Computer science instructor Ilkka Kokkarinen has shut down his controversial blog, formally apologized to the Women’s Centre and RyePride, and personally thanked The Ryersonian for “opening my eyes.”

The day after The Ryersonian exposed what were called sexist and homophobic remarks made by Kokkarinen on his blog, Sixteen Volts, he pulled the plug.

His final message did not resemble previous entries where he called feminists “losers,” and said the female mind is best suited to “fields that don’t require any mathematical or logical and analytical thinking beyond the elementary school level.”

In his farewell message, titled The end, he wrote: “I am deeply humiliated and ashamed by this experience, and at least I understand my place in the whole world much better.”

Kokkarinen’s decision to end his blog was protested by dozens of online fans. In response to his readers he posted another entry titled, "One more clarification," where he assured his supporters that the decision was made of his own free will.

“This is not some underhanded attempt to grovel because I am afraid of losing my job or something. Because I’m not, as far as I know. And even if I were, that would be peanuts campared to the women you love looking at you and you see how she is disappointed of you, asking why you would want to write mean things,” he wrote.

In an e-mail to the Women’s Centre and RyePride last Friday, Kokkarinen apologized for his “cruel, thoughtless and blatantly offensive blog posts.”

But RyePride co-ordinator Mandy Ridley said the apology was insufficient.

“We don’t need to hear why … he thinks he can make sexist and homophobic remarks.”

 Computer science chair, Alireza Sadeghian, said he spoke with Kokkarinen last Wednesday to suggest he partake in a workshop on discrimination.

“We are in contact with the discrimination and harassment prevention office at Ryerson to arrange a seminar,” Sadeghian said.

He added that Kokkarinen “was extremely understanding of the issue at hand and has agreed to attend.”

Ridley called the response a “slap on the wrist.”

Dave Mason, a member of the computer science faculty and president of the Ryerson Faculty Association, said there are no grounds to punish Kokkarinen.

Under the collective agreement, professors are protected by academic freedom.    “I disagree with what he said, but not of his right to say it,” Mason said.

Mason described the situation as an educational process for Kokkarinen, and said he believes Kokkarinen did not realize the full weight of his words.

“Computer science is often portrayed as being very geeky. There are some people in computer science that are not very socially aware,” Mason said.

Because his views have been examined and criticized, Kokkarinen is “going to be better in the classroom in the future.”   

In one last entry, posted on Sunday, titled No more, Kokkarinen condemned his writing as “mediocre and banal, even those that I thought were somehow deep and intelligent.

“Anyone who considers me to be some kind of bold hero should take a long look in the mirror,” he wrote.