Why Can't We Be Like the Finns?

Published on Monday, August 29, 2005 by the Providence Journal (Rhode Island) by Robert G. Kaiser, Posted on Commondreams



Finland is a leading example of the northern European view that a successful, competitive society should provide basic social services to all its citizens at affordable prices or at no cost. This isn't controversial in Finland; it's taken for granted. For a patriotic American like me, the Finns present a difficult challenge: If we Americans are so rich and so smart, why can't we treat our citizens as well as the Finns do?

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