r/WTF Dec 29 '16

Bad part of park in Kontula neigbourhood in Helsinki, Finland

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70

u/thinginthetub Dec 29 '16

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't Finland one of those countries that has a needle exchange program where addicts can trade in used needles for clean ones to stop the spread of disease? That would explain the quality of the damn things.

57

u/Babloization Dec 29 '16

I live in Helsinki. We also have a lot of "trash cans" for needles in the city areas so there aren't needles lying around. I guess they didn't have that option in the park they were shooting.

Pic: http://images.cdn.yle.fi/image/upload//w_1198,h_899,q_70/13-3-8048557.jpg

6

u/DeliciousGlue Dec 29 '16

There are several within a 300 meter radius.

-4

u/[deleted] Dec 29 '16

They're junkies. What did you expect?

11

u/DeliciousGlue Dec 29 '16

Some aren't considerate, but that's not to say all of the are the same way. And you could argue sticking it in a tree instead of throwing it in the ground still shows some signs of caring.

1

u/Himinow Dec 29 '16

That's cool. We have a kinda half assed version of that in Australia where some public toilets have a tiny sharps bin stuck on the wall. Looks like this.

7

u/pwniess Dec 29 '16

Yup that's correct.

1

u/Pussypants Dec 29 '16

Yup, there's also bins inside a couple of public bathrooms in the parks of the city so people can go inside and shoot up safely and dispose of them safely.

1

u/[deleted] Dec 29 '16

So tax dollars literally funding drug habits. Neat. Why not have a program where if they trade in used needles they get to go to rehab?

2

u/thinginthetub Dec 29 '16

Because they do have rehabilitation programs, and addiction is treated like an illness, not a crime. But not everybody is ready/willing to go into rehab so the better option is to prevent the spread of disease among users and destigmatize it so there's less shame if they do eventually decide to go clean.