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As much as I recommend following IcelandIc happenings as an antidote to the problem-laden news from elsewhere, the small island-nation of 320,000 hardy souls is not problem-free. Here are some examples.
There are four potentially active volcanoes preparing to erupt. Hekla is a major one, but there is also Katla and others, according to The Iceland Monitor. The crack between the North American and European tectonic plates, visible on the surface, has widened. That’s not all for geographic hazards, since the melting arctic ice is next door.
Some Icelanders complain that their country is being overrun by tourists. One man complained that hotels are a source of more jobs than fishing and industry. Another complained that he may no longer be able to afford to live in Reykjavik, the major city, since so many properties are turning into AIrbnbs.
The tourists are parking on the single ring road that encircles the country, in order to gaze at the glaciers and the Northern Lights, but posing a traffic hazard and inadvertently pointing out possible inadequacies in road construction. The story has the memorable headline "Look at the road, not the sky !."
The mayor of Reykjavik is no longer a comedian. The current mayor, a physician, may be totally competent, but not as picturesque as the former mayor, rocker, actor and comedian Jon Gnarr.
As worthwhile as its news can be,The Iceland Monitor misconstrued my article pointing out that the omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid content of their ocean fish might be a factor in the well-being of their citizens, even In the face of dark days, active volcanoes, and other stressful circumstances. Fish oil is only one factor! People's willingness to help each other out and to rescue strangers who get lost on the glaciers, gorges, and rocky shores, documented by New Yorker writer Nick Paumgartner, is a social and psychological factor that is more notable. It's a prime example of the "social capitol" that is lacking in too many other places.
I could go on. The point is, Iceland is a country that provides a welcome, therapeutic, and instructive relief from the too-often alarming events elsewhere, and I recommend its news to those who are disheartened by failing states, cable TV and internet journalism. But I also welcome evidence that like everywhere else, it’s not perfect.
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