December 07, 2019

Jón Gnarr on Using Taoism & Judo Tactics While Being Mayor of Reykjavík: Part 2 – Ep.21

This is the second of a three part interview that I did with Jón Gnarr, Iceland’s funniest and most famous Mayor of Reykjavík. If you haven’t listened to part 1 of this interview, I highly recommend that you do. Jón shares why he decided to run for political office, his concern about polar bears and more. Plus, it will provide context for some of what we discuss in this episode. For part 2, Jón and I have a fascinating philosophical discussion. I learn about the profound impact that Taoism, surrealism and judo have had on his life and more about his time in political office as the Mayor.

Lastly, I shared the word klakki, which means ice, in the last episode. This time around I thought it might be helpful to teach you how to say Mayor of Reykjavík, which is Borgarstjóri (city boss) Reykjavíkur.

Jón Gnarr’s Book

Some of the questions I asked Jón

I have read the Tao Te Ching many times and it was a pleasant surprise to hear that you have your own interpretation of the book’s core principle wu wei (doing not doing). When did you start to embody this principle and was it difficult to practice while in office?

On the surface, the Best party came across as a big joke but I’ve heard that your intention was to make democracy more fun and enjoyable in order to get people more involved. What fun things did you do to encourage people to participate more?

Let’s be social! Here is where you can connect with me on social media platforms:

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I hope you enjoyed listening to part 2 of my interview with Jón Gnarr. I release a new podcast episode every week. Make sure you are subscribed to the All Things Iceland podcast so you don’t miss Part 3 next week. If the platform you are listening to this podcast on allows you to leave a review, please do so, if you haven’t already.

Þakka þér kærlega fyrir að hlusta (og að lesa) og sjáumst fljótlega

Thank you kindly for listening (and reading) and see you soon!

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