Blog stopped - for a while at least.

My intention was to write a post every day, but I have now cancelled this due to lack of motivation, to rather concentrate on some other blog (in norwegian).

I will keep this up for a while to see if I regain motivation or if this final.

There is also the problemes with the photos I have used, because I do not have copyright to them. I don´t want to get into problems for using protected photos, but I think the blog will be quite boring without them.

A Norwegian Thatcher?

That´s the headline of a post in Jerusalem post about the Norwegian right-wing party Fremskrittspartiet (Frp), "Progress party".

Somewhere in between lies Norway, whose major antiestablishment faction is the Progress Party, or Fremskrittspartiet (FrP for short). Founded in 1973, it was run for 28 years by the charismatic Carl I. Hagen, whose tough-talking pugnacity made him a standout, in the '80s and '90s, in a largely bland political firmament. Though nothing in the party's program would raise eyebrows in, say, moderate Republican circles in the US, its rejection of long-standing Nordic assumptions about the role of the state has long led the media to caricature its ideology as dangerous, its supporters as unevolved lowbrows and Hagen as a demagogue.

Yet FrP survived - and thrived. Though other parties (of Left and Right) have collaborated to deny its MPs top government positions, FrP now not only dwarfs the once-powerful Conservatives but also rivals Labor, that mighty architect of postwar Norway's huge state bureaucracy and welfare system. FrP, it's widely assumed, will garner enough votes in parliamentary elections this fall to form a government. Such an outcome would be a triumph for both market liberalism and common sense about immigration - and a massive blow for that once seemingly indomitable colossus, Scandinavian social democracy.

. The assumtion in the second last sentence that Frp will probably form a government after this years election is probably not correct. The other non-socialist parties have very strongly stated that they will not support Frp in government, allthough the Conservative party hold the door open if the Conservatives and the Progress party should get a majority together, but that is a very unlikely outcome. The two other non-socialist parties in Norway (Left and Christian Peoples Party´s will under no circumstances support the Progress party (Frp) in government.

The post than goes on to present Siv Jensen, and features a long interview with her (first posted in dec.08). Frp is for the time being the most pro-Israel party in Norway (as the Christian People´s party which also traditionally is very pro-Israel has not fully supported Israel´s last attack on Gaza)

In one sense, Jensen, 39, fits neatly into the current crop of Norwegian party heads: Like her, the Conservatives' Erna Solberg and the Socialist Left's Kristin Halvorsen are formidable blonde pit bulls born in the 1960s. But the Thatcher-like brio with which Jensen defies PC pieties sets her apart. A shrewd, compelling debater, she's unyielding on core principles, but nonetheless cuts a more congenial figure than her sometimes blustering predecessor.

Read the whole post here.

Norwegian Envoy Equates Israel With Nazis

A Norwegian diplomat based in Saudi Arabia has sent out e-mails from her Foreign Ministry e-mail account equating Israel’s offensive against Hamas in Gaza with the systematic mass murder of six million Jews by the Nazis.

The e-mail, sent out by Trine Lilleng, a first secretary at the Norwegian Embassy in Riyadh, includes a juxtaposition of black-and-white pictures from the Holocaust with color images of Operation Cast Lead.

“The grandchildren of Holocaust survivors from World War II are doing to the Palestinians exactly what was done to them by Nazi Germany,” the e-mail states.

The Oslo-based Center Against Anti-Semitism in Norway, which has filed an official complaint with Norwegian Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, said it was appalled by the distribution of "clearly anti-Semitic propaganda" by a ministry official

.

These quotes are from the Jerusalem Post which obtained a copy of the email.

The Norwegian Ministry of Foreign affaires says the email was private, and not meant for the public. It does not reflect the official Norwegian view of the situation.

Arne Næss buried today

Funeral was held for philosopher and mountaneer Arne Næss in Ris kirke, Oslo today. It was a so-called "honorable funeral" at the expence of the government.

Photo 1) Flowers from the royal family

Photo 2) Norway´s prime minister Jens Stoltenberg with his wife Ingrid Schulerud. The prime minister held a speech during the funeral.

Photo 3) Jostein Gaarder who became an international bestseller with the book Sophie's World, both a novel and an introduction to philosophy. Jostein Gaarder used to teach philosophy at the university, in a special programme that all university students had to take (the system has later changed a bit, due to adjustment to the international bachelor/master system)

Photo 4) Mayor in Oslo, Fabian Stang with his mother, acress Wenche Foss who is Norway´s most beloved actress and was a longtime friend of Arne Næss.

One of the songs in the funeral was Le Marseillaise, a special favourite of Arne Næss, which he especially like to sing during outdoor activities.

Arne Næss leaves a companion during 35 years, children and grandchildren.

Dialogue after riots

Demonstrators from the pro-palestian demonstrations that turned into riots met with authorities yesterday for a dialogue. The meeting was the initiative of lawyer Abid Raja, himself of pakistani origin (bottom right). First picture: the man in the middle in front is Chief Constable in Oslo Arnstein Gjengedal, the man to the right is chairman of the city government, Erling Lae. Bottom left shows Armin Bahrami (23)who said he was a peaceful demonstrant but was thrown at a cell anyway.

The room for the meeting got so crowded that some had to sit in stairs.

Many demonstrators said the police provoked the riots with their cars, dogs and use of tear gas. The police explained their point of view.

Shoaib Sultan from Islamic Council Norway, said they condemned the violence and vandalism during the demonstrations.

Culture and debate editor for the newspaper Aftenposten disagreed with the view that violent demonstrations were the only way for minority youth to be heard. Our debate section is wide-open for the opinion of minorities, he said, and encouraged the youth to send comments on the Middle East or anything else to the papers.

The riots have widely been interpreted as reflecting personal and social problems among the participants rather than pure political activism.

Nadeem Shahzad who before the meeting said he didn´t regret participating in the riots and would do it again, had changed his view afterwards. - I have come to the conclusion that my frustration and aggression against the society for how they view muslims should not be shown in this way.

Snow creates problem in trafic

More than 1700 vehicles have needed assistance in the heavy snowfall today. As usual foreign trucks and roadtrain are having special problems, due to tires not fit for the season.

Most snow has come in Southern and Eastern Norway, including the Oslo area. The authorities encourage people to not use private cars tomorrow, and rather use public transport if possible.

Most mountain passes between Eastern and Western Norway are closed.

Afraid finance crisis will hurt immigrants

Mayor of Oslo, the conservative Fabian Stang, is afraid the finance crisis will lead to increased unemployment among immigrants. 25% of all inhabitants in Oslo belong to a minority group.

At the end of 2008 there were 3584 unemployed immigrants/descendants in Oslo, the total number of unemployed were 7897. Now Fabian Stang is afraid these numbers will raise in 2009 due to the international finance crisis.

Immigrants are especially vulnerable in times of unemployment, he says, and unemployment in that group also makes integration difficult. - We risk that some immigrants will feel and act like they are not members of the Norwegian society.

He says there isn´t much the city can do to avoid increased unemployment, but hopes the "economic package" the government will propose jan. the 26 will help out.

He underlines that for the moment most immigrants are doing well, and especially many of the young seem to be successful in studies and work.

The overall unemployment in Norway has long been low, but it´s feared it may raise to about 5% in 2009.

First Norwegian bishop to get a divorce

Per Oskar Kjølaas (right) at the day of his inauguration as bishop.

Per Oskar Kjølaas is the first bishop in the Norwegian church to get a divorce. He was separated from his wife two years ago.

- It´s a tragedy. I never thought something like that would happen to me,, he says.

He now have a female friend, and is open to remarry in the future.

Kjølaas say he consulted the church department, fellow bishops and others whether he still had their confidence and could go on as bishop. No one expressed mistrust.

Many priests in the Norwegian Lutheran church have gone through divorces.

Former prime minister - racist and jewhater ?

The jewish journalist Mona Levin accuses former consevative prime minister Kåre Willoch of being a racist and a jewhater.

She refers to a statement he made in Norwegian radio in december, where he was asked what kind of policy he thought the new Obama administration would follow in the Middle East.

It doesn´t look good since his chief of staff is a jew. Besides many american voters tend to see the situation in the Middle East more in relation to the Bible than to the real situation, and based on a very wrong interpretation of the Bible.

Levin says you would not find one jew in Norway who don´t think Willoch is an anti-semite. - The hate is shining in his eyes every time he speaks about Israel, she says. (Among the jews in Norway is Jo Benkow, leader for the conservative party in Norway during Willochs time, and also speaker of the parliament).

In a follow-up, Levin wanted to correct that she doesn´t think Willoch himself hates jews, but that his sharp Israel critic leads to jew-hate and that Wiloch must take responsibility for that.

Willoch who started out as a staunch defender of Israel gradually changed his mind, and has in his senior years been Norway´s strongest advocate for the palestian cause (this comes along with several other quite leftist view points from the once very conservative man)

UPDATE: Willoch says he is extremely saddened by the accusations which he feels is comletely unfair. He says he sees them as a sign of frustration among Levin and other jews.

UPDATE 2: Willoch has also apologized that he referred to Rahm Emmanuel as "a jew" and says he should rather have used the term "israeli citizen" (which he also is) or "supporter of the Israeli policy".

Drillo is back - for a while or maybe longer

Under Egil "Drillo" Olsen the Norwegian national football team experienced its greatest success in moderne time and qualified to two world championships in 1994 and 1998. Since then neither parts have had great success. Now Drillo is back as coach, if only temporarily. His contract only includes three friendly matches until the football association find a permanent replacement for Åge Hareide who left the job after bad results.

Both parts however are open to prolong to the contract if the friendly matches (against Finland, South-Africa and Germany) are successful.

- Of course I would like to lead Norway through the qualification matches for the World Cup, Drillo says, our aim should be to place as nb. 2 in our group, and through that getting a chance for play-off which we might have a good chance at winning.

South Africa, here we come !

Foreign minister met Norwegian jews

Norway´s foreign minister Jonas Gahr Støre met with Anne Sender, leader of the mosaic society in Oslo, and other jewish leaders in Norway today.

The reason was the recent pro-palestinian demonstrations and riots, that included some . A man who had participated in a pro-Israel demonstration was targeted by pro-palestinians under the cry "take the jew", and only after intervention from others who pointed out that the man actually wasn´t a jew saved him from further attack. other young protesters have told media they were encouraged by fellow demonstrants to go "jew-hunting". Most of the demonstrators who were attacking jews were themselves muslims.

Gahr Støre made it clear that harassment of jews because of the Isreal agression in Gaza was unacceptable.

Gahr Støre also critised "comedians", and allthough he didn´t mention any name this was interpreted as a critic of comedian Otto Jespersen, who some weeks ago made jokes many found distasteful and some even anti-semitic.

Both Gahr Støre and jewish leader Anne Sender underlined that these episodes that included muslims should not be used to stigmatize the muslim community either.

Arne Næss has died

The philosopher Arne Næss has died, 96 years old. Arne Næss was also a mountaneer and an ambassodor for outdoors activity, he was a honorable member of the Norwegian Mountain Touring Association.

He was the uncle of the late Arne Næss jr., businessman and mountaneer, who was for several years married to singer Diana Ross.

Here is a video documentar about Arne Næss (sr)in english: The Call of the Mountain

Home as heroes

The two Norwegian doctors Mads Gilbert and Erik Fosse arrived in Norway today, after having treated patients in Gaza. They were greeted with flowers at the airport, many of those who had come to meet them were of palestinian origin.

But the doctors have also received critic for mixing medicine and politics. They are both leftists and long time pro-palestians.

The doctors have been interviewed by tv-stations from a lot of different countries, as one of few westerns in Gaza during the Israeli offensive.

Leaves with golden parachute

Eivind Reiten is stepping down as CEO for the Norwegian partly state-ownes company Norsk Hydro.

The company is now mainly a aluminium company, but until recentlyg had a significant presence in the oil/gas industry, until this part of the company was merged with former rival Statoil to form the new HydroStatoil company.

At his departure Eivind Reien gets about 17,5 millioner norske kroner (almost 2 million Euros) as a so-called golden parachute, in addition to a lucrative pension.

All political parties appears critical:

Øyvind Korsberg, from the rightwing-party Frp: This appears to be too much in compensation. It sends very bad signals in a time with financial crisis and growing unemployment.

Steinar Gullvåg from the Labour Party: This is the result of an earlier lucurative agreement, and is totally unacceptable. Neither do I think he has done a very good job, so he certainly does not deserve this reward.

Ingebrigt Sørfonn from the Christian party, Krf: In Krf we keep arguing for moderation, we have criticized these kind of golden parachutes earlier and do it again.

New CEO for Hydro will be Svein Richard Brandtzæg, a long-time employee in the company.

UPDATE: Both the prime minister and the finance minister think the golden parachute is too big, and they underline that the regulation is no changed so such an agreement not so easily will happen again in a company where the state is a big owner. They will however not criticize mr. Reiten for taking the money he has a legal right to.

UPDATE 2: Labour politician Ingrid Heggø confessed already a year and a half ago that she prayed to God that Eivind Reiten would have to go because she didn´t like his greedy attitude. Now she is happy that God have finally heard her prayers. She also prayed that the Bergen football club Brann would win the Norwegian championship and also in that area her prayers were heard (they won in 2007)

New riots in Oslo

There was a pro-palestinian demonstration in front of the Israeli embassy saturday. Several thousand people were gathered and the demonstration soon escatalted into riots. This time McDonald´s shops were especially targeted, as a false rumour said all McDonald´s profit this day would go to Israel (!).

Some of the demonstrants brought with them their children and put them in front of the demonstration, according to themselves in a hope that children in the crowd would help avoiding violence. As violence happened anyway, police had to take care of the children.

About 160 persons were arrested and fined. Several very young people, the youngest only 13 y.o. Below is a video of saturday´s riots.

Knut Hamsun - hard to celebrate

This year it´s 150 year since Knut Hamsun was born. Hamsun is generally regarded to be the second greatest Norwegian author during all time, second only to Henrik Ibsen.

Accordingly, 2009 has been declared to be a national Hamsun year. Only, Hamsun is still difficult to celebrate. He was a staunch supporter of the german nazis who occupied Norway for five years (1940-1945) and even wrote a necrolog over Adolf Hitler, full of praise. He was tried for treason after the war, but aquitted due to impaired mental abilities(caused by alcoholism). He was than nearing 90 years, and having reached that age he wrote his final masterpiece, På gjengrodde stier (On Overgrown Paths).

Even though the anniversary is meant to commemorate his standing as an author, it is hard to ignore his failed and fatal political views.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Utenriksdepartementet) is responsible for international cultural collaboration and the promotion of the Knut Hamsun year abroad. But unlike Ibsen, who among other things was an early fighter for womens right, Hamsun hardly gives good PR.

For this reason, it has also been impossible so far to get any private sponsors for the anniversary.

And in Grimstad where he lived his last years, they are discussing whether it´s time to name a street after Hamsun. That would the first street named after him if so happened.

Unacceptable

says mayor Erling Lae in Oslo about the vandalism and violence that took place yesterday by pro-palestinian demonstrants.

6 people were injured and about 45 people brought in for arrest. Most of the arrested protesters were of foreign origin, mostly muslims. One of Palestinian origin and two of Norwegian origin were among those arrested. The police says the violent demonstrants were badly organized and many of them obvious trouble-makers more than political demonstrants.

The picture above is showing vandalism that took place right in front of the King´s castle, the university to the right. Damage was done for millions of euros.

Below is a video of the riots.

Demonstration for peace

While several hundred people demonstrated for and against Israel today, and some of the pro-palestians even started vandalism and violence, many more chose to demonstrate for peace in the Middle East, to show sympathy for all who suffers and remember all the victims that have died in the conflict.

According to the police about 10 000 people gathered in a quiet peace demonstration at Youngstorget, not far from where demonstrants were fighting.

The peace demonstration was supported by the a lot of humanitarin organisations (including red cross and save the children) different churches, the Confederation of Sports, the unions and many others.

For and against Israel

Several hundrer people turned out today to demonstrate for Israel in front of the Norwegian parlament, Stortinget. Main speaker was leader in the right-wing party Fremskrittspartiet, ms. Siv Jensen. Leader of the Norwegian christian-democratic party (Krf), Dagfinn Høybråten "did not have time" to speak, but the party was represented by another parlamentarian.

No other Norwegians party supported this demonstration in support of Israel.

Several hundred of pro-palestian demonstrants also turned out, and the police were heavily armed to prevent the pro-palestians to attack the legal demonstrations for Israel.

Later in the evening thing escalated as the pro-palestinans started vandalism and violence in the streets. 20 people were arrested.

Shocking drawing ?

This drawing was published in Norway´s biggest newspaper VG as a reaction to the Israeli offensive in Gaza.

It reflects the strong Israel critic that is prominent among many Norwegians today, and that some suggest border anti-semittism.