Why is this frozen lump of volcanic rock doing so well? For three reasons. First, Iceland was wise enough to let its banks fail rather than bailing them out. Second, Iceland was not in the eurozone, and so could absorb part the shock of the devaluation in its exchange rate rather than in output and jobs. Unemployment is currently at just 5.3 per cent, and the krone is now recovering as growth returns. Third, Icelanders are a hardy people, two generations away from subsistence farming and fishing. When things go wrong, they don’t go whining to the government; they narrow their eyes and get back to work. http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/danielhannan/100216232/iceland-chooses-independence/