Lögberg-Heimskringla - 26.04.1996, Side 1

The lcelandic Weekly
Logberg Stofnaö 14. januar 1888 Heimskringla Stofnaö 9. september 1886
Inside this week;
Letters to the editor......................2
The lcelanders of Argyle .............4 & 5
Valuable Pictures from the Past............7
110. Árgangur
110th Year
Publications Mail Registration No. 1667
Föstudagur 26. apríl 1996
Friday, 26 April 1996
Númer 15
Number 15
ICELANDIO
NEWS
______VATNAJÖKULL
iGrimr&n
UpptOk hlaups L
/ Grímsvölnum
Flash
Flooding in
Skeióará:
❖ A flash flood is under
way in Skeiðará which i$
expected to peak in
about two weeks accord-
ing to Oddur Sigurðsson,
geologist, in an interview
with Morgunblaðið.
There are already indi-
cations of the flood — a
strong sulphurous stench
from the river and the
water is murky. Stefán
Benediktsson, the park
warden at Skaftafell, said
no preventive measures
will be made at the river
as similar floods in the iast
decades have not called
for any such measures.
The source of the flood-
ing is at Grímsvötn, one
of lceland's most active
volcanic areas, with geot-
hermal ground heat. The
heat meits the ice and the
melted water collects in a
cauldron under the glaci-
er which overflows on the
averacje of twice a dec-
ade. This water runs
under the glacier for
about 30-40 km., before
spilling into the river.
GUNNUR ISFELD
INL Convention Opens
by Kevin Jón Johnson
or 77 continuous
í years members of
[ Jm the Icelandic Nat-
U ional League have
come together for a weekend
of fruitful discussion, tanta-
lizing food, stirring entertain-
ment, and joyful fellowship.
This year, the Icelandic
Canadian Frón hosts the
Winnipeg convention, which
runs from Friday, 26 April
until Sunday, 28 April. The
INL executive, the Esjan
Chapter of Arborg, the
Lundar Chapter, and the
Fálkinn Chapter of Brandon
have also extended wel-
comed support in this cause.
Find time to join us for the
spirited opening ceremonies
on Friday at the Holiday Inn
West, 2520 Portage Avenue
— a few kilometres West of
Polo Park in sunny St. James.
Admission is free for Friday,
and a promising program is
in place. The Holiday Inn
provides plenty of free park-
ing, beneath and beside the
building.
Heather Alda Ireland, will
lead us through the
Canadian, American and
Icelandic National anthems
at 7:30 pm; cocktails may be
purchased from 6:30 pm.
ICF and INL Presidents,
Kevin Johnson and Laurence
Johnson will then open the
remarks.
The 77th annual conven-
Thank-you note from
President Cttnton
PDtSOMJLL
Nr. Sigmund Joh«nn*«oft .
Rcykjavik
ZCKLAND
D«ar Slgnund:
Thank you for th« fra.ir.ad cartoon, which
Aabaaaador Borg paaaad along to na. Xt
*■' * ' anara
klnd of
I appri
Hillan
you to ahara your work with ma, and
_ aciata your ganaroaity and aupport.
ary joina aa in aanding baat wiahaa.
ðlú*4Du~
“I enjoyed receiving this
greeting from the President of
the U.S.A. He has obviously
appreciated my appointing
him “Man Of The Year”
in a cartoon I made in
December”, said Sigmund
Jóhannesson, artist and car-
toonist, in the Westman-
Islands.
Sigmund did a sketch
which appeared in Morg-
unblaðið in December last
year displaying the president
flying a jet around the world
and sending out peace doves.
“I made him “Man Of The
Year” for his efforts in creat-
ing peace throughout the
world,” said Sigmund, in an
interview with Morgunblaðið.
“The American Ambass-
ador to Iceland, Parker Borg,
sent this sketch and others I
made of the president, to the
White House. The ambas-
sador then received a request
for the original. The president
wanted to add it to his picture
collection. The framed sketch

tion falls under the theme of
the Iceland Registry: The
Path Back. This title refers to
a passage in the Hávamál: a
path between friends should
keep well worn with frequent
passage. Dr. Vésteinn
Ólason, Dean of Literature at
the University of Iceland,
used this metaphor when he
promoted this friendly
Registry at last year’s conven-
tion in Toronto.
The Honourable Eric
Stefanson M.L.A., Councillor
Jae Eadie, the Honourable
John Harvard M.P., Jón
Ásgeirsson of the Iceland
International League, and
Consul General Neil Bardal
will bring greetings to those
gathered.
Presentation of INL
Honourary Memberships,
where the kindness and care
of some individuals for the
maintenance and extension
of our culture will next
receive due credit.
Tribute will next go to the
Lundar Chapter, celebrating
their 50th Anniversary, and
the entertainment begins with
Your
lcelandic
Connection
Single Copy
Price
$2.00
plus postage
Subscribe
to
L-H
Now!
song from the
Lundar Mel-^
odiers.
One of our most talented
writers, Betty Jane Wylie, will
then entertain the audience
with reminiscences from her
recent, engaging visit to
Iceland.
A free reception offering
some coffee, tea, traditional
desserts, a cold meat platter,
Canadian cheese, various
vegetables, pickles, olives
and onions will then greet
those who wish to embrace
the opportunity of further
conversations and enjoy the
offer of hospitality.
The Convention moves to
the Nordic House of Canada,
764 Erin Street for the day of
Saturday. A traditional
lunch, hosted by the Esjan
Club of Arborg breaks the
delegate meetings up at
noon. Some tickets ($10
each) may be available at the
door, but seating is limited.
Gigja Arnadóttir, a person-
able, mature student from
Iceland, will offer a light,
Continued on page 3
— — — —
Sigmund's picture
of President Clinton
was sent to the White House,
and in late February I
received a personal thank-you
note from President Clinton
with greetings from his wife.”
Sigmund has received
greetings from other promi-
nent people, such as Pres-
ident Ronald Reagan, follow-
ing the Leadership Conf-
erence held in Iceland in
1986. Cabinet ministers from
the other Nordic countries
have also sent him thank-you
notes, after seeing themselves
displayed in a new light in his
sketches.
President Clinton’s letter
was marked “personal” and in
it he thanked Sigmund for the
framed picture which Parker
Borg sent him, and for his
generosity and support which
he appreciates and says that
he and his wife send their
best greetings. Gi
Olafur Ragnar Grímsson enters
lceland’s Presidential Race
Olafur Ragnar Gríms-
son, a member of
Alþing recently ann-
ounced his decision to enter
the presidential election race
in June.
“For the last few weeks
and days I have seriously con-
sidered whether I might have
the good fortune to bring peo-
ple together from various fac-
tions of society. It is perhaps
the great support I have
received from people with
various political affiliations
which has convinced me that
I can. I would not have made
myself available for this posi-
tion without the deep convic-
tion that with the support of
the whole nation we can
attend to the unifying issues
which are necessary for the
Icelandic President”, Ólafur
said. Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson
was born in Isafjörður in
1943, the son of Grímur
Kristgeirsson, a barber, and
Svanhildur Hjartar. He holds
a Ph.D degree in political sci-
ence and taught at the
University of Iceland for 18
years. He served as a member
of Alþingi from 1978-1983
and again from 1991. He
served as Minister of Finance
and a Leader of the People’s
Alliance from 1987-1995.
Ólafur has taken part in inter-
nationally co-operative pro-
jects and has received intema-
tional awards and recogni-
tions for his work there. GI