Theres a bridge in Vilnius with Soviet statues on it. According to Mantas Adomėnas, conservative candidate, this is one of the top priorities for Vilnius to fix. OMG, theres some statues and if we change them then magically Vilnius will be better! The statues question has become the polarising issue that everyone uses to test your loyalty to Lithuania. If you dont want to destroy the statues then youre obviously being paid by the KGB, say conservatives, who have little to offer except fearmongering and false pride. *sigh* I am not a Putinist, thats for sure, but I dont think the statues are the top priority in Vilnius. If the inhabitants of Vilnius dont want them any more, then they can organise a campaign to remove them. If they want to restore them, they can organise a campaign to restore them. If they want to paint them pink, then valio, I like it when citizens organise campaigns. Lets get rid of the heritage protection order and see who raises the most money in a fund to buy the statues and carry out the work their donors choose. Fine. However, the main reason I am disappointed by Mantas Adomenas campaign is it absolutely reeks of hypocrisy. Mantas complains about the current statues giving a distorted view of Lithuanias history, which insults the victims of totalitarian regimes. Alongside his little rant, he has a stylised and glorified picture of Vilnius with the Soviet statues replaced by Lithuanian military icons. a) The artwork for this campaign is basically Stalinist in appearance, with a contemporary hipster twist. b) The shining light and huge heroic sculptures echo... Soviet propaganda. I already commented previously on the conservatives European election campaign which was similarly bombastic and substanceless, with the knight-on-horse cliche and some photoshopped copypaste fighter jets. c) The idealised cariacatures of people and buses and boats beg us to believe that we live in a utopian dream, created by the presence of oversized statues that dominate and correct our distorted thinking. d) The statues Mantas has chosen to replace the old distorted view of history obviously will not include anything Jewish, let alone any of the other cultures that contributed so importantly to Vilnius and Lithuanias history. e) The proposal for the bridge does not seem to aim to educate anyone (or even acknowledge) that Vilnius has been a multicultural city for centuries, and gained its strength by harnessing diversity. The darkest days of Vilnius have been caused by patriotic fervour of the type encouraged by present-day conservatives. f) Replacing Soviet propaganda with cherrypicked Lithuanian propaganda doesnt seem to be the best way to show that Lithuania has thrown off the chains of the Soviet mentality. g) If the bridge was changed but did not acknowledge the rich multicultural history of Vilnius and her inhabitants, not only would this be a distortion of Lithuanian history, but it would most certainly be insulting to victims of totalitarianism, especially the Jews that were marched off to the forest by a minority of Lithuanians in the name of national security. Another worrying aspect to Mantas campaign is it begins PILIECIAI! DEMESIO!! (meaning CITIZENS!! ATTENTION!!) I would like to remind the wannabe Mayor that in Vilnius live not only citizens, but also residents, with voting rights. I hope we dont end up with a Mayor who forgets who he works for. Nationalism does nothing but teach you how to hate people that you never met. And all of a sudden you take pride in accomplishments you had no part in whatsoever... - Doug Stanhope https://youtube/watch?v=QsPDT5qHtZ4
Posted on: Mon, 25 Aug 2014 09:01:28 +0000
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