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Swastika Ring Honors War Dead!
In the United States, the war dead are honored with the Medal of Honor.
In Britain war veterans are honored with a red paper poppy.
In Finland, the public is supporting its war heroes with a silver swastika ring.
That's correct. A Swastika Ring. In Finland!
The U.K. Telegraph reports today that whereas in most countries, the swastika is forever linked to the horrors of Hitler's regime, but for centuries in Finland it has been a symbol of good luck - during the Second World War, Finnish military aircraft even sported blue swastikas as they fought the Nazis.
So when the Finnish War Veterans Association sought a new way of raising funds for the nation's 80,000 Second World War veterans, the obvious choice was a replica of its 1940 Air Defense ring, complete with swastika, rosette and stylized wings.
Shoppers can now buy one of the 60,000 silver rings in supermarkets or online for about £40.
"We thought they would make great Christmas presents for men, or for young people if their grandparents fought in the war," said Pia Mikkonen, the head of the Finnish Veterans' Association.
She added that sales had not been as strong as she would have liked.
"At the moment we've sold 16,000, and I would have hoped to sell 20,000," she said.
Finnish actors and sports stars, including Marko Kemppainen, the Olympic shooting silver medalist, have lined up to make television advertisements promoting the replica ring.
The original Air Defense ring, which was made of iron, was given to couples who donated their own gold wedding bands to the military to help finance the war effort.
Nevertheless, the Finnish troops heroically held off enemy attacks for four months in appalling winter conditions.
When Hitler turned on the Soviet Union in 1941, Finland allied itself with the Nazis, and with the help of thousands of German troops, managed to eject the occupiers.
As the fortunes of war swung again in 1944, and faced with another Soviet invasion, Finnish troops turned on the Nazis, forcing them out of the country.
Despite the Nazis' adoption of the swastika - which is also a Hindu symbol of peace - Ms Mikkonen insisted that it remained untarnished by history.
"There hasn't been confusion here in Finland," she said. "For us Finns, it's not a negative symbol."
As a press release from the Veterans Association said: "The emblems used in the air defense rings bear no relation to swastikas used in other countries."
Back in 1940, Finland stood alone and heavily outnumbered against an onslaught from Soviet forces.
Nevertheless, the Finnish troops heroically held off enemy attacks for four months in appalling winter conditions.
When Hitler turned on the Soviet Union in 1941, Finland allied itself with the Nazis, and with the help of thousands of German troops, managed to eject the occupiers.
As the fortunes of war swung again in 1944, and faced with another Soviet invasion, Finnish troops turned on the Nazis, forcing them out of the country.
Amazing! This would make a great Jeopardy question!
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