A quarter of Iceland's population may refuse to pay mortgages

[cyu]

A growing leftward shift in Iceland?

Excerpts from http://marketplace.publicradio.org/display/web/2009/09/30/pm-iceland/

thousands of mortgage holders are expected to join in a national repayment strike.

a quarter of Iceland's population -- could take part in the strike.

People are very angry because we feel the banks were gambling with the economy, with the currency, stealing, stealing our properties.

At least 20 percent of the population are thought to owe more on their property than the property is worth.

Excerpts from http://icelandweatherreport.com/2009/09/as-household-debt-shoots-through-the-roof-some-people-are-going-on-strike.html

it is clear that the households cannot go on forever struggling to pay off ever-increasing debts … while at the same time the bank tycoons and moguls responsible for this disaster have the debts of their defunct companies written off left and right.

[IrishWorker]

:)Brilliant News...

[ls]

That is absolutely brilliant and may they all be successful too!

The left movement in Iceland is moving forwards by leaps and bounds, here's to Icelandic socialism! :cool:

[amandevsingh]

That would be wicked! Solidarity with Iceland. :D

[Andropov]

Brilliant stuff, shows how fast economic hardship can radicalise the people.

[yuon]

This is interesting news, and certainly a positive sign.

I just hope the (so called socialist) government doesn't crack down on this sort of behaviour.

Can someone explain though, why many "mortgages [were] priced in euros, and Swiss francs"? That sounds a bit silly. The second link says "[they were all the rage here in 2006-2008]", but does not say why.

Anyway, we all know that the real answer to this is revolution! Hang the capitalists with the guts of the nearest politician!

[fabilius]

This is interesting news, and certainly a positive sign.

I just hope the (so called socialist) government doesn't crack down on this sort of behaviour.

Can someone explain though, why many "mortgages [were] priced in euros, and Swiss francs"? That sounds a bit silly. The second link says "[they were all the rage here in 2006-2008]", but does not say why.

Anyway, we all know that the real answer to this is revolution! Hang the capitalists with the guts of the nearest politician!

I´m an Icelander. (But I don´t owe anything so I can´t really participate in the protest but by supporting those who do).

The reason why people borrowed money in foreign currencies was that the Central bank of Iceland had high interest rates. This was done so that the Krona would be strong because international capitalists wanted to invest and get high interest rates.

But Icelandic banks surpassed this and offered foreign currency loans at lower interest rates.

(Then the banks tried to undermine the Krona so that people would have to pay more than they bargained for but that´s a different story).

Anyway, there was leftward swing brewing in the 2006´s and 2007´s but obviously 2008 radicalized portions of the left.

[Comrade B]

I just hope the (so called socialist) government doesn't crack down on this sort of behaviour.
What can they really do? Fine the people? They don't have money as it is. Arrest a quarter of their population? This what people mean when they say that the people united cannot be defeated.

[Dimentio]

They would be forced to cancel the mortgages.

25% of the people cannot live on the streets or on existence minimum for the rest of their lives (which would be an equivalent to the ancient institution of slavery). If the Icelandic government don't do that, the situation could lead into something quite unique for a western country.

[al8]

Just to reiterate this isn't some purely spontaneous awakening among the people, which is a nebulous conception. Objective conditions exist but this limited minimum struggle has been pushed forward largely thanks to an active hoxhaist and the conscious leadership in others in Hagsmunasamtök Heimilanna (The Interest-Group of the Homes).

It's mass struggles such as these that I would gather provide the working class with an inkling of it power when it acts collective fashion, make evident the double standard the bourgeois state keeps towards the respective classes, as well as provide immediate benefits.

[Ismail]

Just to reiterate this isn't some purely spontaneous awakening among the people, which is a nebulous conception. Objective conditions exist but this limited minimum struggle has been pushed forward largely thanks to an active hoxhaist and the conscious leadership in others in Hagsmunasamtök Heimilanna (The Interest-Group of the Homes).I know that there used to be a Hoxhaist party in Iceland (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communist_Unity_%28Marxist-Leninist%29), but what's the status of Hoxhaism there now? Apparently pretty decent.