Rumination: Social Welfare and Social Behavior or Expression in Finland

The freedom of self-expression is quite interesting here, because, as Josh tells me, Finland is a social-welfare state, equalizing the socio-economics within the country (well I guess it's more economically..I'm not really sure about the "socio" part). So with this welfare that takes care of everyone, you get this financially equalizing effect. I am looking for the seedier parts of the city, for communities of young people where the coffee shops are cheap, for people struggling. I haven't found them yet.


Most families own summer cottages, where they spend the season whiling away, and enjoying an escape from typical life. I told our Finnish friends that this was very uncommon in the U.S. and that only wealthy families would ever be able to afford this type of additional house. Their responses treated cottages as if they were just entirely normal.


Additionally, the saunas here are really popular, and they are unisex, and everyone is naked. (This isn't self-expression, then, necessarily, but can be looked at as a gender-equalization, thus making co-ed naked saunas an non-socially progressive thing. Just normal. People also maintain that the sw-system here promotes a "female-friendly gender regime", perhaps further equalizing power in gender interactions and therefore allowing for naked interaction to be less provocative [if women are seen less as objects, if they have higher status, more respect, and power, then perhaps the image of their naked bodies also warrant these things.)


The way that I thought that individualism and individual self-expression would play into an equalizing, social-welfare state, isn't exactly what happens here. When we walk around the city, Josh points out the dull colors of the outfits. I notice the non-descript and modest architecture that seems purely functional, not decorative or celebratory, at all. This seems to fit the idea that a sw-state affects social equalization. Josh also said that Finnish people like their physical distance, are not at all socially outgoing, don't really use a lot of facial expressions in public (walking around, faces seem stern--effect of the weather, maybe?), no one crosses streets unless the walk sign has changed. I made sense of this by thinking that if people start with equal-ish means, then perhaps they only stay within equalish grounds. Doesn't necessarily make sense that an equalization of social and financial resources would lead to an equalization of social behavior.
But now here I am in the library, and each kid in here has his or her own, unique style. They are all dressed quirky, some display socially deviant accessories like tattoos, wild piercings, freaky hair. So instead of stream-lining behavior, I see with the younger crowd more individual expression and comfort with individual expression (not the desperate cry to be recognized as an individual that I see in the States), and I can't quite fit that into the larger, Finnish equation. Is it just the activity of the youth, that youth expresses and is allowed to express more than other people? Will they change drastically and conform like all the other people on the street when they get older? Is this a new, contemporary phenomenom--is Finnish culture changing, and, if so, how does the sw-system play into that?


Perhaps it is the blanket of base equality (starting with equal resources) that allows the youth to express individually. Like upon the base of sameness, this is the perfect catapult to express. And therefore individual expression is mandatory, is possible for everyone, is a necssary part of Finnish life. What's confusing is the disconnect between what I see in the streets and what I see in the buildings of the University. Maybe students are typically not out because they are in classes and studying, etc. Maybe this is a particularly big university town so the youth acts more strongly, socially. Perhaps there's a large international student population that leans the culture of the student population in a progressive direction.

Perhaps we are seeing the wrongs sides or parts of the city. I am confused. Is this a free society or closed? What forces are acting here to make the Finns act in such opposing ways? Does the social welfare system even have anything to do with it?



Or maybe I need to ask larger questions, like does a social-welfare state lead to social egalitarianism? SW-system + what in Finland = the behavior I observed? Is it and how is it diff from behav in other sw-states?



Also, I really need to look into these beggar women in Helsinki. They are all dark-skinned, wear long, flowing skirts and scarves tied around their heads. They seem to have a community: I often see 2 or 3 of them together. Where did they come from? What brought them here? How do they play into the social make-up of Helsinki? What do people think of them?