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Iceland's prime minister Geir Haarde steps down

news.com.au — ICELANDIC Prime Minister Geir Haarde, under growing pressure from a financial collapse that has led to violent protests, has announced he is stepping down and wanted an early election to be held on May 9.

Who dugg this? Made popular Jan 24, 2009

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  • alappat1, on 01/23/2009, -3/+23AckbarHussein where do you get your information? Their banks failed spectacularly because of improper privatization, severe deregulation, and cronyism in selecting people to head the banks!
  • vizerei, on 01/24/2009, -1/+20You're an idiot, socialism in a general since isn't failing around the world. I don't see our firefighters, police, or military failing but by definition they are socialistic. So what is failing then? If you said the global economy you would be on the right track.
  • Mattwdj, on 01/24/2009, -0/+12yea because the last 8 years have been soo great.
  • Ardiente, on 01/23/2009, -0/+11It's not entirely his fault, but seriously, good for the people.
  • inactive, on 01/24/2009, -0/+9About time the protesters got through to their government. . .
  • Wreckage, on 01/24/2009, -0/+9I hear there was pressure from all 12 residents of Iceland.
  • doublefelix, on 01/23/2009, -0/+9Go take a steam Geir.
  • Devotia, on 01/24/2009, -0/+7Out of curiousity (not trolling) has anyone in the US, government or private sector stepped down voluntarily over the collapse?
  • dudestuff, on 01/24/2009, -0/+7nah, one of them was pretty apathetic.
  • wilhoitm, on 01/24/2009, -1/+8At least the women there are still Hot!
  • vizerei, on 01/24/2009, -1/+7He doesn't get information, he just spits random stuff out of his mouth and hopes someone without a brain will be all "OMG YOUR SO RIGHT AMERICA ROCKS SOCIALISM SUCKS!#@$(*" or something to that effect.
  • smacksaw, on 01/24/2009, -1/+7It wasn't socialism that's the problem, it was cronyism. Elitism. It was the sweetheart deregulation deals for the banks that caused this.

    If I kicked you in the nuts, would you blame your pain on sunspots? That makes about the same amount of sense.
  • byrdgang, on 01/24/2009, -0/+6Dugg for completely irrelevant comment.
  • zyklon, on 01/24/2009, -0/+5Or, he's a troll.
  • LeepII, on 01/24/2009, -0/+4Icelanders shame the American people. At least the Icelanders had the guts to stand up to a corrupt government and do something about it.
  • bobboberton, on 01/24/2009, -0/+4Björk was too busy doing a little dance and singing a little diddy.
  • dudestuff, on 01/24/2009, -0/+4no. good guess, though.
  • byrdgang, on 01/24/2009, -0/+4A number of people have stepped down (retired, quit, or in some other way self terminated their employment) in the private sector. Did they do so voluntarily? Difficult to tell. Before the financial crisis, Angelo Mozilo of Countrywide (at one point one of the largest lenders in the USA) said he would retire within the (then) near future. After the financial crisis started, he stayed on until he retired after his company was acquired by Bank of America. Did he leave voluntarily? According to what the public has been told, yes.

  • inactive, on 01/24/2009, -0/+4 No, they're too busy glomming raises and bonuses.
  • riffrandal, on 01/24/2009, -0/+3What of the Bjork fundraisers?? P.S. mrboobsman, you comment
    on the new American regime, but your name is mrboobsman.
  • bobboberton, on 01/24/2009, -1/+4Maybe not Björk. She's a mite creepy.
  • inactive, on 01/24/2009, -0/+3Wow, interesting to hear of these problems facing The World's Most Developed Nation
  • Gndoab, on 01/24/2009, -0/+2obama's skin isn't really that dark guy.

    What pictures have you been looking at?
  • julianmaestas, on 01/24/2009, -0/+2does that mean he'll be leading up until may 9th? that's a far away date, a lot of damage can still be done.
    but i suppose the other option, getting a new leader in right away, could lead to chaos...
  • Nore, on 01/24/2009, -0/+2Now all that's left is for the prime minister of Greece to step down as well.
  • pinkpackrat, on 01/24/2009, -1/+3Cancer of the esophagus is no walk in the park--usually it's a death sentence. I feel kinda sorry for the guy.
  • Phonk, on 01/24/2009, -0/+2There are some government system that should not be given to the private sector
    Defence, police, health care, transport,
    In Britain the transport system was sold to the private sector to run
    The transport system is a huge network built by the tax payer money over generations of times
    then give it to a bunch of rich to run it and make profit.
    That is theft on a broad day light.
    and when the private sector runs into trouble the tax payer comes to the rescue.
    That is capitalism.
  • inactive, on 01/24/2009, -0/+2The fact that he is capable of stepping down should make him feel like a very lucky man. The malignant tumor story was a nice touch.
  • Phonk, on 01/24/2009, -0/+2It wasn't socialism that's the problem, it was cronyism. Elitism = Capitalism
  • smacksaw, on 01/24/2009, -0/+2It's about time. I expected better of Iceland of all people. Small community, consistent culture, educated voters...

    The people let this go on far too long. Hopefully Iceland gets it right and gets some decent people in charge to fix this mess and never votes for this sort of crook again.
  • Betrayal, on 01/24/2009, -1/+2Bush?

    Or did he have to leave office?
  • inactive, on 01/24/2009, -1/+2Wrong thread.
  • lisaawesome, on 01/24/2009, -3/+4Do Icelandic officials all have tumors?
  • ohreilly, on 01/24/2009, -0/+1What do you mean by transport system?

    Thatcher privatised the buses, Major privatised the railways (but the state now owns the tracks again), but other aspects of the system like roads are still owned by the state (I think there's a part of a motorway that isn't though)
  • Phonk, on 01/24/2009, -0/+1Capitalism is crumbling
    Iceland will drag other country along and the house of card will fall
    Communism didn't work in USSR
    China has cleverly manipulated its communism to fit the requirements of its economy, still there is a lot of ills in the chinese system.
    At least the fall of communism did not drag the rest of the world to its knees
    Capitalism fall is catastrophic to all.
  • ohreilly, on 01/24/2009, -0/+1Good to see he is stepping down.

    I can think of another Prime Minister that is leading his country into real economic problems, that ought to step down and call an election now (before he gets kicked out anyway in 2010, when the election must occur if it hasn't already)
  • lhbaker, on 01/26/2009, -1/+1Bush sure as ***** didn't. We'd be better off if he had, don't you agree?
  • helgilax, on 01/26/2009, -0/+0what a rude thing to say when they just elected mr awesome as a President, all we did was burn a few park benches and bang on kitchen appliances ;)
  • inactive, on 01/24/2009, -5/+3He's an idiot? Did you proofread your statement prior to posting?
  • AckbarHussein, on 01/23/2009, -33/+0As socialism fails around the world, the US is just ramping it up. The times ahead are as dark as Obama's skin.

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