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[seosan08]

Coming soon to a depression ridden country near you?

Riots begin in Iceland
24 November 2008
By Omar Valdimarsson
in REYKJAVIK

http://news.scotsman.com/world/A-nearriot-and--parliament.4722970.jp

THOUSANDS of Icelanders have demonstrated in Reykjavik to demand the resignation of Prime Minister Geir Haarde and Central Bank governor David Oddsson, for failing to stop the country's financial meltdown.
It was the latest in a series of protests in the capital since October's banking collapse crippled the island's economy. At least five people were injured and Hordur Torfason, a well-known singer in Iceland and the main organiser of the protests, said the protests would continue until the government stepped down.

As crowds gathered in the drizzle before the Althing, the Icelandic parliament, on Saturday, Mr Torfason said: "They don't have our trust and they are no longer legitimate."

The value of the Icelandic krona has been cut in half since January.

Four Nordic countries, as well as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), have pledged to lend the country a combined $4.6 billion to help revive its deflated economy. The loan would be the first by the IMF to a Western nation since 1976.

One young man climbed on to the balcony of the Althing building, where the president appears upon inauguration and on Iceland's national day, and hung a banner reading: "Iceland for Sale: $2,100,000,000" � the amount of the loan the country is getting from the IMF.

A separate group of 200-300 people gathered in front of the city's main police station, throwing eggs and demanding the release of a young protester being held there.

Police in riot gear used pepper spray to drive back an attempt to free the protester during which several windows at the police station were shattered. The pro-tester was later released after his fine was paid.

As daylight began to wane, demonstrators drifted away into the nearby coffee shops. Here, as currency tumbles, the price of a cup of coffee has shot up by about one-third since before the crisis struck.

The demonstrators accuse the government � elected last year � of not doing enough to regulate the banking industry and have called for early elections.

Iceland's next election is not required until 2011.

Opposition parties tabled a no-confidence motion in the government on Friday over its handling of the crisis, but the motion carries little chance of toppling the ruling coalition which has a solid parliamentary majority.

Gudrun Jonsdottir, a 36-year-old office worker, said: "I've just had enough of this whole thing. I don't trust the government, I don't trust the banks, I don't trust the political parties, and I don't trust the IMF.

"We had a good country and they ruined it."

BACKGROUND

ICELAND'S three biggest banks � Kaupthing, Landsbanki and Glitnir � collapsed under the weight of billions of dollars of debts accumulated in an aggressive overseas expansion, shattering the country's currency. Iceland's government seized control of all three institutions in early October.

This week, the North Atlantic island nation, which has a population of only 320,000, secured a package of more than US$10 billion (about �6.7 billion) in loans from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and several European countries to help it rebuild its shattered financial system.

Despite the intervention, however, Iceland still faces a sharp economic slowdown and surging job losses while at least one-third of Icelanders are also at risk of losing their homes and life savings.

Geir Haarde, the Icelandic prime minister, has promised that the government will use the IMF money to bring back a flexible interest rate scheme and rewrite financial laws, particularly legislation relating to insolvency.

Iceland was the first country to ask the IMF for help as the turmoil in the credit markets in October hit home.

The UK government used anti-terrorism legislation to freeze money deposited by UK savers in Icelandic banks in order to ensure that their money was protected.

[NoExplode]

There are thousands of Icelanders?!?! Who knew?

[caniff]

Iceland and the Scandinavian countries should get together and participate in a little traditional pillaging of the British Isle and European mainland. Get all Viking on their ass.

[Ukon]

[Ya-ta Boy]

Why not? Piracy is working (more or less) for the Somalis.

[mindmetoo]

[Bigfeet]

They already raided the Brits for quite a bit of money through the banking system. That's modern Viking-ing right there.

So they're borrowing over $31,250 for every man, woman, and child in the country. Sweet, I'm sure they'll pay it all off in no time.

Good thing they borrowed so early on in the crisis. I doubt lenders will be this generous later on.

[mises]

[Ya-ta Boy]

My concern is this: What will the citizens of much bigger and much more effective states demand in the way of radical solutions when their 'world' goes 'poof'?

I'll admit that I'm ideological to the point where things begin to affect my life. I'm 59 years old. If the choice is to live in a cardboard box under a bridge in an Iowa winter of -20 degrees and taxing the crap out of the next generation, you know where vote is going to go.

I did what was possible to provide for my future...I paid taxes, I saved, I opened accounts in banks and tried to make good choices. Now, the whole thing is collapsing around my head.

I'm not 19 or 29 anymore. My fund is now at -39%. That's MINUS 39%. And I'm angry. I'm angry at those people who have said for 30 years that Social Security should be reliable. I'm angry at those people who said I should not rely on that part of my taxes that I had no choice but to pay because they wanted to cancel that part of my security. I'm angry that my security is not secure.

[mises]

[Ya-ta Boy]

I suppose I should jump for joy. Two years is better than never. But when you add that to the Crash of '97 and the bankruptcy that followed...several years I didn't do too well because of that fiasco (too well = I lost my shirt).

At my stage of life, what if I come down with cancer or some such before the market recovers so I can pay those bills?

You are Canadian, I'm American. I will be up the proverbial creek if I get kicked out of Korea before Obama gets things straightened out. And even then...

[mises]

[caniff]

[rusty1983]