Some Finnish Observations

I have been enjoying my trip to Finland. It has been interesting to see it now with new perspective. The last time I was here was in 1996. Below is a brief list of some of my current observations (although my window of observation has been only one week).

1. Finnish people are very punctual--much more so than Americans. We attended a conference this past weekend, and I couldn't believe how every session started and ended on time (to the minute). It seems that every conference or retreat I have attended in the US starts a little late and the sessions and breaks go overtime.

2. Finns are direct and to the point. They say what they mean without beating around the bush. They don't waste a lot of time with flowery speeches. This probably helps them to be punctual.

3. Finns take hospitality very seriously. People go out of their way to make their food look beautiful and taste wonderful. Coffee is served with home baked goods and served in a creative way. Last night I got to eat smoked reindeer baked with cheese and onions on a rye crust--it was excellent. Tea and coffee is always accompanied with nice breads, cheese, meat, and some vegetables (usually cucumbers, tomatoes, and red peppers). Coffee also usually includes multiple dessert options with perhaps some sort of tort, cake, ice cream, chocolates, fruit, etc. Of course they are served with the proper silverware and dishes. A guest feels quite special here.

4. Traffic seems to be remarkably light here. I have a hard time believing how such large cities could have such little traffic. Cars, parking fees, and gasoline are not cheap. In addition, public transportation is readily available. When I think about it, much of American life is spent in an automobile. I think about all of the time per week that I spend in my vehicle going from place to place and sitting in traffic. It seems that the radius of daily activity is much smaller here than in America.

5. Design is sleek, simple, efficient, of high quality, and practical. This makes me feel quite at home. I like the sensibility of being efficient, practical, with a streamlined pleasent appearance in households and clothing. Wood, glass, and brushed metal are common materials.

6. Finns appear to be as informed and maybe more informed about American politics than the majority of Americans. In nearly every conversation I have had, one of the first questions that comes up is related to the Presidential candidates. They all want to know what we think about Hillary and Obama. The general thought here is that Obama will win (probably because of the media hype in the US about him). I of course let them know that I support Mike Huckabee. Many say they like him, but have not heard much about him (that seems to be a consensus in the US as well). One man told me that he heard that Huckabee has some ancestors who were from Finland. I have not been able to confirm this, but that would be pretty cool. I had one man ask me to help him understand a caucus, a primary, and super delegates. Most Americans would probably have the same question. Finland currently has a female president, so they are of course interested to know if the US will vote one in as well.

Below are a few pictures from my trip thus far.

Above is a pen pal from when I was about 8 years old who I was able to visit. She is a 3rd cousin once removed who found me a few months ago on Facebook after over 20 years. It was a lot of fun to meet her husband and to stay at her home (the conversation and hospitality were delightful).

Above are photos of a newly installed sauna that uses fiber optic lights in the ceiling. The design was very nice.

Above is a photo of the coffee table at one home. This woman does some catering, so her spread was a bit more extravagant than at other homes, but here you can get the idea as to some ideas here regarding evening coffee.

Washington Republican Caucus Results

Again, people are projecting winners prematurely. The Washington State Republican party has declared McCain the winner with 87% of precincts reporting and only a 242 delegate difference between McCain and Huckabee. I sent the following email to Luke Esser (luke@wsrp.org) of the Washington State Republican party. See reported results.

See what Mike Huckabee's website says about this.


Mr Esser,

I am very disappointed that a winner of the Republican caucuses was projected to the press prematurely. According to the numbers reported, if 13% of the precincts have not reported, approximately 1750 delegates have not been counted. It is hardly possible to accurately predict the winner when the spread between McCain and Huckabee is only 242 delegates (less than 14% of the outstanding delegates), and the difference between McCain and Ron Paul is only 669 delegates.

The state of Washington does not have a good record for counting ballots, and we as the Republican party do not want to be accused of pulling similar tricks as what happened in the last governor's race. Please rescind your projected winner statement, and at least wait until all precincts have reported.

In addition there are a large number (1729) of "uncommitted" delegates who will be free to vote as they wish in the next round. As I understand it, we do not know a "winner" in Washington until the convention process has been completed.

Just in...Romney leaving race

The latest headline is that Romney is leaving the race.

Now some of his delegates will be free to vote for Huckabee! This is really getting exciting.

The most efficient candidate

Check out this article in the NY Times today. It begins like this, "If political victory was measured in the wise use of scant financial resources, Mike Huckabee would be the front-runner in the presidential race." Then goes on to compare how Huckabee has spent $45,000 per delegate in comparison to Mitt Romney's $654,000. Ouch, that hurts for businessman Romeny.

I want someone running this country who is fiscally responsible--don't you too? I can't understand why radio talk show hosts keep saying that Romney is more fiscally conservative--that is not evidenced by his campaign management. Actions speak louder than words.

By the way, money does actually help the campaigns, so consider chipping in to Mike Huckabee's campaign (use donor code: R6111). He will effectively use your donation.

A little surprise for the pundits

I am guessing that the political pundits were a bit surprised by the results of Super Tuesday because it didn't go exactly they way they were predicting. In fact, Huckabee did much better than they expected. This proves that this is not a 2-man race. I am tired of the media calling Huckabee a spoiler. He is a real candidate. Now its on to my state of Washington (Feb 9) where I am hoping we can surprise some more people.

It's not over

The primary race is not over yet. Political pundits are claiming that the race in the Replican party is between McCain and Romney, but I beg to differ. Only a small percentage of the overall delegates have been determined. Some people say they like Huckabee, but aren't going to vote for him because they don't think he will win. That is crazy. Vote for who you believe will be the best candidate! Below is another reason why I am supporting Mike--once again he demonstrates forward-thinking ideas.

Most people are aware of the recently announced economic stimulus package that our government is planning to implement. I am a bit skeptical of how effective such a package actually will be. From what I have read, the average American will get about $600 with the idea that we will spend it. But the larger question is "how will each American spending a quick $600 help us in the long term?" I think there are other methods for strengthening the economy rather than trying a quick-fix solution. Unfortunately, America is known for its "I want it now" attitude. A little patience would do us a lot of good. Rather than sending checks to each individual, what if the government was to offer funding for developing alternative energy technology. It could be like the space program twenty some years ago (the entire country benefited in numerous ways because of the development for NASA). Not only would it provide jobs to those developing the new technology, but it would be a huge benefit to our country in the long run to not be so dependent on foreign oil. We could save a tremendous amount of money by moving to more renewable energy sources--the problem is that the initial costs for converting technology is high. The US as a whole would benefit from such a program in many ways.

The idea that Huckabee has suggested is also intriguing--to improve our national infrastructure (such as roads and bridges). Many American jobs would be created by requiring the use of US materials and labor. People would benefit from these improved systems for years to come.

It seems to make much more sense to look further ahead than just a couple months. We will soon forget what we bought with our rebate check, but just think of what could be done with a little more patience and careful thought.

Who won the debate?

This is a very interesting video of a focus group who watched the debate the other night.

A Biased Debate

I was totally disgusted by the moderating of the CNN Republican debate in CA. Mike Huckabee and Ron Paul were barely included in the discussions. Anderson Cooper blatently cut off these candidates after a very short amount of time and then let Romney and McCain ramble on for minutes. At least Huckabee stood up for himself during the debate and was able to communicate part of his message in spite of the bias. The most disappointing thing is that Anderson shot down the ones who actually had something to say to make the debate interesting. I thought a debate was supposed to be an honest exchange of ideas. It is unfortunate that America was robbed of a good solid debate by silencing candidates who make thought-provoking comments. Even if I may disagree with some of Ron Paul's statements, I still think he should be allowed the opportunity to state his opinion.

The Republican race is still far from over although the media would like everyone to believe that this is just a 2-person race between Romney and McCain. However, the reality is that in terms of delegate count the story has not been told. Huckabee has strong support in southern states, which could earn him a lot of delegates. The main problem is that the media is portraying him as not having a chance, which is absolutely not true. Don't buy the lie that he can't win. Now is not the time to switch because you don't think he has a chance. Now is the time to stand up and support Huckabee by voting, volunteering, or donating.

Rewarding Irresponsibility?

There is a local insurance company's slogan that is "Rewarding Responsibility." That is a pretty good principle to stand on. I think most people would agree that the fundamental purpose of government is to encourage good behavior and punish evil. Sometimes I think that we get a little confused as to what we should expect from the government and what its role should be. Should the government bail people out for making poor decisions? For example, the housing industry is struggling right now because people made some poor decisions. Is it the government's responsibility to keep people from foreclosures? I know it sounds harsh, but I don't think so. That would be rewarding bad behavior on both the part of the borrower and the lender, which in turn, punishes those who have maintained good behavior. Perhaps it could be argued that the government should have stepped in sooner to punish the bad behavior of the lenders before this happened, but now to bail them out would be inferring that what they did was not their fault.

Objective observers of the housing market predicted that it was overinflated because of the low interest rates and easy credit. However, many people chose to ignore the signs because they were hoping to make a bunch of money. The market will eventually correct itself. Yes, some banks and some people will probably lose in the process, but that is the risk they took when they decided to loan/borrow high-risk mortgages.

There are some Presidential hopefuls encouraging a bailout of the mortgage industry, but I don't think there is a enough money in the already depleted coffers to easily remedy this situation. Plus, as I said above it will only continue to encourage irresponsibility.

FYI: Listen to this interesting interview on NPR that I heard in December.

Does it really matter?

I have had people ask me several times "Does a President's position on abortion really matter? They can't really do anything about it anyway." My immediate response is, "Yes, his/her position matters a lot." Sure, the President might not be able to immediately stop abortion-on-demand, but there are two big reasons to vote for a pro-life Presidential candidate. The first is that his/her approach to the issue is surely telling of their view of the value of human life. Don't we want a President that will truly believe these words of the Declaration of Independence, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness"? Shouldn't unborn children be given the right to life? The fundamental view that life is precious and given by God is something ingrained into the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence. If we take away the respect for life, we have undermined one of the foundational principles of this nation. The President is also able make a significant influence on this issue through the the appointment of Supreme Court Justices. So, yes, a Presidential candidate's position on this issue really does matter. (Mike Huckabee's position on this issue is another reason I support him.)

A pro-life President alone will not be able put an end to reverse Roe vs Wade. We all need to speak out for those who don't have a voice. There is an interesting video suggesting that even the smallest voice may make a huge impact.

An Overlooked Issue

Well the results are in from the NH primary. Everyone knows the big stories from it regarding Hillary and McCain. Mike Huckabee did quite well finishing 3rd when just last week the polls showed him in 4th or 5th. He is definitely gaining momentum and is being noticed by both Democrats and Republicans. In many ways, he is a different kind of candidate--one that neither party really knows how to handle. I am extremely excited about Huckabee as a candidate. Call me a little crazy, but I have been watching a bunch of YouTube videos of him and try to catch him on the debates and interviews. It seems that every time I see him, I am impressed. He is quick on his feet, holds up well under pressure, and seems like he is actually enjoying himself. If you haven't seen Mike Huckabee speak, at least take a look at this video posted on YouTube.

The one issue that is rarely mentioned or discussed by the press is about Israel. Israel is and will continue to be a pivotal issue in the years ahead. If a national leader does not have a sound approach, he/she will fail miserably at home. I am actually concerned about the current administration's methods to "bring peace" to Israel by entertaining the idea of splitting up the land again. It could be a total disaster. Mike Huckabee is the only candidate I have found that actually appears to understand the importance of supporting Israel and is committed to doing so. He is opposed to the common notion that Israel must give up land to bring about peace. Every time Israel has conceded land, it has only brought about more problems. "Land for peace" is not a viable solution. This may be the most significant issue of the entire race, but no one is talking about it.

Watch this video of an interview between Huckabee and Wolf Blitzer on CNN on the Israel situation.

I Like Mike!

I have been very fascinated with the Presidential politics this year for several reasons. The main reason is that it is not totally predictable (although the media likes to act like it is and then they change their pick). It is still very fluid in both parties, which I think has been very good for the political process. It has allowed real discussion of serious issues instead of people being corralled along "party lines." Maybe this year we will get a candidate who has actually thought "outside of the box" a little bit. I am hoping for one anyway. That is why I am supporting Mike Huckabee--he is one candidate who appears to have approached issues with some critical thought before spewing out an expected "party line." Yes, perhaps there are others who are outside the box as well, but I actually like most of the conclusions Gov. Huckabee has reached on the issues. His principles appear to align with Scriptural principles, and it has been shown time and again that when Biblical principles are properly applied, all of society (not just small sectors) will benefit. Take a look at him and see if you might agree too. I want someone who will take practical approaches to issues. So many politicians know how to speak rhetoric with no reasonable plan of action. The media is trying to paint a very flat picture of him, but I think they will have a hard time denying the fact that he is actually a very well-rounded candidate who has fresh ideas and the interests of the people in mind.


NOTE: No political figure will be able to solve all the problems in this world. Only God can do that.