Posts Tagged ‘Pots And Pans’

Berlingske: Lack Of Humility And Sense of Reality

Tuesday, March 9th, 2010

It is self explanatory that there is not much sympathy worldwide for a country which first behaved irresponsibly and then tried to export its problems to other countries.

Like other countries which have run their economies into the ground – including Greece as a good example -  Iceland must take responsibility for itself. So even if the Icelanders voted no and every last one of them had banged pots and pans in the streets of Reykjavik, the global community has to remain steadfast. If the Icelanders can not agree with the Dutch and the British about payment terms, then they naturally can not expect further loans from either the IMF, the Nordic countries or progression in the EU talks.

It must be noted for fairness sakes that the Icelanders have underlined that their position is not one of not paying, but about the details. And Netherlands and the UK have listened. When Iceland voted no anyhow, the two countries had already offered a better deal, which the Icelandic leadership had already rejected as not good enough. It does not bear witness of either humility or sense of reality.

From Denmark’s Berlingske Tidende (in Danish)

Berlingske noting that Icelanders seem to lack the understanding that actions have consequences.

Related posts:

  1. What Have You Done?
  2. It Came To The Point Where I Saw No Sense In Continuing To Pay
  3. A Farewell Letter – I am escaping to a different reality that is more FAIR to me

National Museum Exhibits Protest Items

Sunday, January 17th, 2010
The National Museum of Iceland opened a new exhibition this weekend where objects that were used during the series of protests in the wake of the 2008 economic collapse (“The Pots’ and Pans’ Revolution”) are on display.

Protesters return to Reykjavik streets

Sunday, November 29th, 2009

reykjavik-protestSeveral hundred people gathered outside the Icelandic parliament on Austurvollur Square in Reykjavik yesterday to protest on behalf of struggling householders. The three speakers were very well received by the crowd as they called, among other things, for continued payment strikes.

The protest speakers were Olafur Gardarsson, vice chairman of the Households’ Interest Group, and Bjorn Thorri Viktorsson and Ludvik Ludviksson from New Iceland.

The group’s demands were very clear: no debt write-offs, but fair debt correction for homeowners. Foreign currency house loans should be corrected and transferred into Icelandic kronur. Inflation indexed mortgages should be abolished. And a law should be put in place to stipulate that loan providers cannot repossess property other than that upon which the loan was issued.

According to Reykjavik Police, the protest went peacefully – although perhaps protesters did not make as big an impression as they would have liked, because the police representative talking to mbl.is believed the protesters were part of the In Defence group.

Although the protesters are calling for government action and not for government resignations and new elections; the wintertime Saturday afternoon protests will be too similar to last year’s pots and pans revolution for the country’s leaders’ comfort. The Households’ Interest Group intends to hold similar protests every Saturday afternoon in December.

Citizens’ Movement Without MP’s

Saturday, September 19th, 2009

If proof is needed that professional politics are destructive to ideology then look no further than the Citizens’ Movement.

With four MP’s elected on a promise of change, three of the MP’s, Thor Saari, Margret Tryggvadottir and Birgitta Jonsdottir had been in Althingi less than three months before they’d foregone one of the major campaign issues the movement had promised, to allow the citizens’ of Iceland to vote on EU membership. Their motives seemed especially benign, threatening a negative vote unless the IceSave agreement would be blow off. But why? They never could give any plausible reasons, just that things weren’t as they seemed.

So much for plausible politicians. The fresh breath had gone stale.

Thrainn Bertelsson voted yes and then left the movement to become independent MP. He said he did not want to work with people who considered everyone else but themselves idiots.

The Citizens’ Movement itself was in trouble. It was built on trust and originally stated that MP’s should follow their own conscience if they deemed that the correct action, not toe a party line.

But when things came apart, they decided to organize themselves and approved in an embarrasingly badly attended meeting that MP’s should always vote according to the will of the movement, not their own opinion.

So the three MP’s left, well they left. Like Egill Helgason says, it is funny how these people who last winter stood outside Althingi with pots and pans are now complaining about blogs and public dialogue. They’ve been truly out of their depth from day one.

My uncle told me to beware of political parties. The established ones had a strict hierachy which you had to sell your soul to. New parties he said are extremely vulnerable to demagogues, wanna-be’s, outcasts from other parties, extremists and…idiots.

I voted for these people because I thought they would come true on their promise to shake things up. What a waste. Not that I would have voted for any of the other parties instead. This spring’s vote wasn’t the worst I’ve cast. That would have to be the votes I gave the Independence Party in the parliamentary elections late in the last decade and in the last City Council elections.

But unlike a lot of people who have been burned, I won’t be voting for either of these parties again.

Politicians’ pride angers man on street in Reykjavik

Monday, June 8th, 2009

Icesave protestA growing group of around 700 protesters are outside Iceland’s Althingi parliament in Reykjavik, where discussions are being held about the contract agreed upon between Iceland and the UK And Netherlands late last week over the failed Icesave savings accounts.

The protesters are banging pots and pans as in the daily protests last winter which forced the old government to call elections. Small change is also being thrown at parliament. Police are at the scene, but the protesters remain peaceful.

The protesters are demonstrating against the high amount of money the Icelandic taxpayer is now responsible for paying back and the high rate of interest attached to the loan. There is a small lifeboat outside Althingi with an “IceSlave” sign on it.

However, inside parliament, Minister of Finance Steingrimur J. Sigfusson said he is satisfied with the deal agreed.

Sigfusson stressed that the old government promised before and after the banking collapse that deposits with Icesave in the Netherlands and in the UK would be covered by Iceland and that he had little choice but to stand by their promise.

He told parliament that nearly all aspects of the deal have now been finalised on Iceland’s behalf – not just with words but also on paper.

Sigfusson reminded parliament that when the issue first came up in October, it looked likely Iceland would sign a contract with the Netherlands for a ten-year loan with payments to start after three years and interest of 6.7 percent annually. There was also talk of a similar deal with the British.

The deal agreed upon now involves a loan of ISK 640 billion with interest of 5.5 percent. No payment is due for the first seven years, and payment will take eight years thereafter.

Elections in Iceland this weekend

Wednesday, April 22nd, 2009

Click here if you want to follow the Elections in Iceland but don’t understand Icelandic

The general parliamentary elections in Iceland are to be held on Saturday 25 April and seven political parties are fighting for the interest of voters -  of the seven, two are brand new. The parties are the Independence Party (Sjálfstæðisflokkurinn), Social Democratic Alliance (Samfylkingin), Left-Green Movement (Vinstrihreyfingingrænt framboð), Progressive Party (Framsóknarflokkurinn) and Liberal Party (Frjálslyndi flokkurinn).

The new parties, directly grown from the “Pots and Pans” revolution, are the Citizens’ Movement (Borgarahreyfingin) and the Democratic Movement (Lýðræðishreyfingin).

The latest poll (Capacent Gallup), done from the 19th of April to the 21st in Reykjavik South, showed that the Independence Party has gone from 39.2% to 22.6%, The Social Democratic Alliance are up from 29% to 34.7 and the Left-Green Movement are up from 14.4% to 27.6.

The new parties, the Citizens’ Movement and the Democratic Movement are showing 5,2% and 3%. The Progressive Party are in a similar neighbourhood with 6.3%, had 5.9% and finally the Liberal Party has gone down from 6.8% to 0.5%.

The ruling coalition in Iceland is expected to win the elections taking place this coming weekend.

General information on the elections are available at www.kosning.is/english/


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