Madam, - I agree with Barry O'Donnell (June 10th) that many similarities can be identified between Finland and Ireland, such as their peripheral location on the edges of Europe, their histories of colonial subjugation, and their experience as agrarian countries that have matured into prosperous developed societies only towards the end of the 20th century
However, from the perspective of living in these parts, I feel Fintan O'Toole's assertions (Opinion, June 7th) are mostly correct, for besides Finland, Norway is still a good choice for comparison - certainly better than the UK, from which comparisons for how things are done in Ireland tend to be drawn.
There is no disputing that Norway and Finland have managed to come further under their own initiative than Ireland since independence in terms of quality of infrastructure and use of resources. Mr O'Toole mentions world-class telecommunications and hydro-electrical technologies as apt examples of the indigenous creativity these countries have exported to the rest of the world.
If Mr O'Donnell were to visit Norway or Finland, he would observe that in terms of quality of life and social cohesion, these countries have managed to avoid the stark social divisions epitomised in Ireland by the bleak housing estates of the poor. This is partly because these countries are thankfully untainted by the Anglo-Saxon class system, and partly because of their Nordic social welfare systems. - Yours, etc.
NIALL O'DONOGHUE, Narva, Finland.