Once upon a time, a Finnish Prime Minister dancing at a party would have been a local story and not much more. That was then and this is now. Finland wants to be a NATO member and they've complained about Russian aircraft violating their air space. Here is the story:
The airspace violation comes as Finland seeks accession to NATO, the U.S.-led military alliance Russia has described as a threat to its security.
Finland and neighboring Sweden indicated that they would join NATO due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February, which both Stockholm and Helsinki strongly opposed. Unlike Sweden, however, Finland shares an 800-mile border with Russia and is less than 100 miles from Saint Petersburg, Russia’s second-largest city.
If ultimately admitted to NATO, Finland’s territory would roughly double the length of the military alliance’s border with Russia. Russian officials, including former President Dmitry Medvedev, have warned that the Kremlin could increase its force posture in its Kaliningrad exclave along the Baltic Sea in response.
So the dancing video does raise serious questions about the centre-left Social Democratic Party prime minister.
First, how serious is Sanna Marin? To be fair, it was a leaked video, but is anything private anymore? Didn't Marin realize that partying and dancing with a man not her husband would generate some reaction? It's fair to ask if she is serious or sober enough to handle an emergency had one arisen? Can you imagine a call to the White House:
"Mr. President, Finland here"
"Yes what's in the background"
"A little hip hop and alcohol but I need some airplanes to stop the Russians"
Second, how is this image of the "wild and crazy" gal going to play in the NATO negotiations? It cannot be good. I understand that some of her supporters say that she is entitled to a good time but standards are different when you are the prime minister.
So let the Finnish people decide on their Prime Minster's future. Nevertheless, the parents of the U.S. soldiers, who could be called to defend Finland may be saying that it's a dangerous world out there and serious people should be running things these days.
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Ron was the lead singer on "Sugar sugar" by The Archies, a top selling song from 1969.
P.S. You can listen to my show. If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.