Demonstration Demonstrated the Selfishness of the Demonstrators

A World Rally Championship event is currently taking place in Jyväskylä, Finland. In connection with this, the Finnish branch of Extinction Rebellion, known as Elokapina, organized a protest without prior notice—in other words, an illegal demonstration—intended to disrupt the event. While the incident caused little actual disturbance to the rally itself, it demonstrated how little these identity politics-driven activists care about the law or other people.

This phenomenon is far from new. In fact, it has become an almost permanent feature of major sporting events (example). And it’s likely only a matter of time before the situation escalates to the point where the highlight of someone’s career—perhaps even the culmination of a lifetime dedicated to sport—is ruined.

That’s why it’s important that the activists who protested in Jyväskylä are brought to court, and that the full extent of penalties allowed by law be applied, to make clear that their actions are not acceptable. At the same time, lawmakers in Finland and elsewhere should revise legislation so that the threshold for disrupting major sporting events is raised as high as possible.

Previous thoughts on the same topic:
Finnish Branch of Extinction Rebellion Faces Possible Ban
Eco-Fascist Blackmail: Threats of Sabotage Loom Over the World Ski Championships
Criminal Attack Against Finnish Democracy

Finnish Branch of Extinction Rebellion Faces Possible Ban

Finnish Member of Parliament Kaisa Garedew (Finns Party) considers the citizens' initiative to ban Elokapina a very welcome proposal. She justified her view by stating that Elokapina - the Finnish branch of Extinction Rebellion - has caused all kinds of difficulties and costs to society in recent years: blocking Helsinki's main street, defacing the valuable pillars of the Parliament House, engaging in civil disobedience, and wasting the resources of the judiciary and the police. Additionally, a member of the movement has publicly fantasized about assassinating Minister of Finance Riikka Purra (Finns Party).

Last October, the National Police Board announced that it was considering filing a lawsuit to dissolve Elokapina and was currently gathering evidence for the case. Thus, the citizens' initiative can also be seen as supporting police actions.

MP Garedew also pointed out—at the very least, justifiably—that "if Elokapina were truly more interested in the environment than in spectacles involving illegal actions, it would leave innocent Finns alone and focus its efforts on countries that genuinely destroy nature and whose pollution levels are a real problem."

It remains to be seen whether Elokapina's activities will be banned in Finland. Nevertheless, I am glad that the operations of activist organizations that function by destroying private and public property and disrupting people's lives are now being questioned. Such organizations are unnecessary in a country with a functioning democracy, where all people already have freedom of speech and the right to peaceful protest.

Previous thoughts on the same topic:
Criminal Attack Against Finnish Democracy
Why Were Violent Protests Acceptable for George Floyd but Not for the UK Child Murders?
Challenges of democracy: Reflections on political violence and rhetoric in Finnish politics

Eco-Fascist Blackmail: Threats of Sabotage Loom Over the World Ski Championships

Norwegian eco-fascists are planning to disrupt the so-called "king’s race" of the Trondheim World Championships, the 50-kilometer ski race. The threat is serious, as these so-called activists have previously attempted to sabotage ski competitions.

The group behind the threat, Folk mot fossilmakta, has stated that they will cause disturbances unless their two conditions are met. These conditions are as follows:

1. All visible logos and advertisements from fossil fuel companies must be removed.
2. A short informational video about the treaty to stop the spread of fossil fuels must be played on large screens throughout the entire World Championships.

In other words, this is not just a demand—Folk mot fossilmakta has made a "Godfather-style offer you can’t refuse." They are blackmailing the organizers of the World Championships, threatening to destroy them—or in this case, the competition that both the organizers and the world’s best skiers have painstakingly and expensively prepared for.

It remains to be seen how the organizers of the World Championships will respond to this extortion. The easiest option for them would, of course, be to comply with the demands and fulfill the wishes of the eco-fascists. However, the problem with such an approach is that giving in to this kind of mafia-like behavior would grant it significant visibility—leading to even more similar threats in various events for increasingly bizarre reasons in the future.

* * *

The organizers’ headaches are further compounded by the fact that the "king’s race" in cross-country skiing is set to take place on a long 8.3-kilometer course, making it nearly impossible to guard completely. This remains true even though the eco-fascists will most likely try to maximize their visibility by staging their attack near TV cameras.

This is because, in mass start races, cameras are positioned to capture the entire course, meaning that sabotage can be carried out virtually anywhere. And the situation is further complicated by the fact that the 50-kilometer races are held twice in Trondheim—once for men and once for women.

It remains to be seen how the International Ski Federation and the Norwegian organizers will respond to the eco-fascist mafia’s threat. Will they give in to the blackmail to ensure that the competition doesn’t turn into a disaster? Or will they trust that law enforcement—ultimately responsible for maintaining order in the kingdom—will prevent Folk mot fossilmakta from disrupting the event?

* * *

In the long run, if the eco-fascists succeed in their sabotage or if their demands are met, it would encourage similar demands and disruptions in the future. And not just in sports competitions, but in all kinds of events where visibility can be gained by disturbing large crowds or causing other forms of damage.

That’s why it would be ideal if Norwegian society ensured that the blackmailers had no opportunity to interpret the events during the World Championships to their advantage. In other words: 1. Prevent sabotage, 2. Ensure that any attempted disruption receives no more media coverage than a brief mention. 3. Above all, make sure that such actions are not portrayed in a positive light.

In short, it should be made clear that a so-called "offer you can’t refuse" has no place in modern times—and that resorting to such tactics will not advance any cause.

Previous thoughts on the same topic:
The Relationship Between the Professor and Teemu Selänne
The activists sought excitement and a boost to their self-esteem in the Stockholm Diamond League
A young woman skiing in a swimsuit caused a controversy among women

Criminal Attack Against Finnish Democracy

This morning, the Finnish Extinction Rebellion, in collaboration with the Swedish group Återställ Våtmarker, defaced the Finnish Parliament House to gain visibility for their political views. That is why I won’t discuss their goals in this writing but will briefly present my own opinion on their actions.

Defacing the Parliament House was a direct attack on Finnish democracy, which is based on decisions made by representatives elected by the people. In making these decisions, all political perspectives are represented according to the weight they hold among the Finnish population.

However, this is not acceptable to the Extinction Rebellion activists and the Swedes involved in the defacement, as they demand for themselves a dictatorial right to decide on the nation’s common affairs. In other words, through their actions, they appear to be criminal usurpers of power who should receive the maximum legal punishment for their deeds and be held financially responsible for the costs - estimated to exceed 10 000 euros - incurred.

In this context, the Kone Foundation, established by the Finnish elevator manufacturer Kone Corporation, finds itself in a peculiar situation. It has publicly funded the activities of Extinction Rebellion, which, at least in the public's mind, makes it partially responsible for what happened. And it doesn't help that you say the funding you approved hasn't been earmarked for defacing the Parliament House.

In this situation, I expect the foundation to take responsibility. That is, to publicly announce the immediate cessation of its funding for the Finnish Extinction Rebellion, to refuse any involvement in paying for the damages caused by the activists, and to unequivocally condemn their actions.

Although the Kone Corporation is not directly responsible for the actions of its foundation, it would be good if the company also condemned the incident and, in one way or another, reprimanded its foundation for its reckless use of funds. This, of course, only if the company supports representative democracy and does not feel sympathy toward criminals—and even then, only if they care about their international reputation.

Finally, I do not believe that the action taken today will increase the acceptability of the activists' goals among ordinary people. On the contrary, it will probably - and hopefully - turn against them.

Previous thoughts on the same topic:
The Relationship Between the Professor and Teemu Selänne
Challenges of democracy: Reflections on political violence and rhetoric in Finnish politics
Is the Finnish left-wing radicalizing?

The Relationship Between the Professor and Teemu Selänne

On the discussion forum of a Finnish newspaper Uusi Suomi, a Green municipal councilor referred to me by writing that "'Professor' is indeed a Selänne". The perspective was interesting in that I have not been very interested in the life of the former Finnish hockey star.

Then I noticed a small article about Teemu Selänne in Ilta-Sanomat. According to it, he has received US citizenship and has been active on social media. Through the newspaper's reporter, he conveyed a few interesting comments to us Finns.

In the first, he explained his view on Extinction Rebellion: "It's not about not accepting demonstrations. That's not true. The criticism was about how they are organized... In my opinion, demonstrations are a great thing, but breaking the law and making people's lives difficult is not acceptable."

In the second, he commented on the intellectual dishonesty of the green-left: "The whining is quite loud sometimes. It's funny that those who whine demand freedom of opinion and speech, but suddenly differing opinions are not okay."

In the third, he reminded us of the rules of societal debate: "If you have something to say about a matter, it needs to be said. But there's no point in coming to explain that I am an asshole or something about our children. That's not okay."

In the fourth, he addressed the presidential elections in his new home country, USA: "It's vague that in a country of 330 million people, there are no other candidates than two old men... It might be appropriate to head towards younger candidates and a bit of a new style."

In the fifth, he shared his view on society: "I still believe that the state should interfere in people's lives as minimally as possible. Individual power and personal decisions are the most important."

In the sixth, he commented on how the media chooses sides: "It's a bit like listening only to the prosecutor in court. You don't get the right picture. When I started following politics, I was told to watch both channels, CNN and Fox, equally. Those who only watch one side do not have a true picture of what is happening."

All in all, the article in Ilta-Sanomat conveyed Teemu Selänne's societal views in such a healthy way that any reasonably sensible person would easily agree with the thoughts he expressed. Therefore, I do not mind the characterization of myself recorded in the comments section of Uusi Suomi. Not even because that particular Green municipal politician later claimed in his comment that "the professor's thoughts" are not worth reading.

Instead, I suspect that this is precisely why an exceptionally large number of people reading the discussion clicked on the link to my writing - which in turn led me to find out why there had been an unusually high number of readers for that particular writing on Uusi Suomi.

Previous thoughts on the same topic:
Joe Biden Must Step Aside, But Can a Suitable Candidate Be Found?
Competence of the political left
Correct minister, ridiculous facts

Challenges of democracy: Reflections on political violence and rhetoric in Finnish politics

In Finland, a bloody civil war took place in 1918, in which the political left attempted to seize power. They were unsuccessful, but as a result, the country experienced a period of violent far-right movement for a while, which subsided due to determined action by the political leadership. 

Democracy doesn't seem to be very popular within the Finnish political left of today. This was evidenced earlier this year when the trade unions, closely associated with the Social Democratic Party (SDP), organized political strikes with a high cost to the economy.

Yesterday, we saw even more serious evidence of this when two men waving red flags approached Member of Parliament Sebastian Tynkkynen (Finn´s party) aggressively at a campaign event in Oulu, prompting police intervention.

Tynkkynen shared on his social media that this wasn't his first experience with violence. He mentioned, "Once, a leftist girl in Lahti targeted me with political violence, hitting me in the head with her fist and receiving a conviction for assault. Within the context of Extinction Rebellion, I've been attacked three times."

One would hope that leftist politicians condemn political violence in general and the events in Oulu in particular before the actions of their supporters escalate into irreversible harm.

Furthermore, it would be desirable for the left-wing of politics to refrain from using aggressive rhetoric, as was seen at the SDP's May Day event a week and a half ago. This is because many, with lesser understanding - of which there are plenty among left-wing supporters - may be incited to action after hearing such rhetoric.

Previous thoughts on the same topic: History of Finland XIII: The far-right's rebellion History of Finland XII: Bloody civil war Increase of violence by youngsters in Finnish towns