Many African states are all black and murder is common. So lack of diversity in white Western European countries is desirable, but Africa needs more diversity. (Maybe somewhere in there is the key to "diversity".)
Iceland boasts a more St. Louis-sized population of about 320,000
And can also boast very un-St. Louis-like demographics.
Incidentally, in a given year in the ones in my conscious memory, there are only ever either one, two or three murders committed by white people in the city of St. Louis. And you'll see an Asian pop up every once in awhile -- St. Louis does have a handful of resettled Indochinese that were Vietnam era refugees. But the rest? Yep, all black.
During 2011, in all of Germany (population 82 million), police fired only 36 aimed shots at criminal suspects, resulting in six deaths.
Reliable statistics are hard to come by for the United States, but in most recent years there are about 400 fatal shootings, more than twenty times the German rate.
From the linked story: It's unclear, however, whether that history dates back only to Icelandic independence in 1944 or, more unlikely, further back toward when the land was settled in the late 9th century. Regardless, we're talking about at least several generations here.
Yeah, no civilian has been killed by government agents in Iceland in the last 11,000 years, because Vikings were such pacifists. How many editors did this sentence get by?
12/2/13, 5:17 PM
Anonymous said...
I've read that the Icelandic language has been so untouched by diversity that speakers are able to read the old Norse Eddas, which I guess is comparable to English speakers being able to read Beowulf.
12/2/13, 5:45 PM
Anonymous said...
Steve, as this post is about Iceland, thought I'd bring in the Gladwell connection.
Apparently, according to wiki:
'The Missionary (2013) is an upcoming American drama television film directed by Icelandic Baltasar Kormákur and written by Charles Randolph and Malcolm Gladwell.'
So, now Malcolm the ubiquitous is getting into TV! Helping out to co-write a screenplay, no less. How 'bout that?
Yeah, no civilian has been killed by government agents in Iceland in the last 11,000 years, because Vikings were such pacifists
The headline specifically states that they are talking about the police. The Vikings had absolutely nothing to do with policing.
12/2/13, 6:36 PM
Anonymous said...
Why is violent crime so rare in Iceland?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-22288564
12/2/13, 7:19 PM
Harry Baldwin said...
Yeah, no civilian has been killed by government agents in Iceland in the last 11,000 years, because Vikings were such pacifists. How many editors did this sentence get by?
How many editors did "11,000 years" get by when it's 1100?
Those damn white people. How can anyone be safe when whites walk the streets?
12/2/13, 8:07 PM
Durango C. said...
"Steve Sailer said...
Editors?
Editors are so 2011 ..."
Make that 20,111
12/2/13, 8:09 PM
Canadian Observer said...
I have visited Iceland twice over the past few years. Reykjavik is becoming increasingly "diverse" every year. Approximately 6% of Reykjavik is non-white. There are thousands of Africans, Palestinians and Filipinos living in Iceland now.
Reykjavik has some rough areas, so I'm surprised that this is the first police shooting ever. Drunkenness is also rampant in this country. The police are always breaking up a lot of fights at 4 a.m. on weekends.
The media and elites of Iceland are more liberal than in America and even Western Europe. "Invite the World" is practically a mantra over there. They are yearning for more non-whites to come over and settle, although I'm not really sure why. Interesting fact: Iceland is the first Western country to recognize Palestinian sovereignty.
There will be more police shootings coming in this country. I guarantee it.
12/2/13, 8:51 PM
Hepp said...
"Approximately 6% of Reykjavik is non-white. "
Really?!? Anyone with info on this?
12/2/13, 9:29 PM
Veracitor said...
Guess they had better dust off those old copies of the Saga of Burnt Njal.
12/2/13, 9:45 PM
Canadian Observer said...
Check out http://www.indexmundi.com/iceland/demographics_profile.html and various Wikipedia entries. And I saw it with my own eyes. Especially the school-age generation. Many ethnic minorities are likely unreported too.
12/2/13, 10:23 PM
Miguel S. said...
Iceland's recognition of Palestine as a state follows the rule that degree of sympathy for Palestinians is inversely to how close one lives to them. Iceland is as far away as you can get from them and still be in Europe.
12/3/13, 12:33 AM
Hepp said...
"Check out http://www.indexmundi.com/iceland/demographics_profile.html and various Wikipedia entries. And I saw it with my own eyes. Especially the school-age generation. Many ethnic minorities are likely unreported too."
That site says that 6% is population of foreign origins. According to this map, the vast majority of foreigners in Iceland are American or European: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:COB_data_Iceland.PNG. So it would be somewhat surprising if 6% of the capital was non-white, although it is possible.
12/3/13, 5:33 AM
Anonymous said...
I have visited Iceland twice over the past few years. Reykjavik is becoming increasingly "diverse" every year.
It's funny how "diversity" turns unique places and cultures into the same cosmopolitan hodgepodge.
P.S. There has to be a "Lazytown" joke in here somewhere.
"The nightmare of a lack of diversity"
20 Comments -
Many African states are all black and murder is common. So lack of diversity in white Western European countries is desirable, but Africa needs more diversity. (Maybe somewhere in there is the key to "diversity".)
12/2/13, 4:30 PM
On the original Slate article:
Iceland boasts a more St. Louis-sized population of about 320,000
And can also boast very un-St. Louis-like demographics.
Incidentally, in a given year in the ones in my conscious memory, there are only ever either one, two or three murders committed by white people in the city of St. Louis. And you'll see an Asian pop up every once in awhile -- St. Louis does have a handful of resettled Indochinese that were Vietnam era refugees. But the rest? Yep, all black.
12/2/13, 4:32 PM
During 2011, in all of Germany (population 82 million), police fired only 36 aimed shots at criminal suspects, resulting in six deaths.
Reliable statistics are hard to come by for the United States, but in most recent years there are about 400 fatal shootings, more than twenty times the German rate.
Peter
12/2/13, 5:08 PM
From the linked story:
It's unclear, however, whether that history dates back only to Icelandic independence in 1944 or, more unlikely, further back toward when the land was settled in the late 9th century. Regardless, we're talking about at least several generations here.
Yeah, no civilian has been killed by government agents in Iceland in the last 11,000 years, because Vikings were such pacifists.
How many editors did this sentence get by?
12/2/13, 5:17 PM
I've read that the Icelandic language has been so untouched by diversity that speakers are able to read the old Norse Eddas, which I guess is comparable to English speakers being able to read Beowulf.
12/2/13, 5:45 PM
Steve, as this post is about Iceland, thought I'd bring in the Gladwell connection.
Apparently, according to wiki:
'The Missionary (2013) is an upcoming American drama television film directed by Icelandic Baltasar Kormákur and written by Charles Randolph and Malcolm Gladwell.'
So, now Malcolm the ubiquitous is getting into TV! Helping out to co-write a screenplay, no less. How 'bout that?
12/2/13, 5:57 PM
Yeah, no civilian has been killed by government agents in Iceland in the last 11,000 years, because Vikings were such pacifists
The headline specifically states that they are talking about the police. The Vikings had absolutely nothing to do with policing.
12/2/13, 6:36 PM
Why is violent crime so rare in Iceland?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-22288564
12/2/13, 7:19 PM
Yeah, no civilian has been killed by government agents in Iceland in the last 11,000 years, because Vikings were such pacifists.
How many editors did this sentence get by?
How many editors did "11,000 years" get by when it's 1100?
12/2/13, 7:40 PM
Editors?
Editors are so 2011 ...
12/2/13, 7:43 PM
Those damn white people. How can anyone be safe when whites walk the streets?
12/2/13, 8:07 PM
"Steve Sailer said...
Editors?
Editors are so 2011 ..."
Make that 20,111
12/2/13, 8:09 PM
I have visited Iceland twice over the past few years. Reykjavik is becoming increasingly "diverse" every year. Approximately 6% of Reykjavik is non-white. There are thousands of Africans, Palestinians and Filipinos living in Iceland now.
Reykjavik has some rough areas, so I'm surprised that this is the first police shooting ever. Drunkenness is also rampant in this country. The police are always breaking up a lot of fights at 4 a.m. on weekends.
The media and elites of Iceland are more liberal than in America and even Western Europe. "Invite the World" is practically a mantra over there. They are yearning for more non-whites to come over and settle, although I'm not really sure why. Interesting fact: Iceland is the first Western country to recognize Palestinian sovereignty.
There will be more police shootings coming in this country. I guarantee it.
12/2/13, 8:51 PM
"Approximately 6% of Reykjavik is non-white. "
Really?!? Anyone with info on this?
12/2/13, 9:29 PM
Guess they had better dust off those old copies of the Saga of Burnt Njal.
12/2/13, 9:45 PM
Check out http://www.indexmundi.com/iceland/demographics_profile.html and various Wikipedia entries. And I saw it with my own eyes. Especially the school-age generation. Many ethnic minorities are likely unreported too.
12/2/13, 10:23 PM
Iceland's recognition of Palestine as a state follows the rule that degree of sympathy for Palestinians is inversely to how close one lives to them. Iceland is as far away as you can get from them and still be in Europe.
12/3/13, 12:33 AM
"Check out http://www.indexmundi.com/iceland/demographics_profile.html and various Wikipedia entries. And I saw it with my own eyes. Especially the school-age generation. Many ethnic minorities are likely unreported too."
That site says that 6% is population of foreign origins. According to this map, the vast majority of foreigners in Iceland are American or European: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:COB_data_Iceland.PNG. So it would be somewhat surprising if 6% of the capital was non-white, although it is possible.
12/3/13, 5:33 AM
I have visited Iceland twice over the past few years. Reykjavik is becoming increasingly "diverse" every year.
It's funny how "diversity" turns unique places and cultures into the same cosmopolitan hodgepodge.
P.S. There has to be a "Lazytown" joke in here somewhere.
12/3/13, 7:53 AM
Of course the Vikings were late comers. They found that the Irish were already there. Saint Brendan may have been the first Icelander.
So if there is violence in Iceland today - I think it must be those rowdy Irishmen.
Albertosaurus
12/3/13, 10:39 AM