Viking Euroskeptics

A Tory looks at Iceland and declares that small is beautiful.

Comments

[HS]

I've heard Iceland rocks on New Year's too ... I mean, I think its dedication to property rights, small government and local autonomy in the face of the EU's statist-centralization manifests in a festive gathering to celebrate the New Year.

[joe]

Let's invite Iceland and England to join NAFTA.

[Rick Barton, who approves of]

Being outside the EU, Iceland has been able to cut taxes and regulation, and to open up its economy.

That seems to always work. BTW, Iceland is the #1 per-capita chess playing nation in the world.

[wellfellow]

"...Iceland is the #1 per-capita chess playing nation in the world."

Excellent! Now I really do have to move there.

[Eric II]

"I've heard Iceland rocks on New Year's too"

Watch 101 Reykjavik if you get the chance. One of the most amusing takes I've seen on post-modern Europe.

[speaking from experience]

Another reason to move to Iceland: Its girls are easier than an inner city high school's graduation requirements!

[KentInDC]

Iceland also has the highest per capita number of published authors of any country. I guess it makes sense, though, considering universal literacy and the language being spoken by so few.

[ILAH DUNLAP LITTLE]

"I guess it makes sense, though, considering universal literacy and the language being spoken by so few."

Besides, what else is there to do?

IDL

[Jason Bourne]

The EU?s tragedy, of course, is that it is going in the opposite direction, accumulating more and more power at the centre.

This is somewhat hyperbolic; indeed, the lessons that we've learned over the past few years is that the EU, despite its efforts at centralization, can't effectively stop any effort to buck its proscriptions. This is true regarding the Growth & Stability Pact, EU foreign policy (e.g., war in Iraq, border arguments with non-EU members that have sent Brussels into a fit, etc.), the EU Constitution (doomed to defeat at this point), relations between EU countries (witness the flare-up between Poland and Germany over reparations), expansion (Turkey's entrance, which France now proposes it will put to a referendum, where Turkey's entrance will surely be denied), etc.

[Douglas Fletcher]

Blond chicks with long legs.

[Stevo]

Also, Bjork is kind of hot, in a freaky-geeky kind of way.

The legal system of medieval Iceland should also be of interest to libertarians (if you haven't already read David D. Friedman's work):

http://www.daviddfriedman.com/Academic/Iceland/Iceland.html