Reykjavík Grapevine - feb. 2021, Blaðsíða 4

What Are Icelanders
Talkin" About?
The continuin' sa'a continues
Words: Andie Sophia Fontaine
One of the most talked
about stories in the
Icelandic press right now is the
shooting of Reykjavík Mayor
Dagur B. Eggertsson’s car. Police
have apprehended a suspect—
who is a former cop himself. The
suspect has an even more check-
ered past, having been convicted
of sexual assault and subse-
quently having his name cleared
in a complex process known as
“restored honour,” wherein your
civic reputation, but not your
criminal record, is expunged. The
shooting has prompted a wider
discussion on political discourse,
the implication being that heated
discussions can lead to or contrib-
ute to acts of violence. That at least
was the takeaway of all this that
Left-Green MP Kolbeinn Óttars-
son Proppé has, telling Parliament
earlier this month that he would
refrain from “telling people to go
f*ck themselves in public”. Good
on him.
In lighter news, a class action
lawsuit is being filed against an
American company for alleged
false advertising. One of their prod-
ucts, described as “traditional
Icelandic skyr,” is the subject of
the suit, as the plaintiffs contend
its packaging gives the false
impression that this is an Icelan-
dic product. This, they allege, led
them to buy a product they would
not normally buy, or at least, not
for the price that is charged for it.
However, the packaging also states
that the product is made in Batavia,
New York, so this lawsuit may be
quite the battle. Only time will tell.
If there’s one thing Reykjavík
residents feel strongly about, it’s
the use of studded tyres in the
winter. Contrary to what you
might think, streets in the greater
capital area seldom, if ever, ice
over in the winter. However, this
doesn’t stop a great many Reyk-
javík area Icelanders from using
studded tires on otherwise ice-free
roads, which contributes heavily
to air pollution in the region. As
such, Reykjavík City Council has
asked Parliament for permission
to ban studded tyres altogether.
This has not been well received by
more conservative members of city
council, who are proposing instead
more frequent street cleanings and
parking discounts for those who
forego studded tyres. Well, at least
they all agree that air pollution in
Reykjavík is a problem, right?
Icelanders have been diligently
subtitling and voice dubbing
cartoons for years now and that
includes a lot of Disney feature
films. Oddly, though, when one
signed up for a Disney+ account,
none of the Icelandic subs or
dubs were available. Minister
of Education and Culture Lilja
Alfre!sdóttir hoped to change that,
sending a formal request to Disney
that they include this material in
their streaming services. Happily,
Disney accepted her request, allow-
ing Icelanders to enter a whole new
world.
4The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 02— 2021First
NEWS
Lilja Alfre#sdóttir, Minister of Education / Screenshot from RÚV
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