The World Economy

[Cal]

ETA: Cal, when was Switzerland ever really officially in on anything. Switzerland are just very Switzerland. Sweden is considered a neutral country, but they're nothing compared to Switzerland.

LOL!

Yes, Switzerland are quite bizarre like that. And quite annoying, too. The Economic module in Geography annoyed me slightly, Switzerland were everywhere yet they didn't do anything.

I don't like our Government when it comes to situations like this. They are so weak and useless. They don't have the balls to stand up to anybody. We, the citizens, can do it... But the Government are a bunch of EU Lapdogs. I need to take over this country. First thing I'd do is withdraw from the EU.

I want to buy Iceland if it goes up for sale. It looks like a sexy country. The whole country runs on steam, that's awesome.

[Corey]

In the US there have been people taking their money out of the banks and keeping it in biscuit tins under the bed! I kid you not - they thnk its safer.

[Slade]

Iceland is very strategically placed between Russia and the US. And also, there have been some disagreements between Russia and some of the Scandinavian countries (mainly Norway, but the Scandinavian countries tend to stick together on decisions) so Russia definitely has something to gain in getting more trust from the Scandinavian countries by helping out Iceland. Especially since Scandinavian countries don't really unconditionally support the US (I'm not sure about Sweden and Denmark, but to mention one example, Norway's government does not support the US support of Israel in the Israel/Palestine conflict). Neither do we support Russia unconditionally, and like I said there have been some arguments between Russia and Norway about borders at sea far north where we share a border. Since Scandinavia, and generally few nations support the US as unconditionally as the US would like to think, Russia certainly would have a lot to gain on helping out a country like Iceland, which is rated one of the best countries in the world to live in (I think either Iceland or Norway is in 1st place, not sure which one at the moment) when they're having financial problems. It makes Russia look even better considering the US has been messing up a lot lately in this disaster.

Also, like I said earlier, and from a strictly more Americanized (and mainly Republicanized) point of view; Scandinavia (Norway, Iceland and Greenland/Denmark) are strategically placed between Russia and the US. If a bigger conflict ever were to build up, those countries could be important because of the amount of sea separating Russia and the US.

I'm far from an expert, and I haven't really read any concrete explanation that states this, so I could be way off here, but it seems like the most logical explanation to me.

ETA: Cal, when was Switzerland ever really officially in on anything. Switzerland are just very Switzerland. Sweden is considered a neutral country, but they're nothing compared to Switzerland.

I sort of suspected it would be something like that but I wasn’t sure.

I think Russia needs all the help they can get considering they have lost most of the eastern block countries to NATO and have the US practically in its back yard as far as eastern Europe is concerned and breathing down their necks in virtually all the countries in central Asia.

I’m not really an expert either but if by bigger conflict you mean between Russia and the US then this is extremely unlikely. Russia are a shadow of what was once the Soviet Union and financially they were never that great anyway. If the Russians are smart and they want to try and compete with the US then they would be better served forming stronger ties with China as they appear to be a rising power (however those two have had their disputes). If anyone is going to compete with the US it would have to be economically and not militarily as this seems to be the best way to influence and control certain countries and the decisions they make.

[John]

It certainly is an interesting time for self funded retirees like myself. Our investments have certainly taken a beating.

Would you believe that the Opposition Party in our federal parliament have just elected a merchant banker as their leader. As a representative of the mob that caused all this mess are they really expecting us to vote for him? Fat chance.

[Eli]

Oh, I definitely agree, Russia is not at all what it was during the Soviet era... But sadly a lot of Americans don't get that... However, even if they're not as massive as they were when they were Soviet, Russia is definitely still a big, powerful country, and I don't think it would be wise to underestimate them either. They do as far as we know possess nuclear weapons.

That being said though, I think the negative attitude towards Russia is the most dangerous thing about the disagreements here in the first place. I don't always think the picture the western countries (mainly the US) paint of Russia are fair, even if we take into consideration that they are still a powerful country with nuclear weapons that should not be underestimated in case of a conflict.

[Ryan]

Britain was bankrupt after the Second World War so America gave us a loan.

In the short term, I would like Iceland to continue to exist because of the football situation for the World Cup, but it won't count for anything if we don't beat Norway this weekend.

[Slade]

Oh, I definitely agree, Russia is not at all what it was during the Soviet era... But sadly a lot of Americans don't get that... However, even if they're not as massive as they were when they were Soviet, Russia is definitely still a big, powerful country, and I don't think it would be wise to underestimate them either. They do as far as we know possess nuclear weapons.

That being said though, I think the negative attitude towards Russia is the most dangerous thing about the disagreements here in the first place. I don't always think the picture the western countries (mainly the US) paint of Russia are fair, even if we take into consideration that they are still a powerful country with nuclear weapons that should not be underestimated in case of a conflict.

Agreed. Some Americans still see Russia as an evil communist empire. I have no problem with Americans (or even British) thinking badly of Russia. What bothers me is the double standards. They talk about Russians human rights record (which let’s be honest at times has been pretty poor) but a lot of people seem to turn a blind eye to all the dictators that the West have actively supported in the past (and still support).

I think Russia is a very powerful country but they have massive internal problems. Since the break up of the USSR the crime rate is a lot higher than before (i.e. Russian Mafia etc) and there is a lot of corruption in regards to oil/money etc. There is also the issue of Chechnya. This is important because Russia contains a lot of autonomous regions such as this and if Chechnya becomes independent, they risk the whole country breaking up.

Their nuclear arsenal is now outdated and they barely have the money to maintain (let alone develop) it like the Americans do. The best thing Russia can do is learn from their mistakes and invest their money in developing commercial goods rather than weapons and follow China’s example and shift towards a free market economy.

[-Kevin-]

The Irish economy is going downhill rapidly as well.The annual budget is on next week and it is not looking good.They are considering taking free medical care from the over 70's and are now taking away some peoples childrens allowance which up until a while ago everybody got,no matter how much money you had.there is not a job to be had anywhere either there is very large businesses closing down on a daily basis.I mean no disrespect to other races when I say this but nearly 75% of employees in Ireland are not Irish and are people coming from there own countries and earning money to send back to their families back home.Employers are giving these jobs to "foreign" people over irish people because these people will accept any wage and the Irish know when they are being ripped off

[Eli]

In the short term, I would like Iceland to continue to exist because of the football situation for the World Cup, but it won't count for anything if we don't beat Norway this weekend.

I wouldn't worry, Ryan

The only team we don't lose to for some reason is Brazil, and in addition to the team generally not winning much, I think most of our players are out with injuries in that game anyway