Since 2008, Icelandic citizens have taken to the streets and social media and eventually forced their government to resign en masse. These citizens were responding to corruption and inaction from their government to rein in banks and the incorrigible practices that were leading Iceland into an economic disaster. American mainstream media has been devastatingly silent on its coverage of the affair.
Other than a few blog posts, opinion pieces and user-submitted stories, most outlets have failed to cover the Icelandic revolution, called the “pots and pans revolution” for the way citizens took to the streets banging pots and pans together in protest of the government.
Why would the mainstream media ignore such a monumental event? Theories abound, but the consensus seems to lie in banks and corporations owning the media and not wanting to risk encouraging similar behavior in the United States.
Look at the recent announcement of the JPMorgan settlement for $13 billion for making false representations of its mortgage-backed securities. In addition to the settlement, which could be considered a small penance compared to the damage caused, the company will be required to assist in an ongoing criminal investigation into the activities of the bank during the events leading to the recent economic crisis.
All of this begs the question, will we see any arrests in the United States for the actions of these banks? If the attorney general was to arrest bankers for their activities in the crisis, it would be a largely unprecedented occurrence. The likelihood of bankers going to jail is slim.
The latest news from Iceland is that a series of bankers are being ushered to jail cells for their collusion during a series of acquisitions that were designed to inflate market prices. The latest news from the U.S. … let us know when you hear.
Joshua is a writer and researcher with Ring of Fire. You can follow him on Twitter @Joshual33.
