Tomorrow is the first national referendum Icelandic citizens have been allowed to participate in by the political elite since the conception of the republic in 1944. By all measures, this should be a happy day for democracy in Iceland. But instead it is not a cause for celebration but a large milestone in the farcical power [...]

If you are a foreigner taking a look at the national referendum this Saturday, please don´t make the mistake of thinking it is about IceSave. It is all about internal, Icelandic politics. Those who will vote yes are voting for the government to stay on (Social Democrats and those who still think Steingrimur J. Sigfusson is the [...]

“Would you like the EU to take the credit for our victories?” Does this video imply that we can claim victory if Germany, France or Spain wins the World Cup in July? Or that we can claim victory no matter who wins Eurovision? And does this mean that people in Spain take great pride in Norway’s [...]

We got an interesting lecture yesterday from Pall Asgeir Davidsson, who heads the Ethikos project within Reykjavik University. Ethikos’ mission is to heighten awareness of corporate social responsibility in Iceland so it is one of the most needed institutions today. Pall Asgeir’s lecture came the day after Tryggvi Thor Herbertsson, Independence Party MP, former investment bank [...]

From Why Washington is Tied Up in Knots? With these acts of legislative sabotage, Republicans tapped into a deep truth about the American people: they hate political squabbling, and they take out their anger on whoever is in charge. So when the Gingrich Republicans carried out a virtual sit-down strike during Clinton’s first two years, [...]

The conclusion to a paper I wrote in a course in International Relations at the University of Iceland last semester. The title of the paper, Why has Iceland applied for EU membership? The time and the place of the Social Democrats Icelanders have participated in the European integration process without perhaps understanding the larger implications of it. [...]

I for one am not going to participate in this distortion of democracy which has brought us a national referendum on IceSave. Of course I would say no to paying for the insane way Landsbankinn went about its business. Today, Halldor J. Kristjansson, one of their CEO’s is on record saying that there were meetings in [...]

Since October 2008 there has been no shortage of demagoguery but now it seems like some lite version of facism is becoming en vogue. The organization New Iceland (Nytt Island)  has caught the attention of the media by gathering people to honk their horns outside the buildings of banks and financial institutions to protest against the [...]

“Those who lack the skill and talent to get the ball, go for the man” This quote from an online forum sums up the political debate currently underway in Iceland. People without the required skills and talent to handle the issues at hand compensate by attempting to take the players who do out of the game. In [...]

This month I have taken part in founding a start-up abroad. There are four partners in the firm, two Icelanders and two Finns, one residing in the US. The idea came about in Iceland, but when it came to incorporating there were some serious issues we had to ponder. 1. Currency restrictions and worthless ISK. The business [...]