Reykjavík Grapevine - 12.01.2007, Blaðsíða 2

P_REYKJAVÍK_GRAPEVINE_ISSUE 01_YEAR_05_JANUARY_1_FEBUARY_08
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The Reykjavík Grapevine
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It is a new year, a time to wipe the slate clean.
A time to start over. There is a full year ahead
of us, full of exciting new opportunities and
second chances. Chances to right some of the
wrongs from the previous year. There were
enough of those made last year. We are revisit-
ing some of them in this issue.
The most inexplicable of those may have
been the government’s decision to resume
commercial whaling. I believe everyone has re-
alised by now that this was a wrong decision.
The backlash from the international society has
been even more than we could have expected,
and Icelandic companies abroad as well as the
tourist industry at home is suffering. You can
argue until you are blue in the face for our
rights as a sovereign nation to decide for our-
selves whether to hunt whales or not, or quote
statistics regarding fish stock, whatever. There
is no way around the fact that there is no mar-
ket for whale meat, thus commercial whaling
is economically unviable. Usually, that would
be enough to wake authorities from their
slumber, but so far, they are hitting the snooze
button, reinforcing my belief that the decision
was prompted by foolish pride, against a better
judgment, and against our best interest.
Another wrong is the way in which some el-
ements in our society have chosen to approach
the discussion of immigrants in Iceland. While
there is a lot left to be desired in that depart-
ment, the discussion is not furthered by point-
ing out immigrants as a problem and trying to
establish a segregation in our society by con-
tinuously discussing the “Immigrant problem”
from the perspective of us vs. them, instead of
shaping the discourse around solutions to the
only real problem with immigration in Iceland;
our lack of effort in assisting foreigners in inte-
grating in to Icelandic society. The way the dis-
cussion of the “immigrant problem” has been
directed lately, all that is left is for someone is
to suggest a “final solution.”
The fact is that Icelandic society was, and
is, in desperate need for immigrants. There
has been a steady need for workforce in the
country, and if foreign labour had not been
readily available in the recent past, our soci-
ety would have suffered badly. The idea that
Iceland should, or even could, be kept “pure”
and free of foreigners with a stricter immigra-
tion policy is not only erroneous; it is anachro-
nistic in a world that is actively shrinking and
becoming ever more globalised. And as Trausti
Valsson points out in this issue, it might soon
be immoral as well, if global warming will rise
as predicted, we could soon be faced with the
problem of environmental refugees.
Environmental issues is another ball we
dropped. A pretty costly turnover in my mind.
Despite growing opposition from every corner
of our society, the government so far remains
undeterred in its commitment to building up
heavy industry in this country. Environmental
issues are a secondary thought in these parts.
We pride ourselves of our beautiful nature,
our clean water and our fresh air. If we con-
tinue on the path we are on, those words will
soon amount to the empty echo of a good
memory.
There are many wrongs to right. Thank-
fully, this is an election year. So, what better
place than here? What better time than now?
From the Editor’s Chair
Articles
06 Defending the Welfare System
An interview with Steingrímur J. Sigfússon
10 A New Worldview
Trausti Valsson discusses global warming
12 Religion by Numbers
A column by Gabriele R. Guðbjartsson
16 Best Most Bizarre News Stories of 2006
The funniest, oddest and most amazing news in 2006
24 Bread Cakes & Heartbreaks
An interview with filmmaker Ísold Uggadóttir
26 When the Powder Has Dried
An interview with Serbian filmmaker Goran Paskaljevic
Features
18 The Thirty Best Icelandic Albums of 2006
Music & Nightlife
20 Jóhann Jóhannsson: A User’s Manual
An interview with Jóhann Jóhannsson
22 Amiina: The Word for the Female Soul
Helgi Valur is loving Amiina’s release concert
22 You Could Have Had It So Much Better
Jakobínarína, Singapore Sling and The Brian Jonestown Massacre at Nasa
23 CD Reviews
Outside Reykjavík
28 An Eclectic Visit to the Lapland & Tallinn
A Grapevine reporter visits Estonia
30 Exploring the Historic Sights of Grettissaga
The Lonesome traveler goes to Skagafjörður
32 A Tale Of Two New Year’s
Comparing party-action ‘cross the globe
Info.
B01 Listings
B08 Food Reviews
B09 Bezt í Heimi: Grái Kötturinn
B10 Ultimate Survival Guide
B11 Counting in the New Year Across the Globe
An interview with photographer Jill Waterman