What sort of country do we want to become? Ian McDonald skrifar 11. maí 2023 07:31 The Icelandic government has undergone a shift in priorities over the past few years. Not too long ago, the welfare and wellbeing of its people were seen as an utmost priority, and everything else existed in order to facilitate that wellbeing. Today, tourists and specifically the money they bring, are valued far more than the lives and livelihood of the people who call Iceland home, and furthermore those people now exist mostly to facilitate the wellbeing and comfort of those wealthy tourists. The government likes to claim that the vast amounts of money brought in by tourism will naturally trickle down and wash over the population, bringing prosperity to all it touches. This might be a reality in a fair and just system, or one where the biggest industries are not owned by a tiny handful of people and their families. In that reality, the riches only get concentrated in a few hands and then squirreled away offshore to avoid scrutiny from the tax office. The end result of this kind of a system is for Iceland to end up as a place just like Monaco. One which is hugely expensive, and where the vast majority of jobs are in the service industry, whose workers cannot even afford to live in the cities which they work, serving the rich who travel there. In these kind of places, the government does not care about high prices for food, housing or transportation because they know that the visiting tourists are happy to pay a premium for the privilege of visiting. Therefore there is no incentive to lower costs. Lower prices mean lower profits. Conversely, the workers are forced to pay these extortionate prices because they have no other choice. They are trapped in a system where they spend their entire paycheck just to survive. If the Icelandic government wants to live up to its well-polished, massaged image of equality and a high standard of living, which it likes to portray to the rest of the world, they must state clearly that the people who live here are prioritized more highly than tourist dollars, and to act accordingly. We live in one of the wealthiest countries in the world. The GDP of Iceland in 2022 was almost 7 percent, which equates to around 25 billion dollars. There is no reason for people to not be able to afford to survive. No excuses. The author is a member of Efling Union. Viltu birta grein á Vísi? Sendu okkur póst. Senda grein Kjaramál Kjaraviðræður 2022-23 Ian McDonald Mest lesið Halldór 23.8.2025 Halldór Heildstætt heilbrigðiskerfi – hagur okkar allra Alma D. Möller Skoðun Vanþekking eða vísvitandi blekkingar? Hjörtur J. Guðmundsson Skoðun „I believe the children are our future…“ Karen Rúnarsdóttir Skoðun Andaðu rólega elskan... Ester Hilmarsdóttir Skoðun Skólaskætingur Þórdís Kolbrún R. Gylfadóttir Skoðun Er Akureyri að missa háskólann sinn? Aðalbjörn Jóhannsson Skoðun Eldri borgarar – áhrif aðildar að Evrópusambandinu (ESB) Þorvaldur Ingi Jónsson Skoðun Ég vildi óska þess að ég hefði hreinlega fengið krabbamein Íris Elfa Þorkelsdóttir Skoðun Þéttingarstefnan hefur brugðist og Dóra breytir um umræðuefni Aðalsteinn Haukur Sverrisson Skoðun Skoðun Skoðun Heildstætt heilbrigðiskerfi – hagur okkar allra Alma D. Möller skrifar Skoðun Vanþekking eða vísvitandi blekkingar? Hjörtur J. Guðmundsson skrifar Skoðun „I believe the children are our future…“ Karen Rúnarsdóttir skrifar Skoðun Mikilvægi félagasamtaka og magnað maraþon Þuríður Harpa Sigurðardóttir skrifar Skoðun Allt sem ég þarf að gera Dagbjartur Kristjánsson skrifar Skoðun Eldri borgarar – áhrif aðildar að Evrópusambandinu (ESB) Þorvaldur Ingi Jónsson skrifar Skoðun Meiri gæði og mun minni álögur - Hveragerðisleiðin í leikskólamálum Jóhanna Ýr Jóhannsdóttir,Sandra Sigurðardóttir,Dagný Sif Sigurbjörnsdóttir,Halldór Benjamín Hreinsson,Njörður Sigurðsson skrifar Skoðun Reykjavíkurborg stígur fyrsta skrefið í snjallvæðingu umferðarljósa! Einar Sveinbjörn Guðmundsson skrifar Skoðun Framtíðin í fyrsta sæti – mikilvægi forgangsröðunar á tillögum Kópavogsbæjar í grunnskólamálum Sigrún Ólöf Ingólfsdóttir skrifar Skoðun Notkun ökklabanda Guðmundur Ingi Þóroddsson skrifar Skoðun Skólaskætingur Þórdís Kolbrún R. Gylfadóttir skrifar Skoðun Þéttingarstefnan hefur brugðist og Dóra breytir um umræðuefni Aðalsteinn Haukur Sverrisson skrifar Skoðun Ný sókn í menntamálum Guðmundur Ari Sigurjónsson skrifar Skoðun Þjóðarmorð, fálmandi mjálm eða aðgerðir? Viðar Hreinsson skrifar Skoðun Vin í eyðimörkinni – almenningsbókasöfn borgarinnar Sanna Magdalena Mörtudóttir skrifar Skoðun Er Akureyri að missa háskólann sinn? Aðalbjörn Jóhannsson skrifar Skoðun Tíu staðreyndir um alvarlegustu kvenréttindakrísu heims Stella Samúelsdóttir skrifar Skoðun Ég vildi óska þess að ég hefði hreinlega fengið krabbamein Íris Elfa Þorkelsdóttir skrifar Skoðun Mestu aularnir í Vetrarbrautinni Kári Helgason skrifar Skoðun Fjárfestum í fyrsta bekk, frekar en fangelsum Hjördís Eva Þórðardóttir skrifar Skoðun Eftirlíking vitundar og hætturnar sem henni fylgja Þorsteinn Siglaugsson skrifar Skoðun Andaðu rólega elskan... Ester Hilmarsdóttir skrifar Skoðun Gagnvirkni líkama og vitundar til heilbrigðis Þórdís Hólm Filipsdóttir skrifar Skoðun Nýjar lausnir í kennslu – gamlar hindranir Bogi Ragnarsson skrifar Skoðun Kópavogsleiðinn Ragnar Þór Pétursson skrifar Skoðun Samstarf sem skilar raunverulegum loftslagsaðgerðum Nótt Thorberg skrifar Skoðun Lærum að lesa og reikna Jón Pétur Zimsen skrifar Skoðun Loforðið sem borgarstjóri gleymdi Magnea Gná Jóhannsdóttir skrifar Skoðun Kristrún, það er bannað að plata Snorri Másson skrifar Skoðun Öndunaræfingar í boði SFS Vala Árnadóttir skrifar Sjá meira
The Icelandic government has undergone a shift in priorities over the past few years. Not too long ago, the welfare and wellbeing of its people were seen as an utmost priority, and everything else existed in order to facilitate that wellbeing. Today, tourists and specifically the money they bring, are valued far more than the lives and livelihood of the people who call Iceland home, and furthermore those people now exist mostly to facilitate the wellbeing and comfort of those wealthy tourists. The government likes to claim that the vast amounts of money brought in by tourism will naturally trickle down and wash over the population, bringing prosperity to all it touches. This might be a reality in a fair and just system, or one where the biggest industries are not owned by a tiny handful of people and their families. In that reality, the riches only get concentrated in a few hands and then squirreled away offshore to avoid scrutiny from the tax office. The end result of this kind of a system is for Iceland to end up as a place just like Monaco. One which is hugely expensive, and where the vast majority of jobs are in the service industry, whose workers cannot even afford to live in the cities which they work, serving the rich who travel there. In these kind of places, the government does not care about high prices for food, housing or transportation because they know that the visiting tourists are happy to pay a premium for the privilege of visiting. Therefore there is no incentive to lower costs. Lower prices mean lower profits. Conversely, the workers are forced to pay these extortionate prices because they have no other choice. They are trapped in a system where they spend their entire paycheck just to survive. If the Icelandic government wants to live up to its well-polished, massaged image of equality and a high standard of living, which it likes to portray to the rest of the world, they must state clearly that the people who live here are prioritized more highly than tourist dollars, and to act accordingly. We live in one of the wealthiest countries in the world. The GDP of Iceland in 2022 was almost 7 percent, which equates to around 25 billion dollars. There is no reason for people to not be able to afford to survive. No excuses. The author is a member of Efling Union.
Skoðun Meiri gæði og mun minni álögur - Hveragerðisleiðin í leikskólamálum Jóhanna Ýr Jóhannsdóttir,Sandra Sigurðardóttir,Dagný Sif Sigurbjörnsdóttir,Halldór Benjamín Hreinsson,Njörður Sigurðsson skrifar
Skoðun Reykjavíkurborg stígur fyrsta skrefið í snjallvæðingu umferðarljósa! Einar Sveinbjörn Guðmundsson skrifar
Skoðun Framtíðin í fyrsta sæti – mikilvægi forgangsröðunar á tillögum Kópavogsbæjar í grunnskólamálum Sigrún Ólöf Ingólfsdóttir skrifar
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