I was going to write this post ages ago, but I didn't know how to tackle it.
The thing is, I'm utterly disappointed in Finnish people. (Well not entirely, but anyway.) I view Finland as a free and open-minded society where people can be who they want to be without much judgement from other people. Obviously this does not seem to be true when it comes to politicians. For some reason, it seems that politicians are not allowed to have private lives.
The reason I was first going to write this post is this story: 'Finnish FM loses job over texts' So, the story goes that Foreign Minister Kanerva sent over 200 texts to an erotic dancer (OMG!) from, wait for it... his work phone! Oh dear. He should be decapitated for that! NO. So what if he did? It is a very unfortunate thing that this woman decided it was a good idea to give the texts to a yellow press magazine. It probably was for herself, she's got a lot of free publicity out of it. She also ended up causing the FM to lose his job. She must be well proud of herself. (Lately she's been crying in the press saying 'I didn't want this to happen'. Maybe she should've thought about it before she handed the texts to a third party.)
Anyway, what frustrates me more than this dancer giving the texts to a magazine, is the way the gossip press industry works. I know a few people who would want to be journalists and I've even considered it myself, and it just amazes me how people end up working in these magazines and papers. Is it just that when you're not able to get a job as a proper journalist, you've just got to take what is given to you? I just don't understand that total lack of respect for people's privacy.
Right, going back to ex-FM Kanerva texting from his work phone. To me it doesn't matter, I know there are people out there who think it's wrong because it's TAX PAYERS MONEY that pays for that phone. I might be wrong but I've understood that there's only a monthly 'allowance', which is not very big, from the state towards the phone bills. And even so, I bet there are many people out there who misuse whatever benefits they get from their jobs. I know people who have a company car with all the gas payed etc. who use that car for much more than just driving to and from work. Similarly, I do know many people who use their work phones for private stuff. Shockhorror! But a Minister doing that?! That's just unacceptable. PFF.
Another thing that people have commented is that ex-FM Kanerva should not have denied sending the texts in the first place. This maybe true, but take a moment to think about it... In the end, they were private messages that were not meant to be read by anyone else than the two involved (Tukiainen and Kanerva), I'd say he was just trying to defend whatever privacy he had left there. And then when he did admit to sending texts he said that they weren't about erotic in nature,OMG ! LIAR!! Again, I can completely understand he simply tried to hold onto that thin veil of privacy he at that point had left. Maybe, in hindsight, it would have been better for him to admit the texts and the nature of them in the first place, but really, do we care that much? I know I really don't. I still think that whatever texts he sent were private and had nothing to do with his ability to work. And here people will say 'Oh but he cancelled his participation in a meeting in Estonia!' Again, can you really blame him? At that point the media had been after him for about two weeks already, and it really wasn't a major meeting. The texting itself in no way prevented him from doing his job.
Now, the thing is, he had been in the tabloid before about texting to models, dancers and whatnot unnecessary "celebrities". So maybe that was why this thing got so big. Still, it is my firm belief that whatever texts he's been sending and is sending at the moment are his private texts and even if he works for the government, we have no right to know what he'stexting and to whom. What makes this whole scandal even more ridiculous that no one knows what this woman texted back to Kanerva. They've only published a few of Kanerva's texts and we've got no idea how Ms. Tukiainen replied to them. My guess is there has been heavy flirting going on both ways.
The newest thing now is that the editor-in-chief of a Sweden based Finnish newspaper has published texts that the Prime Minister Vanhanen sent to his girlfriend over a year ago. This is possibly even more ridiculous given that she was his GIRLFRIEND at the time. Of course there has been erotic texts back and forth. That's what happens in a normal relationship. PFF.
The most ridiculous thing is that the opposition now has started to say that the government can't be trusted (note: link in Finnish), there are too many scandals and that the weight is too much on private lives. Who can be blamed for this? Surely it is the press. We all make mistakes in who we trust and let close to ourselves. I'd guess most people know at least one person who has betrayed their trust, it's just very unfortunate that it happens to a public figure and ends up in the press. This just frustrates me SO MUCH. As we live in the 21st Century, I'd like to think that people should be free to live outside a nuclear family type of relationships and that people were allowed to be in contact with their sexuality. Sex is the most natural thing there is and it can only be a good thing that people actually talk about it with each other etc. However, I still think that discussions between two people, be it through texts, e-mail or face to face, should be the private property of those two involved and without theconsent of both parties should not under any circumstances be published.
There, I think that's it. Please do comment, as I'm sure at least some of you reading this won't agree with myself.
Oh, I also want to note that I don't want to affiliate myself with the politics of either ex-FM Kanerva or PM Vanhanen. I have met ex-PM Kanerva personally a few times, but the last time I've met him must have been almost 10 years ago now. I've got no real personal link to him though, it just happens that we've been in a few social events at the same time. This post is purely about the ridiculousness of pseudo-celebrities, unhealthy interest in politicians' private lives and the bloody press.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
on ihan pakko kommentoida :) kun katainen pyysi kanervaa ministeriksi, hän pyysi kanervaa lupaamaan ettei tämä enää aiheuttaisi samanlaista "skandaalia" kuin pari vuotta aiemmin tekstaillessaan marika fingerroosille. kanerva lupasi kunnioittaa pyyntöä ja pitää itsensä ruodussa, mutta toisin kävi. ymmärrän että puolueen puheenjohtajan luottamus ministeriin saattaa horjua tällaisen jälkeen.
toiseksi, suomen perustuslaissa on pykälä jossa annetaan ohjeita siitä millainen on sopivaa käytöstä ministerille. ohjeet saattavat ollaa vanhentuneita, mutta niin kauan kuin ne ovat voimassa olisi ehkä syytä pyrkiä noudattamaan niitä.
ehkä pointti on kuitenkin se, että jos on tarpeeksi tyhmä lähetelläkseen tekstiviestejä pornotähdelle joka takuulla vuotaa ne julkisuuteen, ansaitsee todellakin potkut. ;)
Tähän mä vähän luotinkin. :) Mä ihan ymmärrän kyllä kaiken ton, mut mun pointti ehkä loppupeleis on kuitenki se, et minkä ihmeen takia me välitetään? Mun mielestä on vaan ihan naurettavaa miten paljon julkisuutta tämmönen sotku on saanu, kun sillä ei todellisuudessa ole mitään väliä millekään, paitsi ehkä asianomaisille. Ja maailmassa olisi paljon "tärkeämpiäkin" uutisia jne. Skandaalilehdistöllä (tai wotevör) on ihan järjetön valta ja on vaan tosi sääli, että kansaa kiinnostaa enemmän Iken puutarhanhoitoviestit kuin "oikea" politiikka.
Post a Comment