Prof. Glenn Diesen

Why are Norwegian political elites so overrepresented in the Epstein files? Several news outlets around the world have reported on the shock to the small Scandinavian country, which consistently demonstrates high public trust in the government. How could this have happened?

The source of the problem is a de-nationalised political elite decoupling itself from the public. The Norwegian government has the explicit ambition of being an international humanitarian superpower by spending billions on aid. The small country’s obsession with punching above its weight in international humanitarianism could be applauded. However, if one scratches the surface, it is not as benign as one would hope.

A small but wealthy country can easily give rise to an elite class with ambitions beyond national borders, and even fuel delusions that they can save the world. With enough resources, these elites form a permanent bureaucracy, develop international elite networks and in the process earn some money for themselves. Whereas monarchs of the past had a mandate from God, the new nobility claims a mandate from humanitarianism and globalism. Immunity develops because when policies are defined by virtue, opposition is deemed heretical and illegitimate. Herein lies the problem of international humanitarianism: the assumed virtue limits criticism, transparency, and accountability.

  • oyzmo@piefed.socialEnglish
    1·
    5 days ago

    Summary: ∙ Norway has an unusually high number of political elites connected to Epstein ∙ WEF president Børge Brende exchanged emails with Epstein about replacing the UN with elite networks ∙ Diplomat Terje Rød-Larsen allegedly funneled young women through his think tank (IPI) for Epstein, and Epstein left $10 million to his and Mona Juul’s children ∙ Foreign minister Søreide was warned about this in 2019 and did nothing ∙ Diesen’s thesis: this reflects a structural problem — Norwegian “humanitarian” elites use aid money to build personal international networks with little transparency or accountability ∙ He predicts the scandal will be contained to “a few bad apples” and critics will be smeared as populists or foreign agents

    Truth evaluation: ∙ The specific facts (Brende emails, Rød-Larsen visa letters, $10 million bequest, Søreide warning) are all verified by mainstream Norwegian and international journalism ∙ The broader thesis — that this represents systemic elite corruption — goes further than the evidence strictly supports; it shows bad actors, not a designed system ∙ The claim about Norway funding pressure against Zelensky’s peace mandate is misleading and serves Russian narrative interests ∙ Overall: real scandal, solid core facts, but the ideological framework is stretched beyond what the evidence proves​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​