Monday’s EFTA decision throwing out the UK/Holland suit to recover costs from Icelandic citizens made my day as it made many an  Icelandic citizen’s day. We live in a world which in just a few decades has seen the power of banks increase to the point they control the politicians, rewrite the laws and most maddening of all, demand that citizens underwrite their casino losses when their bets go bad.

Your Parliament caved. Your PM Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir attempted to throw out the referendum results of 93 percent of your citizens who voted not to pay the bad debts made by the banks. But thank god for President Ólafur Grímsson who offered the citizens a referendum. He deserves a huge statue in your capital! In a world where democracy is a meaningless term, I will go to bed tonight happy that there is one place left in the world where freedom rings, and justice for all rules!

Hugh Owens MD, Jackson Hole, WY, USA