Miss Kolka

Lets hope they can work out their differences and that Obama will choose Senator Clinton for State Secretary. That would certainly appease Clinton supporters and Im sure she would do a great job. Funny how the media say it could be a big baggage for Obama to have the two Clintons always there in the background. Why? Its not because she is his wife that Bill Clinton has to oversee everything she does. Hasn't she done a good job BY HERSELF as New York Senator?  Have to say it sounds a little sexist - like women can not handle high power position on their own. She brings a good knowledge, toughness and experience to the job - and these should be the criterias considered, not who she is married to.

And Obama would, according to the New York Times "further unite and energize his party, make clear to the world that he is serious about diplomacy, and send a substantive political signal to women.".

What is there to think about?  

What has been going on these last few days is just incredible  - Its like Iceland is the little weird kid in the playground all the other kids like Britain, Holland, the EU and even the scandinavian cousins have decided to pick on, just to be mean.

As was all over the news a couple of months ago - Iceland ended up nationalizing its 3 major banks by force.Two of them got into financial troubles linked to the international economic crisis and the third one lost all its influence and trust in the financial world when the British government accused it of being in the same situation as the 2 others and created a local panic in the UK when they annonced that Iceland would not pay up to account owners (which turned out to be uncertain at that time). The chain of event is unclear - who knew what when and how it all started -  but it seems pretty clear that a few Icelanders were on top of the world for a few years, invested abroad and got their companies and banks into debts that far exceeded the country's GDP. What I dont understand is how Iceland's government and therefore its people would become responsible for all this debt if the banks ran into trouble, as they did.

SO what is now known as the "Icesave" matter is not helping the situation. Britain and Holland have demanded that if Iceland is to have a loan - any loan from the IMF, the EU or its scandinavian partners - it should primarly go into paying what they owe deposit savers in these local branches of the former Icelandic "private" bank (its good to have a little reminder). In clear this means that Iceland should borrow money - not to save the dire economic situation that is bankrupting 60-80% of the countrie's private sector - but to pay to people owning money in the branches in Britain or  in Holland. That means putting the whole country in debt for years, not even to create jobs or help with currency problems there (people can not change the almost worthless Icelandic krona that keeps devaluating, they get maximum 180 euros if they have a plane ticket to travel abroad and can not use their cards) but only to pay off a debt that was created by private businesses that had alot when all was good and now that things are bad have run away from their responsabilities.

Those who owned these banks and companies have not had to answer for any of this. One of the families still owns their pet football club West Ham and another family is looking to buy all of Iceland's media for peanuts. Why can't they sell their assets to pay off some of this debt? At the same time its of course the average joe that is loosing his job (unemployment could rise above 10% after christmas - always been under 1%), people see their savings disappear and many of those keeping their jobs will notice the payment of their loans increase at the same time as the value of their houses will decrease, everything else will double in price (since Iceland is very dependent on imports and since there is NO foreign currency available there is a question how many products will STILL be available in shops in a few weeks time).  So its all a very gloomy picture. People are predicting that due to unemployment many people will seek to further educate themselves while a third of the population has said it is considering moving away. Very sad indeed for my little country. At least I can be happy that mother Kolka works for the University - there is bound to be enough work there.. whether the salary will amount to anything is perhaps another matter.

Keep strong.

He sure looks cool... If all goes according to plan I sure hope he'll call upon her to help.

Only four days to go...

and by the way.. How annoying is Larry King on CNN?? Very. I dont even understand how people can watch anything on TV in America, with commercial breaks every 3-4 minutes. And I am not exagerating - I've timed it on the show - I clearly have too much time on my hands or else I wouldn't watch that show. But you keep watching, because somehow you think there is something coming up you wouldn't want to miss,  and then, suddenly, the show is over... And you are just left there feeling disappointed and betrayed. This cannot be good television. No wonder people download their own shows now... anything to escape from this advertising overflow. 

The future is not only Obama.. its  also Tv on demand, downloaded on the Internet. Television as we know it, is dead, killed by greed and money.  

So Miss Palin has now come out and commented on the expenses made by the republican party for her clothes and make up... against the advise of her aides and of the GOP campaign. They must have been plucking their hairs, this apparently being something Sarah Palin does quite often, going "off script" when it suits her. A complete no-no for a successful political strategy. 

This is what she said at a rally a few days ago although she had been advised not to mention the clothes-issue:

 "This whole thing with the wardrobe, you know I have tried to just ignore it because it is so ridiculous, but I am glad now that Elisabeth brought it up, cause it gives me an opportunity without the filter of the media to get to tell you the whole clothes thing."

What??? What is she trying to say? does anybody even understand  that last sentence? (Elisabeth being the co-host of the View - and a republican supporter who introduced Palin by saying the attacks on her and her clothes were sexist.. aha ok but of course!)
Palin's defense was that she did not own the clothes any more than the lighting or the props on stage (isn't she just one of them?) It goes a little bit to my former point of this whole story being blown out of proportion. What worries me though is that the governor can't seem to be able to speak clearly, or finish sentences properly:

"You'd think - not that I would even have to address the issue because, as Elisabeth is suggesting, the double standard here it's - gosh, we don't even want to waste our time."

The double standard is what? "Gosh" is not going to get you out of discussion at the UN with other world leaders when you are taking about important issues. This "folksy" approach can perhaps work at home, but for a possible world leader - not so sure.  Jee... what can we expect next tuesday? Well you know, also, jobcreation?  man I dont dare to even think it!

that's how you can sum up in semantics the quality of Sarah Palin's thinking:

• Who's Anatomy? | 24-11-2009
• Here we go again. | 19-11-2009
• Of Sex, Violence and Bad men | 08-10-2009
• of Bloggers and other creatures | 05-09-2009
• swineflu - what are we to think? | 13-08-2009
• Was it for an underwater Rock concert? | 11-08-2009
• The city of the Happy People | 04-08-2009
• Felix meets Loulou | 21-07-2009
• This is Iceland! | 13-07-2009
• Popularity! | 22-06-2009
• Aurevoir..mais pas Adieu! About Burqas, Sarkozy and all that | 22-06-2009
• ... | 18-06-2009
• What's happening? | 18-06-2009
• Reminder | 15-06-2009
• What can Europe do? | 08-06-2009