Monday's Reputation Revisited

I couldn't possibly care less about politics on a such a splendid long weekend. The True Finns gained amazing share of the votes last weekend but fortunately I managed to process my anger, frustration and disappointment during the 3-day work week (much of the working time was indeed spent reading blogs, following social media and trying to understand what the heck is going on in the Finns' head, and yes, I became a member of the Green party as well!) and was able to completely relax during this 5 -day weekend.

These sunny Mondays spent on the terrace of Le Pain Quotidien (love it!) with bio-croissant, Le Monde and International Herald Tribune (and actually enough time to read them thoroughly instead of reading the old news throughout the following week) and then on my own terrace are really good for the usual reputation of Monday (I'm afraid, Tuesday will have a drop in popularity though) and for my tan as well.


I have to say that although the Easter weekend doesn't usually make me search for my inner spirituality, this weekend has taken me to the religious world through the reading of Confessions d'un Cardinal, our Bookclub's next read and 'the book that the whole Church is talking about' according to the cover (the book also has a Facebook fan page with 3 people liking it, I guess they don't facebook that much in Vatican...). I've been mostly suffering due to my daily dose of 50 pages of an anonymous cardinal's confessions as I've become to learn that the Catholic religion nor its Vatican leaders do not interest me. By the way, I would really wish the editor of the book to reconsider the title as after 400 pages I'm still waiting impatiently some scandalous scoops...

Nevertheless, one interesting idea comes through the reading of the confessions and if I understand it correctly (to be honest, I haven't been reading that carefully) it would mean that in order to still be appealing to people, the Church should be in service of the poor and counterbalance the nefarious effects of the capitalist globalisation directed by money and business only. Indeed, who could better defend the disadvantaged of the world than the Church that doesn't need to worry about the electoral results or economic cycles?

Hmm, I didn't really mean to write about religion, rather about sunny Mondays and how we should only work 4 days a week and have 3-day weekends...

Election Fever

The Finns are electing a new parliament on Sunday. I've got pretty excited about the elections even if I haven't really been following the political debates in Finland. Actually, I believe it's better for my nerves considering the rise in popularity of the True Finns, the anti-immigration, anti-EU party that has nothing else to propose than negative attitude and nationalist (I'm not sure if the tone is more Soviet or fascist) art programme. I couldn't handle elegantly the stupidity of the opinions of the candidates (nor of the citizens voting). Well, the minor problem of democracy is that we get a parliament that we deserve, nothing more.

I went to vote in Brussels last week (and got to buy some Finnish delicacies, like our Easter dessert mämmi, at the same time). I had prepared myself with a few election surveys even though I was already pretty sure of whom I wanted to vote. The choice of a political party was easy as my principal concern in the world is environment (only in the second position is my professional concern: inequality). Later, I tried to counsel my Mother on the good candidates in her preferred party (in order to minimize the chances of some non-educated ice hockey player's wife...). To my great surprise, she finally voted for 'my' candidate as well. Talking about swing-voters... I guess my Father has been rolling his eyes and voted instead for someone who wants to build a nuclear plant in our backyard.

I couldn't vote in the last parlimentary elections as I was traveling in South America and I also missed European elections and some other elections of smaller importance. In fact, the last time I voted was in 2006 in the presidential elections. But as before, the whole election thing makes me want to get more involved in politics or even to become a politician myself. I think I'd be a good one in theory, but I would hate to give up my principles in order to make compromises and to win in some other issues. I would also be too honest and get too frustrated about the slow changes, stupidity and the way politics work in general. Thus, I should congratulate all those politiciens who do their work sincerely not betraying their own beliefs or moral and actually achieving something for the benefit of the society and the citizens (i.e. someone who isn't there only to vote for higher salaries for the MP's).

I've learnt a great deal about politics lately, not because I'm working in the heart of the European Union but because I've been intensely watching the American tv-series West Wing (what a great series it is!). Yesterday, I actually had a moment when I thought of the character of Martin Sheen being the real president of the USA before the image of Obama popped up from the back of my mind. It's a cruel game sometimes and not much is getting done because the incumbent politicians are constantly thinking of the next elections and pleasing lobbies and their constituencies.

Maybe it is after all more efficient to work behind the scenes, to have the powerful role of giving advices to politicians or reporting on what's actually happening in the world. Provide them with the infomation needed to decide wisely on policies, which they possibly cannot understand fully. I've probably been brainwashed during the 4 years of doctoral education, but I honestly think that research (+ a bit of idealism, a hinch of realism, and great deal of vision) should be the beginning of all policies. I just wish that researchers and academics would connect their work more closely to the current happenings and changes of our societies and make some strong political conclusions based on the empirical evidence they have objectively gathered. To follow this idea, I finished my thesis with a chapter titled 'Dear Member of the Parliament'. Not only 'why' question, not only 'how' or 'what' questions, but also the 'so what' question should be included more forcefully in all research conducted in social and political science!