Reykjavík Grapevine - 03.02.2017, Blaðsíða 6

Inner Workings
Figures
Don't
Lie
Iceland has a peculiar obsession with
Facebook groups. Think about it: with
a population of around 330,000 it’s not
unreasonable for a group like “Vegan
Ísland” to contain literally every vegan
in Iceland (for the record, there are
nearly 13,000 members) or for “TRA-
PLORD$$$” to have all the, uh, Icelan-
dic traplords (3,000). From “Besti Bi-
tinn?” (“the best bites,” in English) to
[name redacted because it’s the group
people sell drugs in], in this new series
we’ll dive into the murky world of Ice-
land’s Facebook groups... so you don’t
have to.
If you’ve heard of #freethenipple
or the sexual violence awareness
campaign #þöggun, then you’ve al-
ready tangentially touched on the
monolith that is the “Beauty Tips!”
Facebook group. The group contains
about 33,000 girls—there’s a separate
13,000-strong group for women over
30—or, one sixth of Iceland’s total
population. That’s right: one sixth of
Iceland’s population is in the Beauty
Tips! group. This group has klout.
Beauty Tips! was started in 2014
by Áslaug María Agnarsdóttir as a
forum to talk about, uh, beauty tips.
And while members still post ques-
tions about makeup, hair, and clothes,
the group has grown to encompass a
lot more. The #þöggun movement—
where women changed their profile
pictures to spotlight their experiences
with rape and sexual assault—started
out as a Beauty Tips! post. The group
has also become a base for discussions
about #freethenipple, the Slutwalk
march, and other “feminine” issues.
Beauty Tips! is sort of like a support-
ive girly haven—it’s always there when
you want to talk about periods, fuck-
boys, or mascara.
Even the Grapevine itself has had a
few brushes with Beauty Tips! After we
published our scathingly titled concert
review “Fuck You Justin Bieber,” the
article was posted on Beauty Tips!,
where hundreds of commenters put in
their two cents, most of them angry.
We were accused of everything from
being bitterly jealous of the Biebs’s tal-
ent to just being unqualified to write
music reviews altogether. But it didn’t
faze us—we live under the mantra
“Haterz make u famous.”
Today, Beauty Tips! is probably the
largest Facebook group in Iceland.
There’s still a lot of quality content, but
recently I’ve found that there’s been
an influx of “Like if your fav is Kim!
Heart if it’s Khloe! Wow for Kourtney!”
style posts. I’m not a big fan of those—
I mean, who would pick anyone but
Kim?
For better or worse, there are lots of
things that you won’t find in Iceland.
Amongst these things is melatonin.
Why can’t you find this common sleep
aid anywhere for sale in Iceland? Be-
cause of European and Icelandic laws:
you can get melatonin in Iceland, but
only by prescription, and at a cost up to
ten times greater than what you might
find in Europe or North America. Mel-
atonin is classified as medicine in Ice-
land, and the law specifically prohibits
individuals from importing medicine
from outside Europe for personal use.
This law is reportedly in place to en-
sure that imported medicine is safe
and effective. Recent research has
shown that melatonin can induce cer-
tain unpleasant side effects, such as
temporary depressive symptoms and
daytime sleepiness, and it is still a
matter of contention in many coun-
tries in the world if melatonin is safe
enough to sell over the counter. That
said, certain enterprising Icelanders
have established Facebook groups spe-
cifically for the purpose of importing
melatonin, so chances are a careful
Facebook search could help you get
your hands on melatonin in Iceland
without having to go to a doctor first,
or having to pay the exorbitant price
being asked for it.
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Words
HANAH JANE
COHEN
Words
PAUL
FONTAINE
OPINION
Around Iceland in
80 Facebook Groups:
Beauty
Tips
Melatonin
The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 02 — 2017
6
ICELAND IS GREAT BUT IT
DOESN'T HAVE...
A Grapevine journalist at work
4
The number of the eleven
ministries in our new government
that are led by women.
ALSO4
The number of coalition
mandates granted to form
a new government before
this one was formed.
31
The number of MPs serving
in Iceland’s 63-seat parliament
for the first time.
2,500-
4,000
The number of foreigners that
will be needed to fill jobs in the
coming year, according
to Business Iceland.
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