pablo
15-04-2002, 14:42
HELSINKI, Finland -- Looking at Anssi Vanjoki's speeding ticket, many Finns are wondering whether their egalitarian spirit has taken them over the edge.
True, Vanjoki was driving 46.5 m.p.h. in a 30-m.p.h. zone. But $103,000?
The reason the penalty was so harsh is that traffic fines in Finland are based not just on the severity of the offence, but on the offender's income. Vanjoki is a senior executive of Nokia, the world's largest cell phone maker, and his fine was assessed on a 1999 income of $5.2 million.
A court later slashed it to $5,245, but not before Finns flew into a rage.
"There is something rotten in our fining system and it needs changing," says MP Leena Harkimo, one of 70 lawmakers in the 200-member Parliament who want the law amended.
Lawmaker Annika Lapintie says the law is a deterrent and it would be unjust if the poor and wealthy pay the same because the wealthy wouldn't feel it.
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kinda makes sense i'm guessing , it should effect everyone thr same monatary wise.
True, Vanjoki was driving 46.5 m.p.h. in a 30-m.p.h. zone. But $103,000?
The reason the penalty was so harsh is that traffic fines in Finland are based not just on the severity of the offence, but on the offender's income. Vanjoki is a senior executive of Nokia, the world's largest cell phone maker, and his fine was assessed on a 1999 income of $5.2 million.
A court later slashed it to $5,245, but not before Finns flew into a rage.
"There is something rotten in our fining system and it needs changing," says MP Leena Harkimo, one of 70 lawmakers in the 200-member Parliament who want the law amended.
Lawmaker Annika Lapintie says the law is a deterrent and it would be unjust if the poor and wealthy pay the same because the wealthy wouldn't feel it.
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kinda makes sense i'm guessing , it should effect everyone thr same monatary wise.