Protest today in Reykjavik - against military bases -video

Today - The Campaign Against Military Bases – CAMB- ( http://fridur.is/english/ )held a protest meeting ,against military bases.CAMB was originally set up to oppose the US military bases in Iceland and the NATO membership, but the main mission of CAMB is peace.

Today was 60 years since Iceland joined NATO.The protest was in downtown Reykjavik ,in front of the PArliement building.
After they made their speaches,the crushed a barrel - wich was to symbolize NATO.

In 1949 ,when parliement joined NATO - there was riots in Reykjavik and police used for the first time teargas agaisnt protesters

Here is a video from 1949 and in the middle of the video - you can see the protest in 1949 .
And below that video - is a video from the protest today - at the same location.

Former Prime minister and Central Bank CEO ---iceland

Mr: David Oddsson ,former Prime minister and CEO of the Icelandic Central bank, was the Independence party conference yesterday.
He is also the former party chairman.
In his speach,he compared ,that when he was fired from the Central Bank,to the Crusifixion of Christ.

And today there will be vote on who will be the next chairman of the Independence Party

Former Prime minister apologizes to his party

This weekend ,the Independence party is having party conference.
1900 party memebrs attend ,and disuss policy and vot for a new party chairman and more.
The former prime minister,mr: Geir Haarde,made the opening speach yesterday .
There he apologized about the mistake in privatizing the national banks in 2001 and for his part in the banking crisis.

When the banks where privatized ,the two partys then in control,where the Independence party and the Progressive party.
And people say,that they sold the banks ,cheap ,to their party members .
So the sale was political.

He did not apologize to the nation, just to his party.
Mr: Geir haarde will not continue to be party chairmen ,and on saturday there will be an election between two about the chairman seat.

Pensions also having problems in Iceland

Pension corruption

Now informnation about the Icelandic Pension funds ,show that corruption is widespread there also.
Members in the boards of many Pension funds,have accepted salmon fishing trips,and traveling abroad,payed by companys,the pension funds invested in .
And there is still no investigation or interrigation of the bank managers about the Banking Crisis and where all the money is.

The Independence party accepted 2.00 dollas donation from the country emergency services 112 ( same as 911 in the us )
But it is illeagal to accept donations from public organisations.
They have now repaid the money .

Last weekend ,at the general meeting of the Left Green Movement ,agreed to not to cooperate with the Independence party after the next election in Iceland.

The public is getting more angry in Iceland - and on talk radio stations,many call in ,and use the wourd " treason " about how the bankers and politicians have behaved before and during the Banking crisis.

Here below is a video i took on the 20th of january - 2009 .

Iceland goverment takes over another bank.

Another bank has fallen in Iceland.
During the weekend ,the Icelandic goverment took control of SPRON savings bank .
The people working at SPRON , where not informed on saturday ,but had to see on the tv news about the collapse of the bank.
The goverment will loose 1.6 billion US dollars,according to the Icelandic finance minister.
5 banks have now been nationalized in Iceland.

And here is a video i took of the Danish Coast Guard in Reykjavik on saturday.
Denmark was once our country

Corruption still in Iceland ?

Buisness minister in the Icelandic goverment,says,that he cant take away the banking secrecy ,until after election.
So the Special Prosecutor,cant investigate the corruption surrounding the Banking crisis in Iceland.
Just before the crisis ,they where still paying themselfs big bonuses , and putting the money in tax havens in the Cayman Islands and othere tax havens.

Also they gave themselfs big loans ,and with no sequrities.
But still ,they will probably get votet to parliement in the next election.
Voters seem to have Goldfish memory.

Here below is a video a took of an Icelandic Choir at Fludir.
Fludir is the Mushroom capital of ICeland .
Hope you can enjoy that.

Members of parliement use Prostitutes ?

Catalina Ncoco ,a foreign lady living in Iceland ,says in a interview ,that she rents 12 foreign prostitutes ,apartments in Reykjavik.
She says that the only money she gets from the prostitutes,is rent money.

The men that used the service,came from every walk of life.
Even members of parliement and Goverment ministers,according to Catalina Ncoco .

Still immoral Banking in Iceland

The Unions had postponed the pay increase,that was agreed in the last pay negotiations.
For people at the fish factory HB Grandi,the increase ,that they postponed,was around 13.000 krona.
But the company owners decided ,few days ago,to pay the owners 8% raise on their stocks.
That was around 165 million kronas
the Unions are now angry,and calling it a immoral act,as the situation is in the financial system in Iceland.
Looks like the owners are not following what is happening .

Because of the flow of foreign money out of the country,to tax havens ( Cayman ,Luxemburg, and so on ) ,they probably must raise taxes on companys and the people.
And they say ,that there are only about a few dozen men,that have taken this money .
Still nobody seems to be responsable ,and bank secrecy still in effect,so they cant investigate .

Here are photos from last january

New board at the Icelandic Central Bank

New board of directors was voted in ,at the Icelandic Parliement today.
And of course ,they are all politically appointed.

Today ,Parliement set rules ,that members of parliement must tell about the financial situation,and ownership of companys and let people know if they are connected to companys .

And her below is a video of a Mens choir singing and a video of a Icelandic Geyser i took a few weeks ago

Baugur Group files for bankruptcy

The Icelandic investment company Baugur has filed for bankruptcy. The company’s protection from creditors was cancelled by a Reykjavik court on Wednesday.

Baugur controlled retail chains employing 50 000 people in the UK, Scandinavia and Iceland.

Jon Asgeir Jóhannesson says that Baugur’s bankruptcy will not affect Hagar, which operates the Bónus and Hagkaup grocery stores in Iceland, nor the media company 365

The photo shows Jon Asgeir and Kristin Johannesdottir ,chairwoman of Baugur

Strange buisness in Iceland - video

Looks like that the pawns will be prosecuted here in Iceland.
Two prosecutions against two low level stockbrokers has emerged .
But the big ones,who got billions in strange loans,with no sequrities,and who have there money in the Cayman Islands,do not have to worrie.

Here are few clips about the collapse in the USA ,where Jon Stewart takes on CNBC

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

CNBC Gives Financial Advice

Daily Show Full Episodes
Important Things w/ Demetri Martin

Political Humor
Jim Cramer

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

In Cramer We Trust

Daily Show Full Episodes
Important Things w/ Demetri Martin

Political Humor
Jim Cramer

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Basic Cable Personality Clash Skirmish '09

Daily Show Full Episodes
Important Things w/ Demetri Martin

Political Humor
Jim Cramer

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Jim Cramer Unedited Interview Pt. 1

Daily Show Full Episodes
Important Things w/ Demetri Martin

Political Humor
Jim Cramer

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Jim Cramer Unedited Interview Pt. 2

Daily Show Full Episodes
Important Things w/ Demetri Martin

Political Humor
Jim Cramer

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Jim Cramer Unedited Interview Pt. 3

Daily Show Full Episodes
Important Things w/ Demetri Martin

Political Humor
Jim Cramer

Eva Joly hired as special advisor to the Icelandic Goverment

Eva Joly has been hired as special advisor to the Icelandic Goverment .
She is also advisor to the Norwegian Goverment.
Eva is know for her investigative work in France.
She has said,that the Special Prosecutor in iceland is a joke .
He has only 4 people working on the investigation about the financial crisis here in ICeland.
He should have more investigators working for him ,she said.

Strange loans to the owners of Kaupthing bank in Iceland

One of the newspaper in Iceland , Morgunbladid,says it has loansbooks from Kaupthing Bank.
And according to the loanbook, Kaupthing Bank loaned its biggest owners and parties connected to them,over 500 billion kronas ( 400 - 500 million dollars )
Big part of theses loans are in companys located in Holland and the Tortola island ,part of the british virgin islands.

Some of the loans are directly to the owners and/or relatives of the owners.

Icelanders Offered Employment in Canada

Ásta R. Jóhannesdóttir, Iceland’s minister for social affairs and Nancy Allan, minister of labor immigration in Manitoba, Canada, signed a declaration of intent yesterday on facilitating opportunities for Icelandic citizens to work in Manitoba.

“No country in the world is closer connected to Manitoba than Iceland,” said Allan. The largest group of people of Icelandic descent (descendants of Icelanders who migrated to North America at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century) live in Manitoba.

“Temporary employment gives Icelandic workers the chance to do an important job and then perhaps increase their knowledge and return to Iceland if they want to,” Allan said, explaining that Manitoba primarily needs construction workers, people with a background in information technology and energy.

A meeting to present employment opportunities for Icelanders in Canada, especially Manitoba, will be held at the University of Iceland on March 13.

Taxes raised in Iceland ?

Now there is discussion about ,that the goverment must raise taxes,due to the banking crisis.
The Icelandic Krona is getting a little bit stronger,so oil prize is going down a little.
Icelandic Parliement investigative committie ,has asked for the names of every CEO of the media combany 365 .
365 is the biggest private media company in iceland,with newspapers,tv station and radio stations.
They are checking if conflict of interest has been in the news .
Because the owners of 365,also owned big retail shops and also big shareholders in the banks.

Here below are videos from the protest last january 20th

Unemployment increases in Iceland

About 500 people lost there jobs last month.
Now 16.700 are unemployed in Iceland.

Many parliement members have now started to apologise for their part in the Banking crisis.
And many have decided not to run for parliement again.

People are still talking about the TV interview with the former CEO of the central bank,mr: David Oddsson.
He said ,that many known individuals ,in politics and elsewhere,with there private companys,got money assistance from the banks,that was not legal.
The word " bribes " was used to describe the assistance from the banks.

New Central Bank manager in Iceland

Now Iceland has a new bank manager.
He is , Svein Harald Öygard ,from Norway.
Hopefully ,things will go better now in Iceland.

Great weekend weather

This weekend i went ,and took a look at he geysers and Gullfoss .
Gullfoss is a beutiful waterfall ,near geyser .
And the geysers,there is one ,named Strokkur,that is active every 8 minutes.