economy

How leftist are those in the academia or in the arts?

| Henna Timanttimetsä

My question rises from the strange continuous experience of hearing there are leftist professors who practice leftist ideology in universities and leftist theories are taught more than the conservative ones and that leftist politics is in use in universities. My experience does not back this claim: when system favours conservative mannerisms and silence, I am too radical and annoying, leftism is a lovely flower to look at, if you know what I mean. Marx obviously being one of the most interesting theorists there is what comes to labour rights, so it is only just and right that his theories are known to avoid situation which is present today, where him and his thinking is painted completely malaise, destructive, false and inaccurate. Propaganda is hurtful, disinformation, not trying to understand how better the living and working conditions of the working class. It is more than understandable to learn to know how theory has affected our culture and thinking especially through economics, which is fascinating. How the division is made between the two, left and right, often seems to happen by what and whom is assumed is leftist and heard to be leftist or thinks is leftist. What comes to being conservative, do your clothes tell as it is often times assumed by clothing to which camp you belong?

Art is thought to be occupied by leftists and feminists who look forward, are experimental, openminded and are open to ideas and new people, which strikes me as I should be popular in such an environment. I argue and question too much to be likeable and that is something to me which is characteristic to being politically and intellectually aware and functioning. Such questioning types are met with anger and critique is rendered as annoying complaining. To not question the education system in use, methods, theories etc. is not leftist, it is accepting the current situation of higher education, protecting careers and positions, which to me seemed to be more important than the quality of education provided. It is difficult to be the person who doesn’t go with the flow and like everything, put one’s own financial interests first as is common in the arts and think of people: what a good contact or whom to avoid. All these accusations of leftism ring odd as there is a true and wide gap there between the working class and the middle class and as all know it is still today not that common for someone from working  class to enter university or the arts. My family still has hard time accepting my profession which to them is not a profession: how do you make money, your art is not art etc. There is a huge difference between the working class people and people from the middle class and for people not to think it is odd is odd and someone with working class background such as me, I am odd everywhere, because what is art and there are lot of people who have never met an artist and don’t even want to. This goes on and on. What has middle class contributed to leftism other than theory? Sympathy for the cleaning ladies and welders? That’s funny.

When I go to the environment where I as an artist am supposed to work at, it is not news I do not feel comfortable, welcomed, fit in etc. It is a strange situation and place, which conflict has led me do art that critiques the places of art, education of art, profession of the artist and I write about the paradoxes and clear flaws, intellectual and structural, there are in this field. Situation is stagnant and people like to follow the good old routes to success. Kissing ass? All the beautiful talks and looking like leftists, I am sure you are a very likeable person and will get lots of opportunities…why the working class people avoid and have disinterest towards contemporary art and distrust towards people with higher education? How many working class people do you know Mrs./Mister leftist professor and what are your leftist thoughts on how higher education could be valuable in other ways than just landing a high paying job? What I have witnessed is a mutual contempt and ignorance. For example telling what kind of professions I have done for a living, it is as if I had fell from outer space, poor you, or why don’t you apply for grants. Grants being, taught in university, the number one source of income for an artist, which also sounds very middle class. Are you sure it is good for the art and where does the money come from, who supports the arts the most? How to monetise art has not been ever an issue at any art school only in passing, maybe that is the leftist angle. It is a difficult thing to do, monetise one’s art, when most of the energy goes to realising newly invented ideas that hang in the air and mean nothing to anybody and to me they mean everything. How to monetise something that is your all? It takes character.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When is revolution, irrational right and wrong, 2014. A collection of essays and poems here online where revolution takes fire, writings in doses.

| Henna Timanttimetsä

Foreword: With corrections on language and added thoughts in 2018. Revolution is a moving, evolving thing difficult to define, events are not enough, so what is? I am in hopes that mankind takes up with my plea and effort to rethink revolution the act anew. Humanitarian catastrophes and environmental disasters make the world move at frightening speed to destruction. I’m sure you have noticed. Has it hit your way already? Agreements to do something in ten years is ten years too late. And I am the tool here or am I a button? Revolutionary object ready to hit, instrumental feminism is not just jargon, right. Some people don’t know what hit them or will hit pretty soon. Later.

Abstract
Digging into concept, act and idea of revolution, which we all have constructed in our minds to mean a specific kind of event, maybe we take it for granted what revolution means and understand it plainly as an aggressive social political chaotic act. It is a mass event and making revolution is a necessity setting the world to understand the inevitability of change on attitude level, in action, on every possible level. Though we live in already revolutionized world it is an issue always constant and acute.

I have taken feminist perspective into idea and act of revolution, into changing the world more democratic and equal which work is done around the globe by many as we speak. What are the results of work of activists, dissidents and artists is being on display in social media and other media how things spread fast. My means in comprehending and making the phenomena and act of revolution are written text and art which both have an important role in making social change visible, worthy and active. Easily spreadable manifestos, columns, articles, slogans, songs, poems by which everybody can contribute and be heard. With this work I agitate people to do revolution of wisdom, it takes all of us. No one can and must not be excluded. Happenings of chain reactions for common cause await. Cause of and for us all is to end poverty, exploitation, suffering, abuse, ruling of liars who call themselves bankers, politicians, businessmen and journalists. I wish to bring fire in form of texts which I also have published on my website www.hennajoronen.net. My topics in this thesis are feminism, human rights, war, emotions in making revolution, environment, injustice and historical insights to social reforms, writing political poetry mixing experience and desire, how experience matters, trying to understand despair, birth mechanisms of aggression and violence and why the world is in a situation as it is.

Keywords: expression, experimental, riot, rage, abuse, social rot, corruption, economy, revolution, feminism, poetry, ekpyrosis, world order, war, violence, aggression, emotions, hate, capitalism, communism, ideology, YouTube, Wikipedia, information, knowledge, disinformation, fake news, news

Poetry of mine.

1.1. A questionnaire because I am lost.

How does one experiment academically including one’s art and knowledgeable information to make worthy observations? To make solid worthy new information to follow, think, argue with and comprehend by other artists, students, academics or anyone. Everything is information, there are signs and signals and we have to be able to understand what is going on now and what has happened before. We live in flood of information. Radio­activity is information to our cells as is sunlight and we know this because of scientific studies and results offered for us. I want to be that kind of researcher but I have a brain of an artist. Is this equation impossible: I cherish the contradiction.

Do I discover new information with my current work and how do I measure? I need to have a question to which I try to find an answer. I ask When is revolution? How can I answer to it other than it is ongoing and never­-ending? And how do I know that, what are the measurements? Revolution in my mind is a fact, world is revolutionized and image of the world is made by people who have taken risks and trusted their visions and capabilities. My task is to make this notion of possible comprehensible, the revolutionized world because it is not self­-evident and yet it is present and true. Revolution is to make noticeable positive change which would be commonly happening via people and for people learning their possibilities with their active involvement changing societies for better and making societies function to benefit all. How to make impossible possible?

I need to pick up the parts, acute parts of and for revolution, where the power lies, how does it lie, the idea of power for me and pass the ideas molded forward after seeing and thinking through thoughts, situations and images that revolve and float in the air. My interests one being change of which we talk about, the inevitable and absolute and fear of change, objects of change, forces against it and why it is a mantra. The other is how via accomplishments of revolutions that have passed we come up with new ones and how does idea of making revolution vary. Which deeds make revolution, a revolutionized society and thinking? Which words make it? Is it who speaks them and how? Is it just a decision and dedication to one cause and what that cause can do, choosing a side? What kind of information is important to know altogether and include in writings about making revolution, a manifesto and thesis put together, because I intend to do revolution as I go. One question is how aware are we of the change that we make? To seek change, one has to know what needs to be changed and how things are to be altered. Talking is not enough.

8

How does one make an artistic test and how is it research? I have to see what happens. That is what I normally do with my art or with anything I try it out. I can try assume how people might react. Fact realizes itself when people react to what they have witnessed, reaction is evidence, but how right and truthful reaction is. I hope reactions are for the better. How does written text shape the visual world (seen, looked at, observed) and how is that impact and possible change measured? It takes time. What does a poem do? I should see what has been written about poets’ works before, what kinds of results have researchers come up with, what have poets accomplished? Poets scare rulers because they are fearless and listened to.

And as my work is a manifesto shouldn’t it be where people are making a statement, online? And what is that, the internet, one big revolution? I question myself as a writer, student and artist and do not hope to see my part as a preacher of one-sided truth but see the issue at hand from different standpoints. To be a hammer, hand, vein, blood and hit. It is what revolutions usually fall down for, bloodshed, for having one-sided truths, war, icons to follow believing in themselves more than in justice, short-sidedly. Should the question be, am I ready to die, is that what it takes? It so often seems to be. Question of how to analyze and evaluate artistic input and output, what makes a sufficient academic thesis in the context of artistic research, in context of social change? Matters of subjectivity and objectivity on what there is to gain, the subject of interest and matters of facts found.

Just like revolution?
Should I explain what is a poem? Is a poem serious and reasonable evidence of something or is it just something thrown in the air because I felt like it? To comprehend a poem, how they should be understood as there is no formula, no rules in contemporary poetry which idea suits revolutionary mindset but not necessarily making a social reform? Poetry is constructed out of abstractions and of pieces what is, what there is as there are all possible ideas, things and deeds in the world to be thought and played with. Revolution is to rearrange and solve, make crystal clear solutions. What is it to write creatively and could it be done plausibly in academic frame and still call it art? More important question is reliability, seriousness and trust-worthiness that there is weight and goals. What does a poem prove is individual experience. And who is the judge of artistic work? Measurements are how the art effects and who is the poet, what does poet want and who is listening. Does it have to be judged or praised in context of art? What is judgment in this case may be silence and value of judging can be in making a change that things stay unchanged. For some people who is valuable. What are the measurements I should use other than my gut feelings and understanding of ill people make in the world, situations of the vulnerable, of poverty and struggle, point out things that are told over and over again in the news and what are the means to measure my work accomplished other than see what happens. My success or failure, my personal view in public what does it do? What is the relevance?

Academic work is about making observations, writing them down, comparing and measuring results and reporting those results in understandable accurate way. It is the most difficult part of this work for me since I have written my essays with personal agenda, personal world view and with a goal of making a revolutionary impact, boldly and just like that aiming at the objective attempt to the general and political away from personal. I have been my making conclusions and putting knowledge found as I see them happening trying to find the truth and what is right. In this sense my thesis is experimental, individual furious plea leaning on evidence I have felt is true, wrong or out-of-place, read on the internet and in books and it sounds like what is happening online all the time, doing something based on feelings and personal observations. What kind of knowledge have I found other than that? I have become dedicated to the causes of environment and human rights. Have I contributed, created and given something worth-while and new or is it just an individual learning process of how to write an academic work and how to find information? Is that the whole idea of Master of Art­ thesis, to learn to repeat? It is a difficult task in every way because I

9

am determined to make a collection of writings of original and heavy contents. Effort, mission and piece of work may seem obsessive, chaotic and full, understandable and disorderly in purpose. Naivety is part of revolution, the hope for the better and belief in one’s vision, overcoming powerlessness. Enjoyment of making mistakes is there as I live for them, the individuality of imperfection and having joy over not feeling shame for being blunt. To have that error made guides without desire to correct. To write poetry demands desire to wonder, stop and wonder, pause. To let need to write fill me. Writing things down, anything, especially insignificant indifferent and small. The profound, the opposite, the shallow, unique and not at all. It is fearless expression, anarchy of language, curious possibility of finding voice of one’s own. Poetry as a method of linguistic expression has interesting element of time in it. What was it that passed us by. Time experienced and lived, remembered, crystallized, to understand what was it that happened and is happening within field of social change globally, within us and around and be part of it which is indescribable and new. How can I analyze all of it is to follow the patterns people make and look to the future as masses move humanity forward and what kind of influence has our past made without me needing to analyze revolutions thoroughly? Events of revolutions that have happened and have been analyzed many times over. How necessary is it for academic reader to know my past and my involvement in doing art since that is from where I write? Well it is there, art, in every manner and the way to perceive.

1.2. My ground, why I write and what do I seek to achieve with my work.

I declare in my poems freedom of expression and speech, freedom to experiment, fearless daring, which is what one may ask. My poems are not fiction though they move in landscapes of fantasy and nonsense, sudden randomness and subconscious. Notes, fragments, ideas, pictures which words and alphabet make. Poetry is heavily included in the vast context of revolution which we live like a stage act. Revolutions seen as massive mass of energy, battling and tearing emotions, insane, desperate and violent. Revolution is a body of work individually and communally, forceful in labor, demanding rights and responsibilities, setting obligations, people fighting to survive but what do they ask of themselves or demand of themselves to do the impossible? Revolution can be life-threatening.

Poetry has long tradition in making revolution, of being involved inventing and changing the world by mocking rulers, telling sides what is visible and invisible, what is being told what is not, making satire, giving voice to those who are not heard and listened to, what is unknown or secret. Art is made to make people see and feel, raise compassion, awareness, hope and to set unity within people. Poetry can be very personal moving towards the political. Political as personal to me is frank, active, direct and true (realistic in its horror, daring and irrational weirdness). Honesty with promises kept is asked of politicians but honest making of politics is not happening in the real world. It is something required of a

10

poet, of everyone, what is left unseen and unsaid. Honesty and all the good promised seem to fade in repeat. Poetry is and should be something expressed without hierarchy, manners, protocol or anything hindering or obstructing wordy bullets. Poetry is  expression that is thought to be delicate, anarchy and agitation is a dangerous game,  game of language as is politics, curious possibility of finding voice of one’s own. Scribbling, writing anything without thinking it being trivial or maybe it is. When is trivial meaningful, when there is power in the smallest detail tossed aside, is an interesting thought. What do we toss aside as unimportant? It is making one kind of revolution in our time of effective productivity; to stop and wonder, for how long is for you to decide. Who decides what is meaningful? What is a good time and what is enough time? What is long enough and what is heavy enough?

Poetry exists as revolutionary, private and/or public act, a note revealing secrets, uncensored and an inexpensive way to use language for anybody to practice. To express personal thoughts and emotions, situations, personal experiences, personal sensitiveness, fragments of time. Way to use words and to find words, find sentences, find imaginative verbal images. To say forcefully, look for energy in how to say and what does it mean to say or whether to say at all. Appealing to unreason combining reason, sense, irrationality, dream­like visions and concrete reality, seen and unseen, short or long. For poetry any area of life is not unfamiliar. I personally have been influenced by several exceptional, original and unique artists. As I think of my influences they all seem and have been very revolutionary and have gone up-stream and strongly against the system, against stream of banality in their lives and in their art. What comes to poetic influences I have searched and found before are Finnish, Russian and several artists from South­ and North­ American countries that have made an impact and stayed with me. Impact is lasting, profoundly emotional and intellectual. Their message has been encouraging, hopeful and sincere. One person can make an impact that makes a difference.

1.3. Reasons to wake up, rise up and write

During military coup in Chile September 11th 1973 Salvador Allende was killed after being elected for the first Marxist/Socialist president in the world in democratic elections. It is one of the military takeovers which has stayed in my mind as pictures and as an event. Refugees from Chile began to immigrate Finland in the eighties. There have been many documentaries about Chile turning into a dictatorship shown on Finnish television. Life before and after Augusto Pinochet. Tanks moving on the streets, men with machine guns, military outfits and sour looks with dust moving in the air. Movie House of Spirits by Bille August (1993) [2.] based on Isabel Allende’s novel is situated in those times and events in Chile. Both the novel and the movie tell vividly

11

what happened like kick in the face. It is a short bridge to poet Pablo Neruda (1904­-1973) friend of Salvador Allende, to Neruda’s exile in Europe from Chile in 1949, murder of Federico Garcia Lorca 1936, civil war in Spain 1936­-39 and radical movements which were triggered very much because of the Spanish war and fascism raising. There is a bridge to a Peruvian poet César Abraham Vallejo Mendoza whose poems are leftist and political (1892-­1938). I have learned to know him as César Vallejo. He published during his life only three collections of poems but is known as a radical reformer of poetry in his country and abroad. Texts of all those poets have been major influences politically and artistically to me and are very much respected globally no less for being shamelessly political.

South America as mentality, emotion and state of mind in pictures and in written texts has been inspirational and continues to be. There is vulgar violence, brutality, misogyny, but yet hope, colors, joy of living which I can relate to and admire. Same goes with Russia. It is an opposite to Finland in many ways, but we share some similarities, neighbourly love and curiosity towards each other enough to like each other. The amount of sheer aggression and violent behavior there is, is appalling colliding against with beauty which is heartbreaking. Life is short and full of pain. Can that be beautiful?

It is there in every day like a habit, a necessity and right to have, aggression. Violence which is due to macho culture, politic making, poverty and exploitation first because of Europe and then the United States. What comes to South­ America it has been under many rules and dictators. The US today has trouble on many fronts because of the flow of immigrants and drugs coming from the south especially after the US having declared war on drugs, which according to the critics is waste of money and effort as are many battles US likes to fight. Because the US has been interfering politics in all South­ American countries during 19th and all of the 20th century it is in trouble: morally, financially and politically. Assassinations, financial aiding of dictators, coups, terrorism and civil wars that have happened the US has been involved in brutality one way or another dictating how South­ America should be ruled. Chile is a very interesting case in this respect. It has been manipulated by the US long before 1973. For the record Chile declared independence 12th of February 1818 from Spain.

During short presidential era of Salvador Allende starting 1970 in Chile much of the banking sector was nationalized. ” Many enterprises within the copper, coal, iron, nitrate, and steel industries were expropriated, nationalized, or subjected to state intervention. Industrial output increased sharply and unemployment fell during the Allende administration’s first year. As a result, the Richard Nixon administration organized and inserted secret operatives in Chile, in order to quickly destabilize Allende’s government. In addition, American financial pressure restricted international economic credit to Chile. ” [1.] Sounding familiar and infuriating. This piece of history taken from Wikipedia says something to the point what comes to interfering economical balance and making it benefit interests of one. Has anything changed? No.

What does this got to do with poetry or revolution? What does anything got to do with art? Everything. Art is a powerful tool in making appearances. What can an artist say and what kind of topics are there for artists to go through, look through and comment, satire and mock, bring on spotlight? Same miseries affect artists as anybody. If there is possibility to give voice to that misery that is a lucky chance for revolution and social change? People like to listen songs and read texts that tell of their lives, what happens and what has happened. Stories and emotions unify. Are artists still as dangerous free spirits as before or under capitalist monetary powers like every merchant?

History and what happens now in the world has got everything to do with art and my work. Art has been and still is cultural beauty, aesthetics and productivity harnessed to serve those in power. Art luckily happens also outside power circles, money rings and clichés. Outside meaning usually a counter­force, counter­ voice, revolutionary art has always come from the marginal, different, waking up, striking and breaking beauty standards, in other words ass-kicking. Regardless of does it get financial aid or recognition it happens and needs to be made such as street art, performance art, activism and any other outsider art. Internet has proved to be very needed and useful tool in getting voices heard. One of the most revolutionary inventions of 20th century uniting expression in good and bad excessively, notoriously in good and bad, democratically in right and undemocratically in wrong. Writer can publish one’s texts without anyone in between and audience can be enormous or small as the impact following the contribution. It is a new possibility for an artist to create. Possibility of inexpensive, instant output and feedback, of finding collaboration and new ideas. Internet is innovative and connective tool of changing how we interact with each other and within societies. How does it change us? What is the change we like to talk about? We have to find the best ways of making the world democratic and equal? Is equality the aim? It is an issue of everybody. everybody seems to have an opinion on every matter. How valid feelings, impressions, personal agendas, opinions are is an interesting case of what do we want. Do we make the same mistakes over and over again? War and violence are something we make nonstop. That is what we believe?

1.www.wikipedia.org/SalvadorAllende/Chile/CIA
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_dictatorship_of_Chile_(1973–90)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1973_Chilean_coup_d%27état
29.7.2018
2.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_House_of_the_Spirits 29.7.2018

Consuming is a plan and a way to live, it is also a way to die. What is bad about having so much fun and getting what is rightfully yours? What is rightfully mine or anybodies? Is that what is bad about equality and democracy, sharing?

| Henna Timanttimetsä

Business as usual? Is capitalism as we know it destroying us? Economy is vital base of how and why nations function. It has a role of making and giving value, keep us going. Where are we going and where do we need to go? Who sets our path? Is it the entity Capitalism? How economy and markets work and what they produce very much tell in what kind of world we live. Should markets be less open or more free is a nonstop argument. Most people seek to become rich wanting to possess more than is necessary and maintain a luxurious standard of living and consume more than is sufficient and sustainable. 

Anti-Capitalists ground their claims on facts that economy practiced now leaves most of the people in the world standing outside the fancy restaurant. To blame the system Capitalism is complicated swamp of questions and accusations for which there aren’t much easy answers. It is common demand of anti-capitalists to abolish our current economic system altogether.  Anti-Capitalists claim capitalism exploits workers and consumers for few to make huge profits. Anti-Capitalism can be called anti-profitism. Money being root of all evil and laws to regulate economy serve the wealthy.  

But how can economy and money be accused of governments functioning poorly and would any other economic system work any better? I doubt it strongly, but I also doubt system we are having. There has not been any better solution so far of making trade as we do now. It is worth while question businessmen and their ethics. Do consumers have ethics? Do they know what it is to consume ethically?

Capitalism can be good and it has been. Probably welfare here would not be without Capitalist ways of making wealth. Workers gaining their rights within this Capitalist production system has made them prosperous. Capitalism can serve good of all mankind if it is used in democratic and honest way. There is always the B side to making money how honest can it be and how money-making is regulated plays important part. How does morals work in this picture and how does a person’s moral develop in this system? How much is it due to in what kind of culture one grows up to and to what kind of needs we are culturally grown to live by? 

That would mean a drastic altering of way of life for which few would be ready. Are you ready for environmental time bomb, because it is ahead of us pretty close by. To say hey I’m doing this because I can is the most bullshit excuse to justify anything that is damaging planet and people in this magnitude!