Wishes to hell by novelist Itkonen

A novelist Juha Itkonen told to a Finnish afternoon-newspaper that he yielded to passing Nazi-demonstrators that they should go to Hell. Thereafter his seven-year old child got frightened and started to cry. The story describes that the reason was his fathers behavior and not the Nazis themselves, but the title was designed so that a reader understood otherwise. Clickbait jounalism, what else?

There was, however, an interesting point in the article. That is because the novelist was wondering that "what should I have done? Stand there calm and correct just like there would not have been anything special ongoing? At least the boys saw, that you do not need - or you are not even allowed - to accept everything."

I do not know Itkonen´s political views, but his attitude is typical to many Finnish cultural figures and other urban elitists - like a left-wing novelist and writer Pirkko Saisio had to learn, when she brought up her own sober thoughts about the stuffy thoughts of feminists. I mean that - using the wording of  novelist Itkonen - it is a problem if you do not need or you are not even allowed - to accept everything. "Everything" meaning here all those who have views differing from your own.

It is true that neo-Nazis are disgusting creatures. Wretches who are fantasizing that something good would grow out from an ideology, that led to pogroms and to the second world war with tens of millions losses of human life. So, something similar to communists, whose ideology also led to wide pogroms and self-created famine.

In Finland the total number of neo-Nazis are between 60 and 70, which in my opinion is 60 to 70 too many. On the other hand, we have two communist parties, that together got 8 659 votes in the last elections. That is 8 659 votes too much.

Despite what I wrote above, I am strongly supporting the freedom of speech. And that is why I do not loudly wish journeys to Hell for neo-Nazi nor communist demonstrators. Instead I give them a right to walk in peace and embarrass themselves with the absurdity of their ideology.

They deserve the right for that by the general tolerance and freedom of speach, and also because of the constitutional law of Finland. In section 12 it says that "everyone has the freedom of expression. Freedom of expression entails the right to express, disseminate and receive
information, opinions and other communications without prior prevention by anyone."

Of course the same constitutional law assures the right of the novelist Itkonen to swear and wish journeys to hell to those passing by. And at the same time scare his little child. The job for us others is then to evaluate why the intolerant behavior of the novelist ended in newspaper pages, and what should we think about that?

I want to end this thought by sharing a comment by a 97-year old veteran of the second world war. According to him the demonstrators during the Independence day of Finland are living proofs for the usefulness of their sufferings in the front. That is because in the Soviet Union organizing that kind of demonstrations would have been considerably more difficult.  It would be great if also novelist Itkonen would have noticed this statement - and learned its deep message.

The original Professor´s thought in Finnish:
Kirjailijan helvettiin-toivotukset päätyivät lehden sivuille