Welcome back to Finnish #vatnik's! Today I'll be introducing a "gentleman" who goes by the name of Juha Korhonen (.@Juha_Korh2). His main contributions for the Finnish disinformation scene are two websites:
1/8
1) MV-media (currently UMV-lehti), where he acted as an editor-in-chief during 2018-2019, and 2) Tokentube, a Youtube alternative that mostly consists of videos about conspiracy theories such as the Great Reset and WEF. 2/8
It's also home for many charismatic Christian movements, Russia apologists and disinformation spreaders.
Juha's ambitions always seem to be overshadowed by the lack of funding - most of the time he's either critisizing the Finnish government or begging for money. 3/8
Currently he is running for the Finnish parliament and is yet again asking people for money. A word of warning for those who are thinking of donating - in 2014, Juha was sentenced for embezzlement for stealing money from a local rally association. 4/8
Juha, together with Johan Bäckman (.@johanbek) and Juha Molari (.@MolariJuha) also developed a stalking habit towards journalist Jessikka Aro (.@JessikkaAro), whose phenomenal 2019 book "Putin's Trolls" revealed the truth behind Russia's disinformation machinery. 5/8
He wrote several deragotary articles about her on MV-media and even followed her in real life.Juha is also one of the few people who have been interviewed on Russian TV:he shared some half-truths and outright lies on RT about Finland's NATO membership. 6/8
Lately Juha has been involved in organizing demonstrations. His latest circle-jerk "Towards Independent Finland" gathered around 30 usual suspects from the disinfo and conspiracy groups:
7/8
As a final note, some people have been following Juha's reckless adventures throughout the years - Janne Riiheläinen (.@veitera) is a real expert on this topic. 8/8
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In today’s 350th Vatnik Soup, I’ll introduce an American comedian and podcaster, Dave Smith (@ComicDaveSmith). He’s best-known for his numerous appearances on the Joe Rogan Experience and for his unhinged takes on the Russo-Ukrainian War.
1/22
Smith has a massive megaphone - he’s a good friend of Joe Rogan, and he’s appeared on Joe’s podcast a whopping 16 times. Naturally, he’s also visited Lex Fridman’s podcast and frequently appears on Fox News’ Kennedy and The Greg Gutfeld Show.
2/22
Dave is part of the Kremlintarian section of the Libertarian Party called Mises Caucus. They took control of the party in May 2022, and with the help of their new leader, Angela McArdle, turned it into an extension of the MAGA Republicans:
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll introduce a Russian journalist, Leonid Ragozin (@leonidragozin). He’s best-known for posing as a Russian dissident, while at the same time sneakily promoting the Kremlin’s narratives about the Russo-Ukrainian War.
1/20
On paper, Leonid doesn’t look like your typical Kremlin apologist - he’s written and worked for prestigious Western outlets like the BBC, the Guardian, and he’s even written some Lonely Planet guides for the Baltic countries!
2/20
But Ragozin’s public commentary often seems to walk a fine line: condemning the war while pushing narratives that shift blame, dilute responsibility, or quietly carry the same old imperial baggage Russia - or its opposition - has never truly forgotten.
In today’s Vatnik Soup REBREW, I’ll introduce a bank that is well-known in both Austria and Russia: Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI) and its Russian subsidiary, AO Raiffeisen. It is one of the few foreign banks that still does business in Russia.
1/21
Raiffeisen’s Russian branch was founded in 1996 and expanded dramatically after the acquisition of Russia’s Impexbank in 2006. A year later, it was the largest bank trading in foreign capital (seventh in size) in Russia.
2/21
In the early 2000s, Raiffeisen opened new branches in Russia, including in Saint Petersburg, Samara, Yekaterinburg, Novosibirsk and Krasnodar. After 2018, it focused on digital expansion and by 2021 it had a digital presence in more than 300 cities.
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll introduce an Estonian lawyer, social activist, politician, and useful idiot for the Kremlin, Varro Vooglaid (@varrovooglaid). He’s best-known for promoting pro-Kremlin viewpoints under the guise of “traditional family values.”
1/20
Vooglaid has an academic background, which usually gives people plenty of credibility in the eyes of the Kremlin. Most of his academic career was spent at the University of Tartu, but he was also a researcher between 2007 and 2011 at the University of Helsinki.
2/20
Varro is likely the most influential vatnik in Estonia. His academic credentials provide him credibility, while his religious image appeals to “traditionalists” - many of whom oddly admire Russia and its imperialistic nature.
In today’s Vatnik Soup REBREW, I’ll introduce a Russian ultra-nationalist propagandist and “philosopher”, Aleksandr Dugin. He’s best-known for his blueprint on Russia’s geopolitical strategy and for his genocidal rhetoric towards Ukrainians.
1/17
In my first Dugin Soup, I covered the man’s 1997 book Foundations of Geopolitics — a manual for dismantling the West, breaking up NATO, and building a Russian-led empire. In it, he makes eerie “predictions” that seem to be playing out today.
2/17
Dugin called for destabilizing the US by exacerbating internal divisions. Fast forward to today: culture wars, conspiracy theories, far-right lunatics, and social media algorithms doing half the work for him.