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University of Helsinki To Lay Off a Thousand People (yle.fi)
jones_supa writes: University of Helsinki, the place where Linus Torvalds got his degree as well, will reduce staff by 980 people, with 570 being laid off by the end of 2017. In addition, the university will reorganize and incorporate certain divisions including continuing education. Professors, teachers and researchers are criticizing the cuts, which coincide with the university's administrative and educational overhaul. The staff cuts reflect the government's drastic funding cuts to education, which plays one part in the effort of trying to help the difficult economic situation of today's Finland. The university estimates that of the 980 positions, terminations during this coming spring will account for 570 positions. Of the employees to be made redundant, 75 are teaching and research staff and 495 other staff. The rest of the cuts will be spread over the coming years.
How about we don't destabilize countries?
Whose weapons do you think displaced all those refugees?
You think these are big numbers?
First talk about the yearly cost of our war machine.
I hope it makes your flag waiving feel *extra* good to be heartless after we caused this.
These are small incidental costs we are pushing of on others compared to what we are paying ourselves to cause it.
Who's that?
So, Vladimir Putin, who's used ultra-nationalist sentiment to stir up shit in other former Soviet satellite nations in order to give cover to an invasion, has his personal news agency telling us how much trouble Finland is in because of "refugees".
Damn, there's nothing new under the sun, is there? Next we'll be hearing how the Jews are defiling the morals of women in towns all across Belarus.
You are welcome on my lawn.
How convenient an argument is this?
Talk about callus excuses.
Do you feel totally absolved of all responsibility yet?
Did you tie yellow ribbons?
Did you get a vengeance hard on for 9-11?
Think about what our world would be like right now if we spent all this money on education and infrastructure.
We have been feeding weapons into the middle east for years as an extension of the cold war and the more we put in the more flood in from other countries.
"It was Ok to go to war in the first place, it was OK to play out our conflicts in other countries, and the only problem was we didn't war enough."
Same old shit, we pay through the nose to kill people we don't know for little or no gain.
War is not an investment, and your style of thinking and continued support of war mongers makes you responsible for the deaths of men, women, and children.
You can dress it up anyway you like.
If it was up to me I would move you there and see how glib you are.
This bigoted shite is moded up as insightful? Who's running this place Trump???
Build a Man a Fire, and He'll Be Warm for a Day. Set a Man on Fire, and He'll Be Warm for the Rest of His Life.
...Muslim immigrants. They hang onto a religiously-driven cultural conservatism and reject the more liberal cultural values of their host country...
As opposed to, say, Catholic immigrants from Poland coming to UK? Or Jewish and Italian immigrants that came to the States in the past? The first generation will very often cling on to the culture they grow up with, but as we have seen many times, their children, by and large, adapt to their new country - if they are not kept out. But if you are met with suspicion and hostility, like for example they Turkish immigrants in Denmark a couple of decades ago, or the refugees now, then it is quite hard to feel welcome, and as a reaction you keep out.
...abandon their cultural and religious practices that were incompatible with their host country or already had a culture and values similar to the host country.
Yeah, they are just not like us, with their murky skin and garlic-breath, is that what you are saying? Why would they have to abandon their identity? That is an absurd and shameful thing to demand, and it is designed solely to ensure that muslims understand that you think they are somehow lower than you. We in the West would hardly feel it was reasonable to have to abandon our culture and identity in a similar situation. You are simply being mean and rather despicable.
Immigrants are people just like us, except they are quite often in a desperate situation. Some may be criminals, sure, but most are fairly good people; they don't expect to be waited on, they just want a small chance to survive, but people like you would rather see them and their children drown in the Mediterranian than reach out and give them a hand, am I right?
Of course we shouldn't just throw open the doors and let them in just like that; but we can much better than we do at the moment. We could, for example, emphasize that a permit to settle is a contract - we let them in and help them get started, and in return they have to make serious efforts to integrate well into society. There is no need to abandon your culture - living in London I know that, at least; I wade knee-deep in mosques, Hindu temples, Buddhist temples, synagogues, etc, not to mention a large number of Christian churches. They don't seem to be plotting to kill me.
But even then what you're arguing for is that Scandinavia needs and wants is economic expansion via labor pool expansion, not that there's something missing from it socially and culturally that the contributions of conservative Islam.
One of the things I hear quite often in the news is that there is not going to be enough of working age to support the growing number of people in retirement. So, we either have to get used to working significantly longer before we retire, or we need more people of working age. Unless, of course, we start euthanising people of a certain age; I am not convinced that this would be popular. So, what do we choose? Do we all work until, say, 75, or do we invite people in, who are able and willing?
As for what may be missing in Scandinavian culture - who knows? Perhaps a bit more self-confidence? Or a wider horizon? Look to UK: they have had a huge influx of cultures and immigrants from all over the world, certainly since the days of the Empire. But there is no mistaking Britishness: it is very distinctive. Immigrants have come in, made their mark, and become British.