Time to Get This Settled

Now with the elections over, one more obstacle stands in the way of Icelanders on their way out of the crisis.   Whether or not to join the European Union.  The issue has become a hot one before the elections and there seems no chance of it dissipating until the Icelanders finally see the pros and cons of joining.  Vinstri Græn has a duty, if they are going to stay in the majority, to pursue an offer with Samfylkingin from the European Union on what it is on the table if Iceland is to join.   This is absolutely necessary if the Icelanders are to stop arguing about going in or staying out and end the discussion with a referendum vote.  And there can be no referendum vote without knowing EXACTLY what is being offered from the EU.  Vinstri Græn has no right to stand in the way of the nation's right to know these details just as Samfylkingin has voter mandate (with less than 30% of the vote) to force Iceland into joining. This is a matter that WILL ultimately be decided by the Icelandic people and not the Icelandic politicians and that  gives comfort that the outcome will be not only just but also right.

GTB

Stranda ekki á Evrópumálum

It Could Be Called "The Torture Approval Test"

People who have the authority to approve interrogation methods that could be viewed as torture should first have to be subjected to the method themselves before it can be used.  Better yet, try the method out on one of their loved ones and let them watch.  How many people would have approved waterboarding if this was the test applied for it's authorization?  I  know (or hope?) the answer would be none.  I do confess though that I would probably enjoy seeing Dick(head) Cheney being waterboarded. But then again he is not a loved one.

 GTB

Rice samþykkti vatnspyntingar

How to Lose an Election 101

Kolbrún Halldórsdóttir, Minister for the Environment, and member of the Vintri Græn (Left Green) Party will now be used in all Icelandic political science classes as a classic example  on how to ruin a party's chances of winning an election.  With just two days left to the big day, Kolbrún comes out against drilling for oil in the so-called Dreka  Area. This is just plain stupid. In this time of crisis people are thinking about jobs and how they are going to support their families and pay for their houses, not about offshore drilling!  This election period is turning into amateur night for some politicians. Hopefully they will do better in the Althing but with remarks like Kolbrún's, some will not make it that far.

GTB

VG gegn olíuleit á Drekasvæði

Waste of Time

Samfylking and VG are more than welcome to go enter into negotiations with the European Union.  The final decision to enter the Union will be with the Icelandic people by a referendum vote..  It might be interesting to see what will be offered to Iceland in terms of farming and natural resources.  But one thing is certain.  The European Union has never and will never allow concessions for the fishing industry of any member state. Doing so for Iceland would cause a political maestrom in the Union as the nations that gave up their fishing rights will want the same deal as Iceland.  That is just not going to happen. Period.  End of discussion.  And the Icelanders will never, in a million years, give up their sole right to the Icelandic fishing grounds.  So the politicians can go and have their meetings, but the most important issue is already non-negotiable.

GTB

Til Evrópu með VG

Guilty By Association

Sjálfstæðisflokkurinn is learning a new lesson in politics this week.  The party system that is used in Iceland to elect members to the Althing is a two sided coin.  Not only do the members as a whole stand for the party platform but they also must answer as a whole for the party mistakes.  Such is the "team" mentality that rules much of the Icelandic political scene.

A politician, and in Iceland's case, a political party, must always remember to do two things if they are to avoid a fall due to corruption.  First they must avoid impropriety. And, more importantly, they must avoid the appearance of impropriety.  In the case of the FL Group and Landsbanki political contributions, Sjálfstæðisflokkurinn has failed miserably to avoid either.  And it makes no difference who made the mistake because, as they say in English, there is no "i" in team.  The impropriety of a few is seen as the impropriety of the entire party.

The issue most troubling about the whole affair is not the contributions themselves.  The contributions almost seem expected from a party that has held power for so long, most definitely too long. Absolute power corrupts absolutely, to use another good English saying. No, the most troubling issue is that lack of utter outrage from within the current party leaders.  Hey Sjálfstæðismenn, some unscrupulous members of your party, believe it or not, just screwed you and your chances of getting any decent percentage in the next election by complete and utter disregard for ethical behaviour! And what do you have to say about it? "A clear mistake"? "We will pay back this money"?This is something a kid who gets caught with their hand in the cookie jar says. This is not what a politican who wants to distance himself from the crisis or position himself above the fray says.  

Sjáfstædisflokkurinn is in trouble because of these political contributions.  If Bjarni Benediktsson is going to convince the voters that he and his party can be somehow trusted he and the other party members have to express their disgust and dismay with the unethical behaviour of the other members of their party.  Unless they want be seen as a  being part of them.

GTB

„Augljós mistök“

Two Questions

It has been revealed that FL Group gave a 30 million kronur politcal contibution to Sjáfstæðisflokkurinn in December 2006. Here are two questions that really need to asked and answered-

1. Why did it take over 2 years for ANYONE to report that FL Group gave a 30 million kronur contribution to Sjáfstæðisflokkurinn? 

2. If Iceland were not in a kreppa (crisis) now and Sjálfstæðisflokkurinn were still in power would this donation EVER have be reported?

Answering these two simple questions will reveal alot about the corruption in businesses, politics, and especially the media.

GTB

 

30 milljóna styrkur

What Rasmussen Should Say

I apologize for allowing citizens freedom of speech and for not thinking it's a good idea to murder a human being for drawing a cartoon that I do not agree with.

 How could Turkey respond to that?

GTB

Segja Fogh biðjast afsökunar

Oh, the Irony of it All

PITTSBURGH COP KILLER FEARED OBAMA GUN BAN

Yes, that is the actual headline placed on the right wing rumor mill, the sludge, I mean the Drudge Report for Saturday, April 4 2009.  I guess it is all Obama's fault for the death of these three police officers.  If only Obama would have let him keep his guns. (Did I miss some gun ban legislation?) This tragedy could have been avoided if.........no, I'm not going to say it, you figure it out.

GTB

Is this Some Kind of Joke?

Well, it is just terrible to read that the Althing is going to have a long work day today . Some had to work until 2 in the morning and have to return at 11.  Stories like this almost break my heart. I mean we are only in the worst economic crisis to hit Iceland or anywhere else for that matter and the poor members of the Althing actually have to work. The over-worked members only got a month off for Christmas, and will probably only get a month off for the election. And you know how rough the campaign trail can be here in Iceland. All that coffee and kleinur. How do they do it? And when the election is over they will most likey have to put in maybe a month and a half of work before they all take summer vacation.  Why oh why would anyone want to do this job? I guess they are all just selfless servants of this great pile of shit they created.  I think I would vote for a monkey before I voted for any of them.  At least a monkey can be trained to do the right thing.

GTB

Langir vinnudagar á þingi

Kreppa - Part 2

The Icelandic kronur is on the way down once again after seeing some improvement earlier this year. Gas and diesel prices have already gone up signaling the beginning of higher inflation.  This means higher food prices, higher mortgage payments and higher payments for companies and individuals with foreign currency loans.  That will bring more loan defaults and more bankruptcy.  The slide of the kronur was worsened by the lowering of the prime interest rate. Any savings seen now by the 1% decrease is about to be wiped out by the rise in inflation.  The Central Bank should no longer bow to political pressures and instead raise the prime rate to shore up the kronur.  The entire recovery in Iceland depends on a stronger kronur or the taking up of another currency.  Maybe the government will gain the political will to pursue another currency when every company is bankrupt and every house is owned by the housing fund. By then though it will be too late.

GTB

Krónan lækkar enn