Happy birthday, Finland! I got you a mountain.

January 24, 2017 6:17 AM

Battle for Birthday Mountain (video) A lot of Norwegians want to give Finland a mountain to celebrate 100 years of Finnish independence, moving the national boundary 31 feet. Right now the highest point of Finland is on the side of the mountain-- this would give them the summit as well. Is it legal? Maybe not! But now there's a touching film about it.
posted by athirstforsalt (8 comments total)

Scandinavia, you're so damn charming.
posted by knownassociate at 6:27 AM on January 24, 2017 [4 favorites]

Possibly mentioned in the touching film, but Erna said nei in October.
posted by effbot at 6:33 AM on January 24, 2017

O nei! Sorry for the misinfo. Still a very charming little docu!
posted by athirstforsalt at 6:36 AM on January 24, 2017

One problem with this is that, if it went through, the effect may end up being of Russia getting some strategic high ground on the NATO border once they've annexed Finland.
posted by acb at 6:40 AM on January 24, 2017

Hmm. "Giving a country a mountain for their birthday" sounds charming, but moving Norway's border 40 meters to give Finland an extra 7 meters on their highest-point-in-the-country statistic doesn't sound like such a magical gift to me. I think the original people of the area make a better point: ...with the only objection so far coming from the indigenous Sami community, whose reindeer roam freely across the border and who argue that the land should belong to neither country.
posted by kozad at 7:47 AM on January 24, 2017 [1 favorite]

Previously.
posted by adept256 at 7:53 AM on January 24, 2017 [1 favorite]

Maybe they can hire Tammi Terrell and Marvin Gaye to sing at the ceremony?

(Yes, I know she died 46 years ago, but 2017 owes us for 2016.)
posted by Quindar Beep at 8:31 AM on January 24, 2017

I didn't see the previous post and it is fun to see this now!

Norwegians can be a bit patronizing, but whatever, this is a sweet idea.
posted by mumimor at 11:39 AM on January 24, 2017