weapon and after that himself .

Only last week in Oulu a 43-year old man shot his 39 year old wife and children aged 11 and 9. Both parents were teachers at the local schools, and were living an outwardly happy life. Some financial troubles were looming ahead as they were building a new house just getting finishing touches but their old house they were selling was showing water damage, in what is called a “two home trap”.

So really, I am at loss to even guess as to where the politicians shall point the blame this time over, can’t be the evils of the internet nor school bullying and legal hunting weapons are commonplace not to mention people who professionally have access to firearms. Of course the weather’s been quite horrid and the world finances have toppled, but even as a trigger to melancholia that doesn’t explain what then makes adult, educated, professional people in their late 40’s do such drastic decisions? Financial troubles are usually in the background in a downward spiral but is it a cause or effect or both. The economists say the trends don’t follow a pattern necessarily.

And this isn’t restricted to only one age group. Last July an elderly 88 year old man killed his bedridden wife at the nursing home and shot himself after killing his two handicapped daughters in their 50’s leaving a message he couldn’t cope with it any more. So it isn’t just the one thing but a combination.

I think we are just now starting to reap the seeds of all this privatization and moving towards a competitive economy that was started in the 1990’s. There are services, but there is no outreach, and usually the people in most dire need cannot or won’t seek the help themselves. And even those who do need to take drastic measures – just in the summer a young man in Kerava stabbed an 14-year old girl just picking her random, as a motive he said “he wished treatment”.  Nevermind all the county finances having been cheesesliced to the minimum already so what would you expect the health care, let alone mental healthcare at a bare minimum.

The orthodox chaplain Father Mitro said that it is evident that along with prosperity there has also been the flipside people have been closing their eyes from, and it should be the whole society to take a stand on what is going on. He said that instead of having floral agendas the government should inspire the people and reach out. The former chair of the Mental Health Association Pirkko Lahti says that she is afraid these events will not remain the only ones and fears they might lead to an epidemic as people will see this as a way out of their situation. She says that people should go ask for help and she feels especially sorry for the five orphaned children.

Of course as the international newsvultures haven’t landed to feed on the carrion the government has poked its head into the sand and discusses more relevant and current issues, like political correctness training to the new councils. Probably they’ll allocate funds to some nice brochures showing how happy and joyful place Finland is, after all its positive thinking and prozac that shall save the world. And then they still wonder why the people “voted wrong”.

The YLE scandal investigative journalism programme MOT broadcasted last week has caused diplomatic strain between Finland and Slovenia, both small EU countries whose populations probably never much were aware of each others existence. The MOT programme revealed the Finnish defence contractor Patria of paying bribes to gain a lucrative deal on ATV’s for the Slovenian armed forces. The police investigation on the case along with an investigation of a previous deal of howitzers to Egypt had started in May, and the CEO of Patria had stood down from his position. Patrias deals before such as that with Poland also raised some questions but no investigations were started. As the Finnish NBI investigations are noted for their rapidity, the case is expected to go to the prosecutor in October and a possible court case to take place sometime next year.

Meanwhile in Slovenia the MOT programme caused an uproar, as the programme suggests that on the receiving end of the bribes was the sitting prime minister Janez Janša, who is along with his party just preparing for a tight parliamentary election. The Slovenian government even produced two diplomatic notes over the MOT programme to the Finnish government demanding proof of the accusations. Despite both YLE and Patria are to some extent government-owned, the Finnish government said that they can not much do anything about the situation at present. Janša has denied any bribery even been suggested to him by Patria, though he said the other party in the tender process did as for meetings. Which seems very interesting indeed.

The can of hairy worms the MOT programme opened is actually an old one, but it does seem to squirm vigorously. The contract was signed in December 2006 and was the biggest arms deal in Slovenia so far and thus a huge issue in Slovenia, basically as the other rejected tender was from a Slovenian company later sold to an American conglomerate. Allegations of bribery started escalating in Slovenia, going deep into the country’s leadership, including politicians and senior civil servants so a parliamentary commission of inquiry was established in March 2007 to investigate the tender process relating to the sales contract. From what I understand the Slovenians were manufacturing the Steyr-Puch Pandur I on a licence and the competition was between the Patria AMV, Piranha and Pandur II with obvious logistical benefits. Now the Slovenian officials interviewed in the MOT programme were politicaly opposing the current government, and some had ties with the Slovenian contractor. Sour grapes maybe? Or then maybe not… in any case the election race in Slovenia got a surprisingly well-timed injection of scandal.

Cliff notes: Lord of War

And I’d say this is a pretty remarkable piece of news. Traditionally the combination of alcohol and boating has resulted in at least half a dozen drownings. The statistics this year weren’t looking good as the thin ice caused a whole lot of fishermen to get into peril. The least drownings during Juhannus was in 2003 when the toll was four.

Otherwise the death toll so far has been 6 people. The most violent incident was in Kouvola, where three army conscripts were stabbed, one fatally and another in critical condition. A middle-aged couple had a beer-fuelled argument and the woman stabbed the man dead in Helsinki. The heavy holiday traffic went relatively safely but with several accidents, two fatal, and the police otherwise has been kept busy by drunk drivers. In Keuruu two men were found in the sauna, one dead and the other unconcious – possibly from cabon monoxide poisoning. Another man was found dead on a beach in Lappeenranta ant the police state they’re not suspecting a crime.

Otherwise the country has been doused with rain and hailstorms, maybe inhibiting the partying a bit. The police has had its share of domestic calls, and a man was shot in the leg while threatening the police with an axe. While the police say the amount of calls has been regular for a midsummer, the Coast Guard has stated it has had approximately half of the amount of calls to assist boaters than usual.

Update: By Sunday the death toll has risen to eight with another stab victim, and of a boating party one man found drowned and another missing – so that makes the inevitable drowning statistics. The Finnish swimming and lifesaving association’s spokesperson says that the bad weather did contribute, but he says he hopes that the downward trend is due to the efforts in public awareness as well. The return traffic is expected to be slightly congested even most people have started their summer vacations.

The Helsingin Sanomat has written about some British & Irish paving labourers who apparently have not had “trouble finding work without speaking any Finnish”. So that proves false the assumption Finns are discriminating xenophobes and racists. Doing a paving job for 3500, sans receipt, when the Finnish quote is 8500-10K and the material cost alone is between 2-3K though might have something to do with the equation. Also the claim that Finnish officials are xenophobes and racists is proven wrong, as if a local Finnish resident would be driving drunk, stealing and doing black labor without paying the social fees and VAT; they’d be in serious trouble. But EU citizens are free to do whatever they effin please. So apparently there is a “need for workers” in Finland indeed and the EU has once again proven to be the source of multiculturalism that enriches the nation. Again three basic theses regarding immigrants in Finland have been proven wrong. I find this quite hilarious, though there’s an owner of a campsite full of complaining Finns (as opposed to whining foreigners) that might not think I am so funny.

Cliff notes: Snatch in Järvenpää

It’s time for my fourth annual summer board game auction, yay!! This time I’ve teamed up with my neighbor and close friend, Saku S., to bring you even MORE great games – here’s how it works…

Below are the starting prices. Simply leave a comment below with your bids. Each bid must be 1 euro higher than the previous. Please include both your name and e-mail address. (if your message doesn’t immediately appear, it may have got caught in my spam guard – I’ll check my spam throughout the day so just wait a few hours and it will show)

I will update this page daily with the highest bids – however, when placing a bid, search through the comments to be sure you are the highest bidder.

I’ll be at Ropecon 2008, so I can bring the games there. If you won’t be at Ropecon, I can meet you in Espoo, or send the games in the Post (at your expense). I’ll accept bank transfer or cash.

The auction begins now (July 30th) and ends on Friday, August 8th at 12:00.

Good luck! E-mail me with any questions: phil >>at>> finlandforthought . net

Latest update on the bids: Friday, August 8th at 15:00, Winners updated

	Age of Napoleon / Das Zeitalter Napoleons, Phalanx	5 EUR, Kalle Miller WINNER: 10 EUR, Valtteri Pirttilä	German version with printed English rules. Unplayed.
	Heart of Africa / Ins Innere Afrika, Phalanx	WINNER: 5 EUR, Mika	German version with scanned printed English rules. Unplayed.
	Elasund: The First City of Catan, Kosmos	5 EUR 6 EUR, raaf WINNER: 7 EUR, Mirko	German version with printed English rules. Played maybe two times.
	Quarto!, Gigamic	5 EUR	Good condition.
	Marco Polo Expedition, Rio Grande	WINNER: 5 EUR, barber	English version. Good condition.
	New England, Goldsieber	5 EUR, Timo Malvisalo6 EUR, Hessu 9 EUR, Timo Malvisalo WINNER: 10 EUR, Hessu	Played condition.
	Scene it!, Screenlife LLC	10 EUR	First Edition (2003). Played condition.
	Space Dealer, Eggert Spiele	10 EUR 15 EUR, Kalle Miller WINNER: 18 EUR, Valtteri Pirttilä	German version with printed English rules. Good condition.
	Die Weinhändler, Amigo	2 EUR, Mosse 3 EUR, JoeLamer 5 EUR, Mosse WINNER: 6 EUR, metsku	German version with printed English rules. Good condition.
	Taru Sormusten Herrasta/Lord of the Rings, Tactic	5 EUR, Timo Malvisalo 7 EUR, Timo Malvisalo WINNER: 12 EUR,  Mirko	Finnish version. Unplayed.
	Combat Commander: Volume II – Mediterranean, GMT Games	15 EUR WINNER: 30 EUR, Vesa	In shrink. Unopened.
	Age of Empires III: The Age of Discovery , Tropical Games	15 EUR 21 EUR, Patrik Lervik WINNER: 33 EUR, Tombad	With the components for extra player shipped with pre-order, box a bit caved in during shipment.
	4 x card games package	WINNER: 2 EUR, JoeLamer	Lao Pengh, Up & Down and Turbo from Adlung Spiele (all with English rules) + Herzlos from Winning Moves (German with no English rules)
	Amyitis, Ystari	5 EUR12 EUR, Mosse 13 EUR, Opettaja H. WINNER: 15 EUR, raaf	Played   3 times, like new. German edition with English rules.
	Augusburg 1520, Alea	5 EUR, Ossessione 9 EUR, Mirko WINNER: 15 EUR,  Mirko	Played 4 times, like new. German edition with English rules.
	Before the Wind, Mayfair	3 EUR WINNER: 9 EUR, Ossessione	Played once, like new. English edition.
	Blue Moon City, Kosmos	5 EUR 10 EUR, oskari 12 EUR, raaf WINNER: 13 EUR, Mika	Played several times, like new. German edition with English rules.
	Chicago Poker, Phalanx	WINNER: 3 EUR, barber	Played several times, like new. English edition.
	Darjleeing, Abacus	5 EUR 8 EUR, Jhua 9 EUR, metsku WINNER: 10 EUR, Jhua	Played once, like new. English edition.
	Double or Nothing, Uberplay (Reiner Knizia)	5 EUR	Played several times, like new. English edition.
	Evergreen, Goldseiber (Wolfgang Kramer)	WINNER: 2 EUR, Cane	Played once, like new. German edition with English rules.
	Great Wall of China, Kosmos (Reiner Knizia)	3 EUR WINNER: 5 EUR, Timo Tikkanen	Played several times, like new. German edition with English rules.
	Limits, Amigo (Uwe Rosenberg)	2 EUR, JoeLamer WINNER: 3 EUR, Cane	Played once, like new. German edition with English rules.
	Lucky Loop, Queen	3 EUR	Played twice, like new. German edition with English rules.
	Rage, Fundex	2 EUR, barber WINNER: 3 EUR, Cane	Played once, like new. English edition.
	Saludos Amigos!, Goldseiber	5 EUR	Played once, like new. German edition with English rules.
	Sleuth, Face-2-Face (Sid Sackson)	5 EUR WINNER: 10 EUR, Timo Tikkanen	Played once, like new. English edition.
	Walhalla, Amigo	5 EUR, Timo Malvisalo 6 EUR, Hessu 9 EUR, Timo Malvisalo WINNER: 10 EUR, Hessu	Played several times, like new. German edition with English rules.
	Ziegen Kriegen, Amigo	2 EUR, JoeLamer 3 EUR, metsku WINNER: 5 EUR, Cane	Played once, like new. German edition with English rules.
	Shogun, Queen (Dirk Henn)	10 EUR 25 EUR, Mosse 31 EUR, Mirko WINNER: 40 EUR, Jhua	Played once, like new. German edition with English rules.
	Thurn & Taxis: All Roads Lead to Rome, Rio Grande Games (Andreas Seyfarth)	5 EUR 6 EUR, JoeLamer 7 EUR, Hessu 9 EUR, Hessu WINNER: 11 EUR, Hessu	Played once, like new. English edition.
	Buccaneer, Queen (Stefan Dorra)	5 EUR, Hessu 7 EUR, Hessu WINNER: 13 EUR, Eikku	Played several times, like new. English edition.
	Imperial, Eggert-Spiele	10 EUR 30 EUR,  Timo Tikkanen WINNER: 31 EUR, pillar	Played   once, like new.  English edition.
	Canal Mania, Ragnar Brothers	10 EUR 11 EUR,  Niko WINNER: 12 EUR, Hessu	Played   once, like new.  English edition. Signed by the designers!
	Eketorp, Queen (Dirk Henn)	10 EUR 11 EUR, Akseli Pulkkinen 16 EUR, Hessu 20 EUR, Akseli Pulkkinen WINNER: 22 EUR, Akseli Pulkkinen	Played once, like new. German edition with English rules

This piece of news from the Helsingin Sanomat really rang up high on the bizarrometer.

OK, so we have teenage angst and too much tv:

Police suspect that a 16-year-old Helsinki girl paid a 19-year-old man to kill her mother.

And what was with this “handgun ownership” so rampant in Finland then?

A moment later the woman felt a strong blow to the back of her head… One of the men had shot the woman with a crossbow – the kind that is used to shoot small game, police say.

Kinda… medieval this one.

Police say that the 16-year-old daughter had promised the 19-year-old man a cash payment for the killing. The daughter did not live with the mother at the time of the attack. The man had persuaded two 20-year-old friends to join him. The crime was planned at the Espoo home of a fourth man, who now faces charges of aiding and abetting. The suspects, all native-born Finns, do not have any prior criminal records.

Kids, don’t eat that yellow snow.

Tö vinnis skiink asshosshasson hääs nou komments oon tö keis. Helsingin Sanomat writes:

“According to the information I have received from the IBU, I am under suspicion of a doping offence. These suspicions are unfounded, and I have requested that the matter should be examined further in the normal way. Given the ongoing nature of the process, this matter is not public. I am nevertheless permitted to bring to light the suspicions held against me, and I do so of my own volition.”

So yeah, all athletes are innocent until their B-sample is tested.

Evidently Sirkuspelle’s efforts are finally showing some fruits. From the STT

Publishing individuals’ tax records in the media may in future be completely banned, provincial daily Keskisuomalainen reported on Wednesday. The paper added that the Supreme Administrative Court (KHO) had asked the the European Court of Justice (ECJ) for a precedent on the issue. The ECJ will hold a discussion on the topic 12 February and the KHO would make its decision based on this precedent. The issue came to the forefront when Veropörssi, a Satakunta-based company that publishes tax information, listed over a million individuals’ tax records and then sold them to directory services firm Fonecta, which in turn sold the information on to customers via text message. According to Keskisuomalainen, Reijo Aarnio, Finland’s data protection ombudsman, took the issue to court as a breach of journalistic integrity.

The Age of Wonders is here.

I’ve been fortunate enough to get a couple generous raises over the past two years and my girlfriend has graduated from school and is working full time, so our household has seen a healthy increase in income. And as I become wealthier, I find myself moving further and further to the left politically. I’d like to say with age and wisdom comes leftism, or maybe five years in the welfare state has brought me closer to the left – but it’s all about the Benjamin$…

Beginning today, the Finnish state has banned discounts on alcohol, significantly increasing the price of 12-packs of beer. And I love beer! So I should be upset, right? But I’m not. I make a decent salary, I can afford it. Now a few years ago I’d be furious, my love of beer remained the same but I was much poorer, so this leftist move would have hurt me much harder.

During the current U.S. Presidential campaign, socialized healthcare is an important issue to me, I support the left when I say I want every American to have free healthcare – Because I know if I ever return to the states, my employer will fund my private healthcare. Now if I were a poorer man, there’s no way in hell I’d want something as important as my personal health in the hands of some idiot like George W. Bush!

I supported the Nurse’s raise even though taxes will increase even further, cause I got $$. I’m a much bigger environmentalist now that I have more money to afford the higher costs it requires. Go ahead and make the leftist move of raising the prices on such basic necessities as fuel, electricity, bus fare, food, and drink – I live, work, and shop in Espoo, I never have to see the negative effects of poverty in Finland.

You know how much political debate goes on in the lunch rooms and water coolers of my employer? None! We all got $$, these little Mickey Mouse moves by the Finnish politicians hardly affect us. Doubling the price of beer really hurts a poor Finns’ wallet, but does little damage to ours. So why not support the left? It’s much more cool and hip than the right. And that’s what I’m really missing as I get older and wealthier…coolness.

Pictured right, the wise and majestic President of Finland, Ms. Tarja Halonen.

Happy New Year!! And best wishes from Finnish politicians who’ve rang in the New Year with higher taxes and stricter regulations…

- Taxation will pump up the price of gasoline by 5 cents a litre, and diesel by 5 and a half cents. On average, motorists can expect to spend up to 60 euros more on fuel.

- The price of bus tickets is also expected to rise by 5.2 percent, while long-distance train tickets will cost on average 2.9 percent more.

- Sending snail mail will also a bit cost more in the new year. Mailing a package will cost 7 percent more, unless it weighs less than 50 grams

- Prime or base interest rates will rise to 4.75 percent, up from the 4.25 percent level of the last six months.

- Television commercials for alcoholic beverages are now banned from television screens between 7.00 am and 8.00 pm, and are forbidden in cinemas during movies for patrons under the age of 18.

Gee, thanks politicians! And here’s the real kicker, no more discounts on alcohol, a 12-pack will cost the same as if you’re buying 12 individual beers. This means I’ll be buying more imports instead of saving money on shitty Finnish beer…

- Bulk discounts on multiple packs of alcoholic beverages are a thing of the past. The practice of outdoor advertising of other discounted alcoholic drinks such as cheaper drinks offered during a “happy hour” is also against the law.

And what is quite ironic – cold, dreary, suicidal Finland is banning “Happy Hour”. Finnish politicians have taken away a restaurant/pub’s freedom to lower prices of their products in order to compete. We had a couple happy hours per day from 4 to 6, but now it’s unhappiness in Finland 24/7.

Let’s see – the leftist Social Democrats liberalized alcohol under their administration and the right-wing Kokoomus have tightened regulations. I’m definitely a lefty.

I can’t believe hockey player Jere Karalahti is still in jail on drug charges. I’m not convinced that he’s guilty of anything, and it gets me thinking about drug policy in the Nordics.

What I don’t understand is that professional sports stars, like ones who compete in ice hockey, rugby, football, auto racing, boxing and even ski jumping, can have multiple concussions and other devastating head injuries; yet it’s so natural to think, “It’s OK because those injuries were suffered while playing sports. Carry on fearless warrior!” Nevermind that some of them will no longer be among the sharper pencils in the drawer…not that all of them were to begin with.

Whereas I don’t know anything specific about Jere’s case, when an average Pekka Jääkiekko wants to relax with his buddies and snuffle a few lines of white powder on a Saturday night, many of us are programmed to think, “Oh no, we can’t have THAT!” But sports head injuries are OK.

Of course, I’m being facetious by even remotely suggesting that the normal outcome of playing sports or using drugs results in permanent brain injuries. In either case, the chance is remote. Most sportsmen recover from their injuries, and the vast majority of recreational drug users never have problems in the first place. But why is there such a double standard?

We in Europe can learn from the follies of the United States, which has been using anti-drug propaganda for several decades now to justify its War on Drugs, a sustained effort to fund the prison industry. There are more people in US jails than in Russia and China combined. It’s a real human rights mess. That’s not to say we don’t have our own embarrassing practices here—albeit unrelated to prisons and drugs—but at least we’re not on the verge of needing to colonize the moon to secure more prison real estate.
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Most amazingly, American workers even prostitute themselves by offering bodily fluid samples for their corporate bosses to inspect. And the US sports industry is on the warpath with ridiculous testing regiments of its own for athletes. It’s such an embarrassing and unnecessary procedure for participants. The politically connected drug testing industry doesn’t seem to mind though.

Yet by all observations, these measures aren’t stopping anyone from doing illegal drugs. In fact, Americans love drugs more than ever! The passion spans all socio-economic strata, professions and age groups. It seems to abide well with the American work hard & play hard ethic. The sad part is that, whereas most people’s lives aren’t being harmed by the drugs themselves, they are instead impeded by the prison sentences, interrupted careers and other legal troubles associated with drug policies.

Now, none of this is meant to imply that drugs are wonderful. The above-mentioned powders have addiction rates and cause destructive illnesses just like alcohol; the chances of being afflicted are small but exist nonetheless. But let’s remember, there’s also a chance of suffering debilitating injuries while riding a bicycle—those little Styrofoam helmets might be concrete-resistant, but they’re not concrete-proof—or parachuting, hang gliding or cliff climbing for that matter. Life is full of risk choices.

The biggest danger that I see, aside from the legal troubles, is the possibility of ingesting a mixture containing something found in the cabinet under the kitchen sink. You just never know what some unscrupulous dealer might have used to dilute the product. Maybe he was short on baking flour, but too lazy to run to the store? Out comes the carpet cleanser. The chance of impurity is probably more harmful than the drug itself.

Given this pitfall, and the fact that keeping drugs illegal only raises profits and encourages more sales and usage (it’s probably the biggest business in America), why not follow the Swiss example of providing those with serious drug ‘desires’ a rationed assortment of whatever makes them happiest—after all, isn’t life about being happy? Surely it can’t only be about punishing each other for our differing preferences.

So to really seal our place in history as being part of the enlightened Nordics, let’s take the entire drug market away from greedy criminals and put it where it belongs: The government.

We can begin by opening a sister-monopoly to the famous Alko, Finland’s governmental alcohol pusher. The new enterprise can be named Narko; hence, together they’ll form the Alko-Narko Alliance. The new monopoly can have the same high prices, narrow selection and limited opening hours as its older sibling. Naturally, it will also have government workers who’ll occasionally strike for higher pay. Rest assured, we can even continue to enjoy the long cues before holidays.

And best yet: when the European Commission again censures Finland for its anti-competitive practices, we can defensively retort: “We need Narko to control drug addiction!” But this time, it might actually be an honest statement.

You said it Elvis!

Once again, it looks like the Finnish government, in cohorts with the state-owned alcohol racket, Alko, is about to play the age-old trick of fleecing Finns out of their hard-earned money. Yes, the issue of raising alcohol taxes has resurfaced here in a country that already has among the highest alcohol prices in Europe.

Not surprisingly, Finland also has a high incidence of alcohol-related problems due to binge drinking; a commonality among countries that try to influence drinking behavior via raising alcohol prices. Will Finland ever develop a mature, central European drinking culture?

That remains to be seen.

But in the meantime, would you like to see how much this ploy costs the Finnish consumer? Consider that in Germany, .5L bottles of high quality beer cost about 55ct each at the supermarket. That’s 1.10 per-Liter. And wine is about half-price in Germany compared to Finland.

So, it’s not hard to imagine that the Finn overpays by at least 10€ each week, on average, even if he only enjoys drinks at home with dinner. Naturally, the overpayment would be much greater if he’d drink at Finland’s many overpriced pubs and restaurants. To place things in perspective, let’s consider the Time Value of Money.

Suppose he’d have the option to purchase alcohol in Germany (as I normally do) and could invest that 10€ each week in a Stock Fund that yields 10% growth-per-annum. In 25-years, he’d have over 55,000€ saved!

Wow! The Finnish alcohol ripoff has cost the price of a luxury automobile! It’s no wonder that Finns are among the poorest people in western Europe. By the way, would you like to see how Autovero will cost the price of a new flat?