- In his remarks to Finland President Sauli Niinisto, Obama praised the country's heavy metal culture and joked about a possible link between the music genre and good governance in the country.
You're god-damned right metal is good and wholesome.
I've got some Finnish heritage in me. The culture in general celebrates efficiency, equity and a calm rational approach to life. One works to have Sisu, translated to "calm perseverance in the face of adversity", a highly regarded quality, especially in governance. Seems better than appealing to the loud, whiny, reactive side of our culture as so many of us do in the U.S. in the form of Donald Trump. Instead of freaking out at the real world, I'll just pop in Metallica's "And Justice for All" and blow off some steam.
I mean, of course. When Nordic politicians get angry, there's always some homegrown heavy metal to headbang to. After a few songs they're all tuckered out and get to the intermission track to cool off. On that note, heavy metal intermission tracks can be really nice.