Artikelen in het jaar: 2010 (49) in totaal.

• 30-08 : Benny & Mo (2) (Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  Waaraan denk je als je deze foto ziet? Misschien aan twee innige vrienden die net uit hetzelfde bed zijn gestapt en elkaar een goede dag op het werk toewensen. Ik in ieder geval wel. Ondanks het erg hoge Danny d. V. te H. gehalte van Berlusconi's gezicht, is er misschien toch wel echt iets gaande tussen hem en Gadaffi... Mij verbaast helemaal niets meer.
• 23-08 : Raoul Wallenberg – tristesse ten top (2) (Digestives, Notabelen, Verzet & strijd)
  
  Door een gewaardeerd lid uit mijn Duitse netwerk werd ik gewezen op - en voorzien van - een boek genaamd "Raoul Wallenberg - So viele Menschen Retten wie möglich..." (1999) door Christoph Gann. "Lees dat maar eens..." was het bijgaande commentaar..."voor wanneer ik een keer zin had in een triest verhaal". Inderdaad, het was een heel triest verhaal, een van het kaliber Oskar Schindler, maar dan met een slechte afloop voor de held in kwestie, Raoul Wallenberg.
• 17-08 : Nucleaire Moslim extremisten (4) (Mafketels en rariteiten, Verzet & strijd)
  
  Ik heb eerder op deze blog geschreven dat ik niet dacht dat Grootdictator Achmadinejad van Nieuw Perzië slechte bedoelingen had met zijn nucleaire plannen. Helaas moet ik daar in het licht van de huidige ontwikkelingen in Iran - die spreken van wel 20 opwerkingsfabrieken voor uranium - waarschijnlijk op terugkomen. Er lijkt geen twijfel meer over te bestaan: Iran is hard op weg om een kernmacht te worden. En in die regio, waar theocratie de norm is en de eveneens nucleair-capabele en zelfverklaard "uitverkoren" Israëli's de naaste buren zijn, is dat een verre van aangenaam idee.
• 11-08 : De FIFA Voetbal dictators (4) (Mafketels en rariteiten, Uit de losse pols)
  
  Met toenemende bloeddruk, irritatie en verontwaardiging zag ik op het nieuws gisteren dat het internationale voetbal-Politbureau, beter bekend als de FIFA, een aantal onverteerbare privileges heeft afgedwongen voor het geval dat de WK voetbal nog eens naar Nederland moeten komen. En die privileges worden betaald uit de staatskas, die weer wordt gevuld met belastingen. Mijn belastingen, wel te verstaan. Het is al erg genoeg dat het proleten-toernooi zo nodig hier moet plaatsvinden. Voetbal, de sport van iedereen. Wat betekent dat eigenlijk?
• 06-08 : Genesis (5) (Digestives, Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  Voor mijn verjaardag enige maanden geleden kreeg mijn dame een stripverhaal van de legendarische Robert Crumb. Deze meneer staat bekend als de bedenker van mogelijkerwijs de meest geperverteerde stripverhalen die op deze planeet zijn uitgegeven. De liefhebbers kennen waarschijnlijk zijn in dit land zeer bekende strip "Fritz the Cat" en anders wel een van zijn talrijke andere sappige brein-producten. Deze notoire vuns, die overigens beschikt over een buitengewoon aantrekkelijk tekentalent, heeft om de een of andere reden het eerste bijbelboek "Genesis" als stripverhaal opgetekend.
• 31-07 : Iboga – dansen met de duivel (1) (Mafketels en rariteiten, Verzet & strijd)
  
  Net als je denkt dat je weet hoe de wereld in elkaar zit, kom je er achter dat dit helemaal niet zo is. Althans, laat ik dit enigszins anders formuleren... net als je denkt dat je weet hoe je zelf in elkaar zit, blijk je toch te beschikken over peilloze diepten vol met de meest afgrijselijke meuk die je je maar kunt voorstellen. Sommige van ons stervelingen komen dat op een gegeven moment tegen. Anderen blijft het misschien bespaard. Ik ben er - met wat hulp van buiten - met open ogen ingelopen.
• 14-07 : Zomerrustlust (18+) (6) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  De komkommertijd is met dusdanige snelheid genaderd dat ik er al een week middenin zit zonder er erg in te hebben. Ook het einde van de eerste helft van dit arbeidzame jaar zit er bijna op. Ik ga na deze werkweek voor een tijdje in rust. Het idee is om mijzelf weer op te peppen voor de tweede helft van het jaar. En ik ga dat doen door mij in kunstzinnige kringen te begeven, samen met dame, kroost en zwaarkatoenen habitat, om het dagelijkse en routineuze eens goed op te laten schudden te midden van een contingent artistieke hippies.... geloof ik. Zeker weten doe ik het echter niet; misschien zijn het wel intellectuele hoogvliegers waartussen we straks terecht komen. Bovendien sluiten die dingen elkaar niet altijd uit.
• 07-07 : Privacy in Nederland (0) (Digestives)
  
  De klamzwoele zomeravonden geven veel gelegenheid tot langdurige lees-sessies in het avondlijke bed. Het is te warm om diep te slapen en moeilijk om in zelfs een lichte roes weg te zakken. Het is dus lezen, wat de klok slaat. Op zich is dat geen straf natuurlijk, zeker niet als het boek-van-dienst aangenaam wegleest. En met het boek "Privacy" (2010) van Rudie Kagie is dat inderdaad het geval. Om te beginnen al omdat het in het Nederlands is. Ik ben er ondertussen wel achter dat de superieure souplesse van de moedertaal niet alleen bij het spreken en schrijven geldt, maar zeker ook bij het lezen. Als gevolg daarvan glijdt dit Nederlandse boek er in als koek, en doet het dat beter dan de anderstalige exemplaren die in mijn huis de boekenkasten bevolken.
• 30-06 : Jezus was een paalhanger (5) (Mafketels en rariteiten, Uit de losse pols)
  
  Het is leuk om te zien hoe paniekerig mensen worden als je aan hun zekerheden tornt. Het is nog leuker om dat te zien bij christenen waarvan de basis voor hun wereldvreemde bestaan met de grond gelijk gemaakt wordt. Op zich is dat geen geringe prestatie, want christenen zijn notoire werkelijkheids-ontkenners en onzin-gelovers, dus er is heel wat voor nodig om hun rotsvaste overtuiging van het wel en wee van die illustere doch eeuwig onzichtbare en fictieve godsfiguur van ze, effectief op te schudden.
• 24-06 : Midas en Mussolini (1) (Digestives)
  
  De laatste tijd heb ik geen supergelukkige hand gehad wat betreft mijn huiselijke entertainment, en dan doel ik op de boeken en de films die ik recentelijk heb geprobeerd tot mij te nemen. Zo heb ik gisteren een film gezien over Ida Dalser, genaamd Vincere (2009) van regisseur Marco Bellocchio. Dalser was de minnares van Benito Mussolini in een tijd dat hij nog geen "Duce" was en de moeder van zijn allereerste zoon, Benito Albino Mussolini Junior. De film beloofde veel want Mussolini is natuurlijk historisch interessant, maar wat ik te zien kreeg was een grote teleurstelling. De film ging eigenlijk vooral over Dalser zelf en haar tragische leven. En die korte momenten waarop Mussolini zijn gedreven politieke retoriek ten gehore bracht, waren op één hand te tellen. Dat is niet veel in een film van twee uur.
• 21-06 : De synthetische mens dichterbij (7) (Denkers, Uit de losse pols)
  
  In een boekje over zijn toekomstverwachting voor de komende eeuw stelt Michio Kaku dat volgens hem binnen 100 jaar het menselijke bewustzijn volledig nagemaakt is. Samen met de dan voldoende ver voortgeschreden techniek waarmee een lichaam kan worden gebouwd zal daardoor de synthetische mens een feit zijn. Ik denk dat Kaku een pessimist is - wel een hele slimme en beroemde overigens - maar mijns inziens zit zijn schatting er enige decennia naast. Ik denk dat we binnen 50 jaar de mens hebben nagemaakt in al haar bizarre facetten en ik verwacht ook met deze inschatting nog aan de hoge kant te zitten.
• 14-06 : Bodemschatten in Afghanistan: de verdoemenis gloort (2) (Uit de losse pols, Verzet & strijd)
  
  Vandaag lees ik dat er in Afghanistan voor bijna 1000 miljard dollar aan bodemschatten in de grond is "gevonden". Toen ik dat zag, zonk mij de moed wat betreft de ontwikkeling van het Afghaanse volk mijlenver in de schoenen. Afghanistan is naar ik verwacht ten dode opgeschreven nu blijkt dat zij haar geld gewoon uit de grond zou kunnen scheppen. En dan heb het niet eens over de onvermijdelijke ruzie en strijd die gaat ontstaan om het eigenaarschap van al dat fraais - of over wie de concessies uit gaat geven aan de multinationals die rijk gaan worden over de ruggen van de lokale bevolking. Daarover koester ik geen enkele illusie.
• 11-06 : WK voetbal en de verkiezingen – het arbeiders Walhalla (2) (Mafketels en rariteiten, Uit de losse pols)
  
  Het is onmogelijk om mij te onttrekken aan minstens twee zaken op dit moment: de verkiezingsuitslag van afgelopen woensdag en de nu ongeveer startende wereld kampioenschappen voetbal - WK 2010 ZA voor intimi - in Zuid-Afrika. Om met het laatste te beginnen: gelukkig komt het maar eens in de 4 jaar voor dat de gehele wereld verandert in één grote gelukkige familie van voetbal-experts. Wat mij betreft is dat vaak genoeg en nog net dragelijk als ik tenminste de ontberingen van het Europese kampioenschap heel even vergeet. Bij die gelegenheid verandert dan wel niet de wereld maar wel ons Europese hoekje in het bos, zal ik maar zeggen. En wat zijn we toch een eenheid op zo'n moment!
• 07-06 : Die eeuwige koopkracht (5) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Na enige weken de campagne gevolgd te hebben valt me op dat het verhaal van de dames en heren lijsttrekkers vooral over de koopkracht gaat. Het is kennelijk heel belangrijk dat we met z'n allen gewoon op hetzelfde - of op een niet al te veel lager - niveau kunnen doorgaan met "kopen". Kopen maakt ons namelijk gelukkig en blij. Als we niet kunnen kopen, dan krijgen we het idee dat we iets belangrijks missen; dat de wereld aan ons voorbij trekt zonder ons. Dus moeten we kunnen blijven kopen, krachtig en veel, crisis of niet, met of zonder klimaatsverandering.
• 02-06 : Geheel vernieuwd: krakers zijn crimineel (4) (Uit de losse pols, Verzet & strijd)
  
  Het is jammer maar helaas. Gisteren heeft ons Senaat ingestemd met een verbod op kraken. Als oudgediende voel ik me daarover zeer ontstemd natuurlijk, en ik voorspel met grote overtuiging dat de nieuwe wet voor een heleboel problemen gaat zorgen. Allereerst is het wel typisch dat de christenen en de rechts-liberalen voor de anti-kraak wet zijn, en dat vrijwel alles links van die VVD - dus laten we zeggen: dat wat tussen de schaamteloos rechtsen en de buitenparlementaire anarchisten in zit - tegen is. Het scherpt de aloude segregatie wel weer haarfijn aan.
• 02-06 : Over dictators gesproken (3) (Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  Even een aantekening tussendoor: ik heb me de laatste tijd veel bezig gehouden met het doorgronden van de persoonlijkheden van de meest beruchte dictators van ons tijdvak. Ik beschouw daarvoor de tijd vanaf 1900 tot nu (en verder), omdat daarin ontwikkelingen plaatsvinden die op de één of andere manier voor een soort consistentie lijken te zorgen. Ik doel op de aanloop tot de eerste wereldoorlog, die vervolgens uitmondt in een interbellum waarin één van de voormalige deelnemers zodanig te kakken wordt gezet dat zij twee decennia en een beetje later de tweede wereldoorlog begint, die op zijn beurt - na het "einde" in 1945 - weer doorglijdt in de koude oorlog. En die hield pas op in 1989 met de val van het ijzeren gordijn en de daarop volgende ineenstorting van het Sovjet rijk. Ik bedoel maar, er zit een soort systeem in....
• 28-05 : Goedgelovig.nl (0) (Digestives, Verzet & strijd)
  
  Ik geloof dat ik een verwante site gevonden heb. Deze neem ik op in mijn link-rol. Ik vond hem zelf erg grappig en zou hem mijn lezers van harte willen aanraden. Klik op het plaatje of volg deze link: http://goedgelovig.wordpress.com. Ik sta op het standpunt dat alle religie-bevechters elkaar moeten steunen, mits de overige politieke neigingen elkaar niet al te veel in de weg zitten. Nu bevechten deze luitjes de religie niet, maar relativeren het wel op zeer prettige wijze. De teksten zijn pakkend, interessant, onderhoudend en goed geschreven. Ik vermaak me hier kostelijk!
• 27-05 : Betweters van god (4) (Mafketels en rariteiten, Verzet & strijd)
  
  Deze periode zo vlak voor de verkiezingen is een dankbare tijd voor het vinden van de grootst mogelijke gorigheid in de media. En het verbaast mij helemaal niet dat mijn vrinden van de Staatkundig Gereformeerde Partij (SGP), die het gotspe hebben om hun website "Partij voor het leven" te noemen, ook vlijtig meedoen in dit luchtige doch zeer ergerlijke roeptoeteren. En waarmee? Jawel, geheel in lijn met de bagger die ook Wilders in deze campagnetijd als verbale diarree uit zijn mond laat komen, laat ook de SGP van zich horen met middeleeuwse onzin die werkelijk te erg is voor woorden - ik word er vooral onpasselijk van.
• 25-05 : Plato en een Platypus lopen een bar binnen…. (5) (Digestives)
  
  Een zeer rijke man staat op het punt te sterven. Hij is niet alleen vreselijk rijk, maar ook zeer gehecht aan zijn aardse goederen. Zo erg zelfs, dat hij hemel en aarde beweegt om een deel daarvan, tegen alle regels in, mee te kunnen nemen naar het hiernamaals. Hij begint te onderhandelen met een aartsengel, die hem uitlegt dat niemand ooit iets meeneemt naar de hemel omdat het juist de bedoeling is alle aardse goederen achter te laten, om zo vrij van alle ballast en zorgen de hemel te kunnen betreden. Met andere woorden: "Vergeet je rijkdom en stap door die poort!" Hij begint te onderhandelen met een aartsengel, die hem uitlegt dat niemand ooit iets meeneemt naar de hemel omdat het juist de bedoeling is alle aardse goederen achter te laten en vrij van alle ballast en zorgen de hemel te betreden. Met andere woorden: "Vergeet je rijkdom en stap door die poort!"
• 17-05 : Schaapachtige intolerantie (0) (Mafketels en rariteiten, Verzet & strijd)
  
  Hoe ver ben je gezakt als je een dood schaap in een slooppand hangt om te protesteren tegen de komst van een nieuwe moskee? Ik ben vegetariër, dus ik vind het sowieso zonde van het schaap. Bovendien hing de protestant waarschijnlijk niet zijn eigen schaap op, dus het zal ook wel gestolen waar zijn. Dat zijn al twee dingen die mij een goede reden geven om de actie niet chic te vinden.
• 12-05 : Als Britten coaleren (2) (Mafketels en rariteiten, Uit de losse pols)
  
  Het is 2010 en de Britten gaan voor het eerst een coalitie regering van betekenis formeren. De media schreeuwen het van de daken: de Tories gaan samen met de LibDEMS het Britse eiland besturen. Wie had dat gedacht? Het districtenstelsel, dat al eeuwen lang elke kleine politieke partij bij voorbaat kansloos maakte tegenover de grote "Labour-" en "Conservative" bullebakken, heeft nu niet kunnen verhinderen dat het Britse electoraat zich massaal tegen de traditionele tweedeling heeft gekeerd. Het risico voor lief nemend dat hun stem in een zetel van één van de twee grote jongens terecht zou komen, hebben vele dappere Britten eens iets geheel nieuws gedaan.
• 03-05 : Russische kuisheid (1) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Toen ik vroeger nog wel eens regelmatig een spionagefilm zag waarin het boze Sovjet-rijk een belangrijke rol speelde, had ik al een donkerbruin vermoeden dat die Ruskies niet de meest trouwe en monogame mensen waren. Ik kan mij verschillende scenes herinneren waarin westerse politici of geheime agenten in compromitterende situaties gebracht werden, die dan stiekem werden gefotografeerd of gefilmd. De onwetende sterren werden vervolgens door de K.G.B. gechanteerd.
• 26-04 : Bored of the Rings (3) (Digestives)
  
  Ik zit vast in twee boeken: een goed geschreven boek over Joseph Stalin, dat inhoudelijk zo deprimerend is dat ik me er echt doorheen moet worstelen met een snelheid van enkele pagina's per dag; en een biografie van Ian Dury, die aanzienlijk slechter is geschreven maar waarvan het onderwerp in ieder geval iets vrolijker is. Althans, dat is (voor mij) alleen maar zo als ik mij een voorstelling van de podium-Dury maak. Want eerlijk gezegd: het boek is niet alleen slecht geschreven, maar ook het onderwerp zou mij niet vanzelf aangesproken hebben.
• 23-04 : Nederland kernwapenvrij (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Op het nieuws van 22 april 2010 zag ik onze huidige minister van buitenlandse zaken Maxime Verhagen, een CDA'er met bijpassend zuidelijk accent, stellig poneren dat we er tegenwoordig achter zijn dat kernwapens de wereld niet veiliger maken. Ik wil het CDA, dat hiermee terugkomt op een lang volgehouden veiligheidsdoctrine, van harte feliciteren met haar omarming van een stukje traditioneel links gedachtegoed. Uiteraard wisten wij linkse rakkers dat al jaren: kernwapens zijn gevaarlijke dingen die je niet in je buurt wilt hebben, en ook niet in die van je "vijand".
• 20-04 : De Staatkundig Gereformeerde optie (1) (Mafketels en rariteiten, Verzet & strijd)
  
  Met een hartslagversnelling van enige magnitudes en twee uitbundig pulserende halsslagaders, die van pure kwaadheid en ongeloof spontaan mijn avond kwamen verlevendigen, nam ik kennis van de verkiezingsslogans van de SGP. Het is ze weer eens gelukt: die wereldvreemde, uitgestreken SGP-christenen hebben voor de zoveelste keer een programma in de wereld gezet waarvan de honden werkelijk geen brood lusten. Als ik gelovig zou zijn zou ik er spontaan mijn god voor vervloeken, zo erg vind ik het. Voorlopig volsta ik wel met een borrel, maar stevig zal die zijn! De SGP maakt meer kapot dan drank weer kan goedmaken.
• 19-04 : Het afgeschoten referendum (8) (Verzet & strijd)
  
  Eindelijk wordt onze laaglandse milieurakkerpartij "Groen Links" wakker van een heftige maar naïeve droom en haalt zij haar misleide aandrang tot volksraadpleging uit haar verkiezingsprogramma. Jammer is wel dat de fractieleider in het parlement, Femke Halsema, er toch gewoon een initiatiefwet voor gaat indienen. Het lijkt er op dat er een verschil zit in haar perceptie van het volksgeweten en dat van haar partij.
• 13-04 : Fiets irritaties (4) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Ik heb het geloof ik niet vaak eerder gedaan, maar vandaag ga ik mijn webLOG eens goed misbruiken om een futiel en volstrekt onbelangrijk maar toch zwaar irritant fenomeen van mij af te krijgen, en dat is het gemiddelde verkeersgedrag van de stedelijke fietser (en al die andere waaskoeken). Voor de zekerheid stel ik van te voren alvast dat fietsers in de stad de baas moeten zijn en dat auto's daar weg moeten wezen; of zich zeer dociel moeten opstellen. Voor medefietsers dient echter het nodige respect te worden opgebracht. En dat schijnt nog niet zo simpel te zijn.
• 09-04 : Stop de godsdienstvrijheid! (1) (Mafketels en rariteiten, Verzet & strijd)
  
  Eindelijk heeft de Hoge Raad - Nederlands hoogste rechtscollege - bepaald dat de zeer rechtse en confessionele Staatkundig Gereformeerde Partij (SGP) geen vrouwen meer mag discrimineren. Dit deed (en doet) zij door de vrouwen in hun partij te weren uit het parlement. Althans, voor zo ver dat niet door de verstandige kiezer gebeurt tenminste. Met de eeuwige flut-smoes van de "godsdienstvrijheid" wordt deze tenenkrommende misstand gedekt. Deze beruchte en misbruikte "vrijheid" is altijd al een instrument geweest om juist dat te doen (en te legitimeren) wat precies tegen de term indruist, namelijk beperkingen opleggen aan de eigen volgelingen - en als het even kan ook nog aan de rest van de wereld. Ik ben blij dat de Hoge Raad eindelijk een stokje steekt voor deze onzin en de SGP met haar uitgestreken zelfingenomenheid het onderspit laat delven.
• 06-04 : De vermoorde onschuld (2) (Verzet & strijd)
  
  Op zaterdag 3 april 2010 is de oud leider van de Zuid-Afrikaanse "Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging" (A.W.B.), Eugène Terre'Blance (E.T.B.), vermoord door twee van zijn landarbeiders. Hij wilde ze geen loon betalen, waarop de twee precies dat Zuid-Afrikaanse middel inzetten dat het land al zo lang in zijn greep houdt: fysiek geweld... en met dodelijke afloop (ook) dit keer. De aanslag is door president Jacob Zuma veroordeeld als "een droevig moment in de Zuid-Afrikaanse geschiedenis" en een "laffe moord". Hij is president, dus hij moet dat zeggen. Maar ik heb daar toch een ander gevoel bij.
• 31-03 : Artistieke lust (2) (Digestives, Uit de losse pols)
  
  Soms gebeurt het: een welwillende lotgenoot met een scherp oog komt een kunstwerk tegen waarvan hij denkt dat Carlito daar wel gecharmeerd van zal zijn. En gelijk heeft hij. Het beeld van deze zeer aantrekkelijke en sensuele dame is paradijselijk oogstrelend; in ieder geval wel voor mij. De mevrouw in kwestie staat op een van de hoeken van de Neptunus fontein op het Piazza del Nettuno in de stad Bologna, de hoofd- en universiteitsstad van de Emilia-Romagna in Italie. De andere hoeken worden bezet door drie van haar bevallige zusters met een zelfde exhibitionistische inslag.
• 23-03 : Stalin, de rode tsaar (4) (Digestives)
  
  Het overkomt me niet echt vaak, maar deze keer heb ik het aardig te pakken. Ik kom zeer moeizaam door een boek heen dat ik aan het lezen ben. Het is "Stalin - The court of the red tsar" (2003) geschreven door Simon Sebag Montefiore. En de reden waarom mijn leeswerk zo traag gaat is omdat het boek bijna misselijkmakend is. Het is afgrijselijk zelfs. Niet omdat het slecht is geschreven, of omdat het op zwaar chemisch verontreinigd papier is gedrukt (...dat gebeurt..!) maar vanwege degene die de hoofdrol speelt in een zeer donkere periode in de Russische geschiedenis die door Monterfiore wordt geschilderd: Stalin. Ik kan het nog sterker maken. Het boek is zelfs buitengewoon goed geschreven, werd overduidelijk zeer grondig voor-onderzochten is daardoor van ultiem niveau. Als dat niet het geval was geweest, dan had ik het waarschijnlijk al lang walgend van mij af gegooid - ver weg en voor altijd aan het oog onttrokken.
• 16-03 : Kip, de meest veelzijdige sluipmoordenaar (9) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Ik geef het toe: ik ben bevoorrecht, en waarschijnlijk ook een van de 2-bevolkings% uitzondering in het Nederlandse voedsel-landschap. En dat heb ik te danken aan mijn etnische achtergrond, mijn kraak-woongroep verleden en mijn vrouw. En als het meezit, heeft die positie mij alvast een goede voorsprong gegeven wat mijn fysieke gesteldheid betreft.
• 12-03 : Blowers op de bres (4) (Mafketels en rariteiten, Verzet & strijd)
  
  Zou het meneer Nol van Schaik lukken om een contingent aan notoire sufkoppen en politieke inactievelingen te mobiliseren om op 9 juni naar de stembus te gaan? Het lijkt me van wel, want het zwaar gekoesterde rokertje van deze gelukkige paffers lijkt nu echt in gevaar te komen.
• 09-03 : Petje af voor IJsland (5) (Verzet & strijd)
  
  Aangezien ik geen geld had in het IceSave project, heb ik gemakkelijk praten. Maar ik moet de IJslanders nageven dat ze zich kranig verweren in deze turbulente tijden.
• 04-03 : NAZIs aan de Noordzee (6) (Mafketels en rariteiten, Uit de losse pols)
  
  Wanneer die zwarte bladzijde die "Het Derde Rijk" heet het onderwerp van gesprek is, dan wordt altijd wel een keer de vraag gesteld: "Hoe bestaat het toch, dat zo'n man als Hitler in 1933 in Duitsland aan de macht kon komen?"
• 02-03 : Revolutie in de kerk (1) (Mafketels en rariteiten, Verzet & strijd)
  
  Je zou bijna medelijden met ze krijgen, die door schandaal na schandaal geplaagde christenen. De katholieke voorgangers blijken er - voor de zoveelste keer - een zeer twijfelachtige seksuele moraal op na te houden. Daarnaast discrimineren ze vanuit een volstrekt achterhaald mensbeeld ook nog eens iedereen die een andere dan heteroseksuele preferentie heeft. Wat is hun recht van spreken eigenlijk?
• 22-02 : Geen hostie voor homoseksuelen (5) (Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  In het dorpje Reusel in het Brabantse land, is het confessionele deel van dit gewest door hun Rooms Katholiek priester tot op een absoluut dieptepunt naar beneden getrokken. Deze man van god had bedacht dat hij de communie moest weigeren aan de homoseksuele medemensen in zijn parochie.
• 15-02 : De klimaatdeuk in het wetenschapsvertrouwen (3) (Denkers, Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  Met toenemende irritatie neem ik in de media kennis van het groeiende wantrouwen in de wetenschap. Dit schijnt te ontstaan naar aanleiding van een aantal foutieve quotes in het klimaat-rapport van de Verenigde Naties. En dat zit me ongelofelijk dwars. Waarom? Omdat ik een wetenschapsmens ben, en ik snap hoe het wetenschapsbedrijf in elkaar zit.
• 12-02 : Amerikaans bakzeil (3) (Mafketels en rariteiten, Uit de losse pols, Verzet & strijd)
  
  Met buitengewoon veel genoegen lees ik het bericht dat de Europese gemeenschap heeft geweigerd om de U.S.A. te voorzien van bankgegevens van haar inwoners. De Amerikanen hadden daarom gevraagd omdat zij meenden die nodig te hebben voor hun "War On Terror". Zij stuurden daarbij aan op een akkoord met Europa waarbij er een klein stukje Patriot Act in het Europese bancaire systeem geïnjecteerd zou worden. Dat akkoord is met een overweldigende meerderheid door het Europese parlement van tafel geveegd.
• 08-02 : Madiba ‘Nelson’ Mandela 20 jaar vrij (1) (Denkers, Notabelen, Verzet & strijd)
  
  Op 11 februari 2010 is het precies 20 jaar geleden dat de ANC strijder Madiba "Nelson" Mandela na 27 jaar politieke gevangenschap werd vrijgelaten uit de Victor Verster gevangenis, gelegen aan de rand van Paarl in Zuid Afrika. Er zijn denk ik weinig volwassenen van die tijd die het beeld niet kennen: Madela loopt met opgeheven en gebalde vuist de poort uit, naast hem zijn vrouw Winnie en een zwerm van veiligheidsmensen en journalisten.
• 02-02 : Papkinderen (0) (Mafketels en rariteiten, Uit de losse pols)
  
  "Bamboccioni" worden ze in Italië genoemd. Papkinderen. Het is een ietwat beschamend fenomeen, iets waarin Italië lijkt te grossieren. Althans, als je de georganiseerde misdaad in 20 verschillende smaken en een parvenu van een premier Biliacconi meetelt.
• 29-01 : Sociale dienstplicht (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Niet al te lang geleden stond ik op een feestje achteloos een biertje te drinken, toen ik in een wat bizarre conversatie terecht kwam met de vader van de heer des huizes. De goede man had in een grijs verleden op een onderzeeër gediend, en meende aan mijn uiterlijk te kunnen zien dat ik wel zo'n losgeslagen antimilitaristische liberaal-anarchist zou zijn. Waar hij het vandaan haalt.....
• 27-01 : Masdar Abu Dhabi (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Er is een verontrustende beweging aan de gang, die in zichzelf ook wel weer heel berustend is. Een hele grote olieproducent, Abu Dhabi, is een nieuwe stad aan het bouwen die volledig CO2 emissie vrij zal zijn. Dat is een geinig streven voor een land dat nu precies die meuk produceert die voor een groot deel van die emissie zorgt.
• 22-01 : Het deugdelijke uitsterven (1) (Mafketels en rariteiten, Uit de losse pols, Verzet & strijd)
  
  Mij kwam een anekdote ten gehore die er op wijst dat het nog lang niet voorbij is met het bedillerige - zogenaamd "anti-seksistische" - radicaalfeminisme van de jaren 80. En ik dacht nog wel dat het soort dames dat deze obscure stroming van het nieuwe Victorianisme vertegenwoordigde via de natuurlijke weg was uitgestorven.
• 19-01 : Hippies… de nieuwe conservatieven (5) (Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  Ik heb gisteren iets bijzonders gedaan. Ik kreeg een posting van een "vriend" op facebook, waar hij (een Zuid Afrikaan die in het Engels schrijft, dus ik vertaal even....) het volgende zegt: "Omdat het mensen zijn, gaat het over ons. Wij zijn degene die de oorlogen beginnen. Wanneer de verschillen zo groot worden en de intolerantie epische proporties bereikt (SIC!) dan zullen oorlogen voorkomen. Zolang ik een ander wezen niet kan zien als mijzelf, dan zullen er oorlogen voorkomen."
• 13-01 : Onder de tap (4) (Digestives)
  
  Gelezen: Onder de tap (2006) van Wim van de Pol. Misschien had ik het niet moeten doen, want ik vind het verdomd lastig om elke avond de batterij uit mijn mobiele telefoon te moeten halen. Maar misschien is dat ook onzin. Om even iets te verduidelijken: Onder de tap is een boek over de afluister praktijken van de overheid in Nederland. En ik moet zeggen dat ik niet eens heel erg geschokkeerd was door de kennelijk ongebreidelde tap-praktijk die in dit land normaal schijnt te zijn.
• 07-01 : Risico in een hoog technologische samenleving (3) (Digestives, Uit de losse pols)
  
  De nipt verijdelde aanslag op een passagiersvliegtuig met kerstmis heeft ons allemaal weer eens met de neus op het feit gedrukt dat we in een risicovolle omgeving leven. Ineens maken we ons weer zorgen over onze kwetsbaarheid, een gegeven dat zich niet licht uit onze samenleving laat wegdenken.
• 05-01 : Burj Dubai, de nieuwe toren van Babel (3) (Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  Ik ben niet erg Schrift-vast, maar hadden de heilige boeken van de Abrahamistische derivaten niet alle drie iets schokkends te vertellen over hoogmoed, ijdelheid, zelfgenoegzaamheid en wat dies meer zij? Het is in dat verband best grappig dat de nieuwste manifestatie van deze verwerpelijke eigenschappen midden in dezelfde woestijn is neergezet waar onze Mosterd-man zijn devotie betuigde.
• 02-01 : Koetsier Herfst (2) (Digestives)
  
  Ik had een goede reden om weer eens iets in het Nederlands te lezen: ik schrijf zelf (weer) in deze geweldige taal en heb derhalve wat voorbeeld materiaal nodig, om weer goed op gang te komen. Dat is nodig na een enige jaren durende escapade naar het Engels.

Artikelen in het jaar: 2009 (77) in totaal.

• 28-12 : De wankelende Iraanse dictatuur (2) (Verzet & strijd)
  
  Afgemeten naar de berichtgeving over Iran die nu doorsijpelt in de internationale pers, gaat het niet helemaal goed in dat land. Ik maak een understatement, dat niet helemaal accuraat hoeft te zijn. Misschien gaat het juist wel heel goed, maar wanneer er veel doden vallen is een revolutie - hoe goed de zaak ook - een gruwelijke aangelegenheid.
• 16-12 : Niet-Joden niet gewenst (4) (Mafketels en rariteiten, Uit de losse pols)
  
  Het is weer eens zo ver. In een uitspraak van de hoge raad in Engeland, waar de weigering van een leerling door een Joodse school op grond van zijn niet voldoende Joods-zijn wordt veroordeeld en vernietigd, steekt dat vermaledijde joodse racisme haar kop weer op. Een school in Engeland heeft volgens het hoogste rechtscollege in Engeland onwettig gehandeld toen zij een leerling weigerde op grond van het feit dat zijn moeder slechts een "bekeerd" jodin was, ingewijd door een synagoge die niet wordt erkend door de orthodoxe Joden. De weigering zou in strijd zijn met de anti-racisme wetten van het land en dient daarom te worden teruggedraaid. De weigering zou getuigen van een twijfelachtige rassen-attitude.
• 14-12 : Berlusconi bloedt (2) (Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  Hoe ziet iemand er uit na op zijn plaat te zijn getimmerd met een goedkoop maar zwaarwegend souvenir uit Milaan? Kijk naar deze foto en je weet het. Op zondag 13 december 2009 - ik noem dit zo expliciet omdat het misschien een historisch betekenisvol moment wordt - werd Berlusconi in zijn gezicht geslagen met een beeldje. Hij had kort daarvoor in Milaan op een bijeenkomst gesproken waar hij nog even wat criticasters publiekelijk een veeg uit de pan gaf door ze onverholen uit te schelden voor "schaamteloze blaaskaken". Heel goed, meneer B.. Maar de pot verwijt de ketel.
• 11-12 : Maffiaans cultuurbarbarisme (0) (Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  Het is triest maar waar. Uitgerekend door hen van wie je zou verwachten het wereldlijke culturele erfgoed enigszins hoog in het vaandel te hebben - de Italianen - is een buitengewoon barbaarse faux pas begaan. Maar goed, het waren dan ook geen gewone huis-tuin-en-keuken Italianen, maar Italianen van het speciale, asociale en super irritante soort dat zich "Maffia"noemt.
• 10-12 : Q-KOORTS 2009 (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Het is weer zo ver.....
• 07-12 : Voertaal: English… NOT! (6) (Digestives)
  
  Vanaf vandaag schrijf ik hier in het Nederlands. Ik heb een boekje gelezen van ene Ronald van de Krol dat heet "Voertaal: English". Van De Krol is een Amerikaans journalist met Nederlandse voorouders, en zijn boekje gaat over het zogenaamde "Dunglish". Dunglish? Inderdaad, Dunglish. Het is de samentrekking van "Dutch" en "English" en het beschrijft de meest voorkomende manieren waarop de Nederlanders het Engels plegen te verkrachten. Aldus Van De Krol.
• 04-12 : Africa, tax your People! (1) (Denkers, Digestives, Notabelen)
  
  I stumbled upon a seriously interesting thinker about what could easily be one of the most explosive taboos in European politics: the financial aid to underdeveloped countries. The person I am referring to is Dambisa Moyo, an Oxford doctor in economics and holder of a plethora of other university degrees, which makes most of the people I know - including myself - look like a bunch of uneducated retards. She is the author of the book "Dead Aid: Why Aid Is Not Working and How There is Another Way for Africa."
• 26-11 : Big Brother Society (1) (Mafketels en rariteiten, Verzet & strijd)
  
  There is a big hassle going on about the new Dutch passport. As of now, anyone wanting to acquire one needs to have his or her fingerprints taken. These prints will be centrally stored somewhere in a database and maybe retrieved again when some dodgy business of the prints owner is suspected. They will also end up in the passport itself, as a biometric security feature. The passport contains your unique civil-service number (BSN, as it is rather innocently called in the Netherlands), so in effect, this number is centrally connected to your fingerprint.
• 24-11 : You Shall Not Have Sex… (1) (Digestives, Uit de losse pols)
  
  There is something that has been bothering me since the Sex-topic is out in the open. It seems as if the devil is stacking the deck in favour of it. For some reason, as much as sex is still taboo in our culture, it is well on its way to becoming super high profile in the media, by which it attracts a little too much attention to my taste. There is sex everywhere. If you punch in a search term, any search term, in a picture search engine, you will at some point bump into a hit of an erotic nature. Switch on your TV after a certain hour, and the breasts and nipples will smother you from the screen. And the amount of nudity you will see at the average magazine kiosk is amazing. You don't even have to leaf through anything, it's just sitting there on the shelves, in plain sight, for anyone to see. And if you ask me, it is waking up the wrong dogs.
• 19-11 : The Axis Revealed (0) (Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  Sometimes one encounters a revelation which nestles itself in at the root of a great frustration. For me, this is always the case when I discover to have been in the dark on a certain topic, in contrast to the bright view I believed I had. And momentarily, I have to admit to myself that I have discovered a considerable void in my knowledge about the second World War in general. But I was also quite clueless about the relationship between - and the different roles of - Germany and Italy and their leaders Hitler and Mussolini in particular.
• 16-11 : Pearl Crap and Worthless Gold, (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  With open, candid and undisguised joy, I read in the newspaper today that the Chinese pearl market of Zhuji is shortly before collapsing. Not because I begrudge the people who are trying to make a living by growing and harvesting pearls their income or prosperity, my amusement comes from the apparent fact that pearls have become so cheap - as cheap as 8 Euro a kilo - that they don't even serve to show off ones richness any more.
• 10-11 : Angela Merkel: Well Done! (0) (Notabelen)
  
  In my "Historological Near Collision" posting of October 23 I mentioned a chance for Angela Merkel, Germany's Reichkanzlerin, to make herself "immortal" by commemorating not only the fall of the Berlin Wall yesterday 20 years ago, but also the assault on Hitler, which took place almost exactly 50 years before that.
• 04-11 : Benito On Adolf (1) (Digestives, Notabelen)
  
  The book I am currently reading is: Mussolini, The Rise and Fall of Il Duce by Christopher Hibbert. And I must say that after reading several books about a guy like Adolf Hitler, a book on Ol'Benny is a real treat. Say what you want about Ben, but he had a much more interesting life than Adolf. Not in the last place because Mussolini was an intellectual, politically active and a great person to have around. That is, if one believes his contemporaries and fellow statesmen, who all - without exception - called him a "Great Man".
• 23-10 : Historological Near Collision (0) (Uit de losse pols, Verzet & strijd)
  
  There is a historological near collision coming soon. The dates: November 8 and 9, 2009. The occasions respectively: the Georg Elser November 8, 1939 assassination attempt on Hitler in the Munich Bürgerbräukeller, and the fall of the Iron Curtain a.k.a. the Berlin Wall on November 9, 1989.
• 22-10 : Ahmadinejad – UN General Assembly – September 23, 2009 (4) (Gasten, Notabelen)
  
  Doctor Mahmoud Ahmadinejad might be regarded a weird bugger around the world, but whatever opinion one holds on him - for instance because of his ridiculous revisionist claims in which he is denying the holocaust - he quite regularly does have a point.
• 16-10 : The Taliban Solace, Italian Style (0) (Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  We can all be collectively outraged by the rumour that Italian forces in Afghanistan have bribed the Taliban warlords into leaving them alone, but it seems to me that this so called "evil" does manage to lay bare a very interesting proposition: just suppose that we were able to end the poverty in the entire region of Northern Pakistan and Afghanistan - even if by bribery - would the violence currently crippling those countries, cease to exist in such abundance?
• 12-10 : Saint Damiaan (0) (Notabelen)
  
  After many years of not having ONE SINGLE positive thought about the Catholic church whatsoever, I finally have to come back on that. Yesterday, on Sunday, October 11 2009, Father Damiaan from Belgium was officially granted sainthood by pope BenDick-16. With that action, this loathsome institute of faith has inched itself slightly towards my good side.
• 08-10 : Neuromancer, Count Zero & Mona Lisa Overdrive (0) (Digestives)
  
  Count Zero takes us back to the world of the Matrix, the Sprawl, Artificial Intelligences and the Turing Police. And of the various Console-Cowboys, mercenaries, plain lowlifes and other misfits, who are roaming the underworld of the super-rich, who themselves are living in orbit of the earth; the new Overworld. It is the second book of the "Sprawl Trilogy", which started with "The Neuromancer" (1984) and ended with "Mona Lisa Overdrive" (1988).
• 02-10 : China 60 – For She is a Jolly Good Fellow (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  It was October 1, 2009. I was watching the news and caught a glimpse of China's 60th anniversary. It was a gigantic spectacle, a through and through organised and directed event of Cold War proportions, which made the Olympic Games look like a mere finger exercise.
• 01-10 : Logo Fun: The Message Beyond (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Sometimes I try my hand at an exercise in something I haven't got the slightest clue about. One of such things is Graphic Design. So I sit myself down and play around with the software for a while.
• 25-09 : Michael Jackson: “Hitler was a genius!” (2) (Mafketels en rariteiten, Notabelen)
  
  Michael Jackson, the well known and recently very dead eccentric pop-star who allegedly had himself poisoned by his house doctor, is back in the news. This won't be the last time, because celebrities like him attract attention, even after their death. And moreover, this Michael Jackson was such a sick weirdo, that I expect his legacy to haunt the press for a considerable while still to come.
• 22-09 : The CO2 Dilemma (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Can someone help me out with this one: during the global financial crisis of late, the CO2 emissions sunk worldwide by 2,6 percent, the strongest decline since 1981. Back then it dropped by 1,3 percent. So that is good news, right? These emissions are supposed to fall - substantially and swiftly - within the shortest possible time, because we will suffocate, drown or otherwise meet our end in an ecological disaster.
• 15-09 : Poopy Poking Priests (0) (Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  Personal note: when I was a little boy, of around 10 or so, I used to walk past the church to school. One day, the chaplain happened to come out the door of the parish hall as I walked by, and he asked me if I wanted to be kissed. I managed to say "no" but I felt a deep sense of embarrassment; partly because of my refusal - to an adult of stature - to grant him his wishes.
• 15-09 : TED: Ideas worth spreading (0) (Digestives)
  
• 10-09 : Legalise Drugs: We Are Coming Closer! (1) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  We are veritably getting closer to an Anti-Drugs Free World. I read in the papers that parts of Southern America, Mexico and some other nook or cranny I forgot about entirely due to the abusive consumption of lucid substances (probably table-sugar), are legalising the use of Cannabis AND the possession of small quantities - and thus the use of - cocaine and heroin.
• 02-09 : Breaking Alan Turing: Rehabilitation At Last (4) (Notabelen)
  
  A long time ago I saw the film "Breaking the Code" (1996) by Herbert Wise. The blurb about the film had caught my attention, because it featured two of my favourite people: Alan Turing and Derek Jacobi. So I thought I was in for a happy film-night, but it ended in utter outrage... about the Brits!
• 31-08 : Inferior White Mutations Can’t Jump (3) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  This is a most interesting piece of information: white people evolved 5500 years ago in Europe as a mutation of the (...at the time normal...) black human. This was researched and calculated by scientists at the University of Oslo.
• 24-08 : Enhancing Evolution (0) (Denkers, Digestives)
  
  Current reading: Enhancing Evolution (2007) by John Harris. I have written about this man before in this blog. And now that I am reading my old piece back, I still stick to what I stated there. The book informs us of the obligation we humans have, to enhance the species by interfering with the lottery we call evolution. According to Harris, it doesn't make any sense to still be subjected to the random evolution process without trying to improve on it by the many technological means we have at our disposal (or will still develop). And why shouldn't we indeed? Logically or in principal, there is no valid reason whatsoever to refrain from engineering ourselves.
• 18-08 : Lady in Pebbles (5) (Digestives)
  
  You will not believe this, but we found the lady here while we were looking for a spot to swim in Northern Italy. If you take a closer look, you will see that she is made out of pebbles, found in the river bed. The artist who made this magnificent piece of work clearly was trained at the Spilimbergo School of Mosaics. The cosy spot where this gorgeous female is hanging from the wall, is about 10 kilometres away form the school.
• 10-08 : Italy and Living Dangerously (1) (Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  Since some days I have been hanging out in Italy, the country of my ancestors and possibly the place where I will eventually end up after my working life. The prospect of the perpetuating hedonistic circumstances, the wine, the food, the great weather and the amazing beauty of the landscape (and the people in it), is appealing. So why is it that I have this eerie feeling of something not being right somehow?
• 28-07 : Fascism, What Is It? Benito Mussolini Speaks. (1) (Gasten, Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  I have been discussing fascism a lot lately, and every time it comes up, there is quite a lack of clarity in the discussion as to what fascism actually is. Is it a genuine ideology or is it a specific power structure which can be draped over any ideology? And another interesting one: Can the same be said of Anarchism?
• 27-07 : AddioPizzo & VaFanCulo (1) (Verzet & strijd)
  
  Something important and necessary might be changing in Italy. If you follow the link behind the logo to the side, you will find yourself on the website of an initiative against the Mafia. The initiative is organised by a group of students, who are sick and tired of having to live under the yoke of this horrible infestation, this illness called the Mafia. They have come to recognise that this old fart club, this league of ancient, stinking criminal arse-holes, should be rooted out once and for all. And they see taking away the Pizzo - one of their most important means of survival - as the best way to accomplish this.
• 23-07 : Obama on Healthcare (1) (Gasten, Notabelen)
  
  Finally, maybe, if they really want to do something right for a change, the USA will be moving into the direction of a full blown health care scheme for all its citizens. It has taken this country a long time to understand that it is an important step towards genuine civilisation and the abandonment of the hard-core laissez-faire, laissez-suffer undercurrent, which has been so characteristic for the United States Of America.
• 18-07 : Moonstruck (1) (Mafketels en rariteiten, Uit de losse pols)
  
  In two days it will be exactly 40 years ago that three very brave men took to space to make the final journey to the moon, and land on it. They accomplished this extraordinary feat on July 20, 1969. I still remember the live footage I saw on television, that evening just after nine. That in itself was an extraordinary feat too, because I was 5 years old at the time and my long term memory was probably still under construction. Never mind that. I remember it all very clearly, possible or not.
• 10-07 : The L’Aquila Clusterfuck (1) (Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  Berlusconi managed to get the world's eye on L'Aquila by staging the G8 summit there. So now everyone can see what a chaos this place is, after the earthquake which devastated so many homes and families. The count is 300 people dead and 50.000 people homeless.
• 06-07 : Renoirs Summer (1) (Digestives)
  
  Don't think, just look. In contrast to what we might sometimes think about the loosening morals of the young members of our society, the old geezers knew where to get it too. And they still do, as a matter of fact.
• 26-06 : SuperSense (2) (Digestives)
  
  It does not happen often, if not never, that one is almost personally addressed in a book. But it happened to me.... sort of. Mister Bruce Hood, author of the book "SuperSense", which I am currently polishing off, thanks the possible remaining "sceptical" reader in his audience at some point, for getting so far into his book. Well, mister Hood, you are most welcome. And thank you, for your lucid discourse on the inner workings of our rational understanding of the world, based on a crucially irrational SuperSense.
• 22-06 : Madonna’s Kabbalah (1) (Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  I already knew that religious people are avers to reason, philosophical focus and good intellectual taste. But Madonna Ciccone really takes the biscuit. First, she uses the Malawi courts of law and presumably a lot of money, to make a Malawi father childless by - legally - taking his daughter out of the country. And then, as if things are not bad enough, she has the impertinence to take this child to a religious meeting right after a 10 hours plane flight! Apparently, Madonna was in a rush to have her new prize initiated in this horrible, delusional and very dangerous excuse for knowledge called Kabbalah. If I hadn't already decided to not like Madonna because she comes across as a high-strung control freak, and because she is too skinny for a healthy woman, AND because her music sucks big time, then now the time has come for me to totally write her off.
• 15-06 : So What if the Muslims Reach an Electoral Majority? (3) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Say what you want about the political right and the simpletons who count themselves among it, but I have a problem with the lefts principal refusal to connect certain problematic issues with certain problematic groups in our society. Our pet Right Wing Court Jester mister Wilders does have a point: what if the growing group of Muslims actually does manage to reach an electoral majority in this liberal country? What happens then? What example do we see in Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan or any other country where progress and equality, emancipation and empowerment of women come to a grinding halt because men wearing dresses think they have to regress society back to the middle ages? And why? Because they blame the women for their male inclinations?
• 12-06 : Mir-Hossein Mousavi: Iran’s Ticket to Progress (5) (Verzet & strijd)
  
  Since the Iranian people are good at praying to their god, I suppose they are praying for the electoral victory of mister Mir-Hossein Mousavi "as we speak". Mister Mousavi is running for president. He is also Iran's young generations hope for a better future, in which progress has a chance to survive and maybe even thrive. This being in full contrast with the complete regression to the Middle Ages as was so well accomplished by the current president Mahmoud Ahmadinedjad and his conservative predecessors.
• 05-06 : Noam Arnon Agrees: Native Americans, Oust The Jews! (3) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Noam Arnon, one of the radical leaders of the Israeli Civil Occupying Forces based in the Palestinian West Bank city of Hebron - also very euphemistically known as "settlers" - thought that the speech delivered by Obama in Cairo yesterday, was "nauseating". Why? Because Obama made it very clear that the Fundamentalist Jewish policy of stealing land and the illegal occupation of territory belonging to another nation (which is in fact entitled to a long overdue sovereignty), should not be perpetuated any longer.
• 03-06 : The Omnivore’s Dilemma (1) (Digestives)
  
  Or: a natural history of four meals; by Michael Pollan. If you are interested in what you eat, why you eat it and what it will do to you AND the rest of the planet, this book is a must. The title of the book refers to the idea that we, as omnivores, like all other species who have a choice in what we eat, are confronted with a dilemma: "Is what we are going to eat good for us or will it kill us? And if it IS going to kill us, will it do so slowly or rather quick- and painlessly...?"
• 29-05 : Palestina Revives (1) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Looking at an old man's face, what does one see? One might see a total absence of hope. I do, when I look at this man. I think I can see the entire Palestinian frustration - over Israel's perpetual abuse of this man's dignity - lurking in every crease of his skin. Yesterday Barack Obama vented his opinion in the press about the hopes he has for an independent Palestine. Obama sees a future where the Israeli - Palestinian conflict is resolved and where two independent states exist next to each other: Israel and Palestina.
• 24-05 : Remagen Germany, 1945 (1) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  The USA are again a subject of heated debate, this time concerning their treatment of P.O.T.W.A.T's., or Prisoners Of The War Against Terror. Guantanamo bay prison, in itself a very odd phenomenon for it is located on Cuban territory, manages to keep the media busy even after the decision to close it down has been made. The ideal solution for the base itself, where the prison is located, would be to vacate it entirely and to give the land back to Cuba. And while Obama is at it: maybe abolishing the whole embargo against Cuba is in there too. Why not?
• 18-05 : Charles Anthony Prabhakaran (0) (Notabelen)
  
  If you have never heard of the name in the title above, you are in good company. I had never heard of Charles Anthony Prabhakaran until this morning, when I read my first batch of news for the day. The news had a story about the leader of the Tamil Tigers - a violent terrorist group - or armed liberation army, depending on which side you are on - operating (until yesterday) in northern Sri Lanka. Their leader, Velupillai Prabhakaran, was killed today while he was fleeing from the Sri Lanka regular army pursuit. The Tamil Tigers, a.k.a. the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam or L.T.T.E., had been under siege for a few months, and the army's objection had been to obliterate the L.T.T.E. once and for all.
• 11-05 : Fritz Haber – Science Drama (0) (Notabelen)
  
  I am reading a book on food: "The Omnivores Dilemma" by Michael Pollan, about which one will find ample writings on this blog shortly. In it was an anecdote, or better yet: the really very dramatic story about one of the most important scientists of the 20-th century. The one who - with his invention - made it possible for mankind to survive beyond the boundaries, to human growth, that were initially set by Mother Nature.
• 03-05 : Letter to a Christian Nation (1) (Digestives)
  
  If you are: A: a non-secular Jew, Christian or Muslim, and have B: stumbled upon my site, ...then I do feel sorry for you. I am not a friend of religion, as you might have noticed. You are lucky though, that I am currently on holidays and that writing BLOG entries is not my main priority at the moment.
• 24-04 : Linux Play (3) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Just for the fun of it, I hacked an old ASUS 3000L notebook back into existence, after I had initially discarded it. The thing is old, makes a helluva noise, weighs tons and has a battery lifespan of a mere fleeting moment. The funny thing is, that it was on its way out because the kids, who haven't got the remotest inkling about benchmarks when it comes to computers, and to whom I had donated this piece of antiquated hardware out of the goodness of my heart, were complaining about Windows XP performing so badly, that they could fetch the bits faster on foot than over the Internet.
• 17-04 : Respect! (2) (Verzet & strijd)
  
  It might matter or not. But to whom it may concern: For the first time since a long time I feel a significant sense of respect for my own parliament. The reason? They will not have themselves bullied by China to refrain from receiving the Dalai Lama.
• 13-04 : Beyond Chutzpah (1) (Digestives, Verzet & strijd)
  
  Some time ago I promised myself to read a book by Norman G. Finkelstein on the Holocaust Industry, because at the time I was reading Goldhagens accusation of the German People in the Nazi era. He, as is well known, condemns the entire German nation of the 1933 - 1945 time as Hitlers willing executioners; of the solution to the "Jewish-problem", a.k.a. "The Final Solution". Since I knew many of these "executioners" (most are dead now), I found his thesis hard to stomach, and I thought I needed at least some counterweight to what I was exposing myself to.
• 03-04 : Das Thai-sche Reich (1) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Today I read in the newspaper that some Thai resident got sentenced to 10 years of incarceration. That is what one gets in the Netherlands when one kills someone. In Thailand however, it suffices to INSULT THE KING for that. Now I was in Thailand once a few years ago, and one thing that struck me was the total disregard for life the people have in that country. Firstly, the only animals I saw in the wild were a very nervous rat, fleeing from the kitchen of a restaurant, and a scrawny, hairless dog which had taken residence in a garbage bin just outside Kanchanaburi. Both were - even to Thai standards - too repelling to be eaten.
• 30-03 : Napola (0) (Digestives)
  
  After many years of reading about WW-II, the National Socialists, Hitler and a host of other topics related to one of the blackest chapters of mankind in recent European history, I stumbled upon a film that is definitely worth the time and effort: Napola by Dennis Gansel. napola_07NaPolA stands for "Nationalpolitische Erziehungsanstalten"; officially abbreviated NPEA, commonly abbreviated Napola for Nationalpolitische Lehranstalt, meaning National Political Institution of Teaching.¹ These schools functioned as the breeding grounds for the prospected elite of Hitlers Global Empire.
• 23-03 : Italy’s Fading Democracy (3) (Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  It is official now: Silvio Berlusconi, Italy's current Czar, has merged his "Forward Italy" (FI) party with the fascist party that was founded by Benito Mussolini in 1922; the "National Alliance" (AN). I could not think of a better way to promote the increasing lack of democracy in Berlusconi's Italy.
• 16-03 : Greed is Eternal (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  With a growing aggravation I am reading the story about the AIG Bonus Scandal on Wall Street. It's becoming more obvious by the day: the Professional Capitalists, the consultants and executives, who are making money with money - and NOT with any hard work - turn out to be a severe cancer in our global society. This cancer should be eradicated with the utmost vigour and highest priority.
• 09-03 : Soccer Bonding (1) (Digestives)
  
  On March 8, 2009, at age 44, I saw my first soccer match. It was the match between ADO Den Haag and AJAX Amsterdam and it took place in the ADO stadium near the residence. Soccer is gaining some goodwill in my psychology, because my son is a player. But before my own offspring ever hit the field, I was one of the three Italians who did not like the game and didn't care to watch it even at gunpoint. I still pity my father, a full blooded Italian Soccer Lover, for this.
• 03-03 : On The Origin Of Species (0) (Denkers, Digestives)
  
  The year is 2009. It is 200 years after Charles Darwin's birth and a 150 years after the first publication of his probably most influential book: "On The Origin Of Species" (1859). So what more incentive could I ever need to finally read this book, that had been lurking in my "to read" stack on the far side of my desk? It turned out, that the tiny little thing I did additionally need to take this masterpiece in and digest its contents, was readability. And readability was, as I found out, problematic to say the least.
• 26-02 : Breasts, NOT Bombs! (3) (Verzet & strijd)
  
  By sheer coincidence I came across this picture. It reminds me of the students who took their clothes off during anti-government protests in The Hague in the late 1980-ties. The picture was made on September 2005 during an anti-war protest in the USA. If I were a woman marching with this crowd, I'd probably be too modest to protest bare breasted. But I must admit that I do like the sight very much, and the message is brought across quite effectively. Yes, I'm all for it: breasts, NOT bombs.
• 23-02 : Creationists: Bugger Off! (0) (Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  My country was about to submerge itself in shame. The creationists in the Netherlands spawned an initiative to spread folders in this Darwin year, to counter the Evolution "theory". It goes under the title "Evolution or Creation, what do YOU believe?" and its purpose is to filter the last gullible weak-heads out of the population and win them for this totally obsolete and superfluous myth of Intelligent Design.
• 17-02 : Praise to a Terrorist (1) (Verzet & strijd)
  
  Mental note: The year 2009 has just begun and we have to set a little marker in our minds: this is the year in which we are going to celebrate our favourite terrorist, the honourable Georg Elser. In this year, on November 8, 2009, it will be 70 years ago that Elser attempted to kill one of the worst screw-ups and criminal minds of our history, Adolf Hitler, with a bomb he had bricked into a stone pillar of a Munich beer hall.
• 16-02 : The Audacity of Hope (1) (Digestives)
  
  The world seems to be full of Barack Obama fans and enthusiasts. That doesn't surprise me one bit, because this man is very promising and from a distance he even comes across as intelligent and capable of making a real difference. Besides that, he is also from the same generation as I am, virtually my age even, and this gives hope too. He might not have the same drawbacks as the old farts who used to call the shots in the USA until now.
• 13-02 : Sorry Charles, One Day Late… (0) (Notabelen)
  
  Yesterday, February 12, it was 200 years ago that Charles Darwin, without dispute one of the greatest scientist of all times, responsible for possibly the most influential idea ever conjured up by mankind (if you ask me) saw his first light of day. ...IF he was not born during the night, of course. So from this humble Blog I would like to congratulate ourselves with this enormously significant event. Since Charles is dead himself, I can't wish him a happy birthday; otherwise, of course, I would.
• 12-02 : Ban on Brits? (0) (Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  The British government has banned Geert Wilders from entering the UK. This is the result of an initiative by a few elements in the British parliament. The ban meets with a lot of disapproval, from people all over the world, including the Brits themselves. I am not a friend of anyone who holds an entire population-subgroups responsible for the social problems in our society; like crime, violence and ethnic tensions. Our Court Jester, Geert Wilders, certainly does this, and I find many of the things he says utterly stupid.
• 11-02 : Beware fake anarchists (2) (Gasten)
  
  Bugger. Even me, considered by myself as an "awake" kind of guy, able to separate bogus from believable, stepped into the crap with both my feet and both my eyes open. Well, maybe not entirely; I linked to a site of which I had omitted to read the credentials properly.
• 05-02 : Pay Caps Will Probably Apply Only To A Few Execs, Many Will Find Loopholes (0) (Gasten)
  
• 02-02 : The Catholic Wizards Are Back (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  I wonder if the upcoming public anti-Semitic policy changes the pope BenDick16 has been implementing are a coincidence. They probably are not, hence leaving us with the question: "What is the rationale of the Catholic Church behind embracing the same rhetorical crap as is uttered by Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad?
• 28-01 : Times Are Changing? (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Just for fun: what do the people shown here have in common? I have a hunch that these people, all in civil service of their country, are the vanguards of a changing time. Barack Obama, Achmed Aboutaleb and Johanna Sigurdardottir are representatives of groups within their countries population, of which membership used to be the guaranteed ticket to exclusion from power.
• 26-01 : To Combat Obama, Al-Qaeda Hurls Insults – washingtonpost.com (0) (Gasten)
  
• 20-01 : The End of Faith (2) (Denkers, Digestives, Verzet & strijd)
  
  If I were to state here that I have just read an amazing book that should be read by anyone who takes himself seriously in any discussion about religion, faith, ethics and the roles these entities play in our societies and lives, I'd run the risk of getting answers like: "Enough Already!!!" Nevertheless, it IS what I am going to do right now: The book I am referring to is "The End of Faith" by Sam Harris and it is claimed by Mr. Richard Dawkins himself to be the one book that can cure you from any obsolete and undesirable mind-junk concerning religion or god. Dawkins even quotes Harris regularly in his book "The God Delusion".
• 20-01 : Presidential Inauguration USA 2009 (0) (Notabelen)
  
• 14-01 : End Poverty 2015 | We are the generation that can end poverty (0) (Gasten)
  
• 13-01 : Sticks and Stones; The Crusades Continue (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  At this moment, Israel is in the last phases of its war against Hamas and the people of Gaza, who apparently threaten the Israeli in their safety by firing rockets at them all the time. Since a full scale war, like the one waged momentarily, can't be as precisely calculated and constrained as one might want, Israel is keeping the press away from the war zone. There is a dirty war going on, with a lot of "collateral damage", that much seems clear.
• 09-01 : The defence of liberty (0) (Gasten)
  
• 09-01 : The first step toward recovery | Gristmill: The environmental news blog | Grist (0) (Gasten)
  
• 08-01 : Keep Your God To Yourself! (4) (Digestives, Notabelen)
  
  Some people have a less than positive opinion of Richard Dawkins. He is regularly portrayed in the media as a know-it-all pedantic and pushy person, who positions himself as a rabid anti-religion crusader. So when I first read a critic on the book "The God Delusion" a while ago, I was quite put off.
• 07-01 : Interview: Anarcho-Primitivist Thinker and Activist John Zerzan | CORRUPT.org: Remaking Modern Society (0) (Gasten)
  
• 06-01 : Johann Hari: You Are Being Lied to About Pirates (0) (Gasten)
  
• 03-01 : 2009 (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  I suppose one does not get around wishing visitors and readers the best for the year that just started. I gladly comply because I grant the best to everyone in 2009. So here it is: A Happy 2009 To You All! Even to those who don't recognise December 31 as anything like a crossover date to another year or 2009 as the proper number by which this year should be counted.

Artikelen in het jaar: 2008 (128) in totaal.

• 29-12 : Past the Crusader Festivities (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  At this Monday after this "Christmas" thing, after listening to endlessly repeated CD's full of western imperialistic crusader music, I finally find the time to scribble something in my blog. I am glad it is over. This "Jingle Bells" was slowly driving me up the wall.
• 18-12 : Carlito Sleeps (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
• 16-12 : Jews or Israelites – Race or Nation? (3) (Digestives)
  
  Christmas Time is a time to contemplate all kinds of interesting questions while hanging out under the tree in a comfortable winy haze. Questions like the one about our guest of honour - the one hogging the stage big time in this season: Jesus the Jew. Was he one by race or by religion? As if that were a real question: the Jews, are they a people or a race? I am inclined to follow the most logical and scientific line on this one: Jews are a people. They are certainly NOT a race. And anyone who claims otherwise is - to my opinion - a racist.
• 12-12 : Energy Research Statement (0) (Gasten)
  
• 10-12 : The Obama Directive (2) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Dear Mister Obama, In some weeks, you will have to decide on the measures which have to be taken to save the American car industry from disaster. I must admit, I don't have any warm feelings for that sector in your economy, but I do understand that the people working there need the security of their jobs.
• 08-12 : Code Green: Support Life (1) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  In the posting before this one, I wrote about the book Hot, Flat and Crowded by Thomas L. Friedman. Having finished it, I now consider this book mandatory reading for anyone who wants to be taken seriously in the Environment-Energy debate. Seriously by me, that is. My default question in any discussion will be: "Have you heard of Friedman.... etc....?" If the answer is "no", then I'll switch to talking about the weather or some mindless mass spectacle like soccer (of which I haven't got the slightest clue) right away and the discussion will be over. Life is too short to waste on ignorance.
• 01-12 : Hot, Flat and Crowded (4) (Digestives)
  
  Was that me, saying all these nasty things about Americans on this BLOG? It must have, because I am the only one writing here (although that will change shortly...) I have a good reason to take some of these remarks back, maybe... hat in hand even, and feeling slightly embarrassed for being such a short-sighted bully, who is properly staying in line with the usual European USA-bashing. Some events turned me around at least a little bit. Firstly, Obama got elected. Apparently, America can make the right choice for its president. Despite of his "disadvantages", which were broadly laid out in the press, Obama - this tall, handsome, intelligent and deeply voiced hunk - made it. Compare that to a short, apelike, squeakily voiced idiot who.... ah, never mind. I think we - Europeans - should thank the American electorate on our bare knees for this accomplishment.
• 25-11 : RAF: Ridiculously Appalling Freaks (2) (Digestives, Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  We did it: me and my better half went to the movie house and saw "Der Baader Meinhof Complex", a film by Udi Edel, based on the book with the same title, written by Stephan Aust. I thought that with a history like my own, which brought me only one handshake away from one of the RAF members, I'd experience recognition and sympathy. Nothing could be farther from the truth.
• 21-11 : Car Crash (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Yesterday evening I was watching the news and I saw some "alarming" figures in the car industry which say it is going down, judging from its sales and stock value. And the day before yesterday, I saw a German European Commission member defending the necessity to keep Opel in Germany afloat, despite the dwindling sales. I also thought to have heard that GM was going bankrupt in the USA, because congress is holding its hand on its purse, refusing to pay up the requested financial aid.
• 17-11 : NSK-IV: A King In Ghana (3) (Notabelen)
  
  How many Anarchists-by-heart-Autonomists can count a real king to their circle of friends? Not too many I suppose. But I can. Weird circumstances, paths of life, personal decisions and coinciding fates clustered together to make this happen. And the king? Well, he is a personal friend of ours, living together with his wife and daughter next door to us as a part of our extended family. We call him Moses Yaw Aidoo. Moses and his wife and daughter are a very much appreciated part of our gang.
• 14-11 : African War II (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  A while ago I read a book on the history of Africa, about which I wrote a tiny crit in this blog. Whilst reading, I got a very disillusioned feeling about that continent, and my expectations for it turned quite gloomy. Some features of the (geo-)political dynamics of Africa seem to be so fundamentally rotten, that it is hard to believe in any positive progress there at all, let alone progress in the direction of peace. The features I am referring to are - amongst others - the arbitrarily drawn "national" borders which are cutting through cultures, tribes and peoples indiscriminately. This effectively promotes ethnic cleansing and sometimes even genocide in these artificial "countries".
• 11-11 : Persepolis (0) (Digestives, Verzet & strijd)
  
  On my birthday one of my ancient buddies gave me a book. Maybe it was supposed to be somewhat out of line with my normal reading, because it was full of pictures! "PERSEPOLIS" by Marjane Satrapi (1969) is what is called a ‘graphic novel': a comic book for adults, and my first impression was one of "relaxation" and "light reading". Surely, as I thought was the rationale behind the gesture of my friend, I could use some R&R in between the usual political and scientific heavy stuff I normally read.
• 06-11 : Mind Vacation (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Since this is my private small corner in cyberspace, I don't have to wonder if any contemplations about Barack Obama's victory might be superfluous. I suspect that this blog entry is not going anywhere to begin with anyway, because I have been on a mind vacation for a few days. But it appears that something really IS going on and that history really DID take special turn yesterday. Did those Americans go off their trolley like this over a new president ever before?
• 02-11 : Mandatory Vegetarianism (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Momentarily, we are feeding 735 billion kilo's of grains to the life stock worldwide in order to keep the animals that we - meat eating rich people in the North - are eating. Moreover, for the production of one kilo of meat, almost 23.000 litres of water is needed. Yesterday, someone else, a vegetarian, tells me that one can better drive a hummer than eat meat, ecology-wise. As it were, we are destroying the planet to eat meat.
• 01-11 : Briefe An Hitler (0) (Digestives, Notabelen)
  
  At last, I made it. For once and for all, I am totally fed up with Adolf Hitler. I read biographies, analyses, Mein Kampf (his fully made up and concocted "autobiography"), comments and what not. In total something between 15 and 20 books and maybe a 100 articles. I saw countless documentaries and films and I have done interviews with people who lived under his rule, fought in his army, who resisted him or who were prosecuted by his Gestapo.
• 27-10 : Exit Coffee Shops (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  An era is about to end in the Dutch lowlands. I speak of the era of soft-drug toleration. After increasing nuisance by drug tourists in the southern parts of the country, two towns have already decided to close down all the coffee shops within their boundaries. And I must admit: despite my long standing companionship with the Sacred Cannabis Sativa Hollandica, I actually couldn't care less about this. No, I can say that better: I APPLAUD this. Even if all the coffee shops in the country were closed down, it wouldn't itch me one bloody bit. One of the reasons for this is the perpetual availability of the stuff. It will always be possible to get hold of some Ganja, no matter how prohibited it becomes. With the enormous amount of know-how as to how to grow Cannabis, I don't think any Dutchman who has the urge to smoke, will ever be without high quality grass.
• 24-10 : Critical Mass (2) (Digestives)
  
  The first few chapters I read in this book "Critical Mass" by Philip Ball, really amazed me with their unusual high level of 'informedness' the author displays. A scientist from the realm of real hard-nosed physics, Ball possesses rational, straight forward academic discipline as well as a very riveting way of writing things down. Besides the thorough and knowledgeable impression he gives in his amazing book, he also has a very pleasant sense of humour.
• 20-10 : Dutchable Hunters? (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Gene specialists have found the origin of the main thrust of the Dutch population. In contrast to what I have always thought, and to what was in line with the scientific opinion on it, they do not descent from farmers, but mainly from hunters. The back-trace of this historical revelation finds its root around 35.000 years ago, a period in which the hunters came to this part of the woods. Then, around 7.000 years ago, the net result of the influx (or static in-birth) of farmers made up approximately 20% of the population against 75% of the original hunter-gatherers. Yet eventually, the latter were able to turn a huge majority of roaming scavengers - the first - into docile land ploughing drudges.
• 10-10 : Pius XII (0) (Notabelen)
  
  At the moment, the Vatican curie and its CEO pope Ben Dick16, are in the process of rendering another pope, Pius XII, sainted. This pope reigned over the Catholic Church from 1939 until 1958, which puts the Second World War right in the middle of his regime. One wonders, of course, what he did during the war. It is a question that comes up with me every time I see a geezer who's older than 80 years, because that age inescapably means some kind of involvement in the war. This involvement can be of any kind of course, be it as a Nazi camp guard, a Partisan or an unfortunate assassin with the assignment to take out the Führer himself. But there is bound to be something.
• 08-10 : Naked Fencing in the Nude (1) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Sometimes things are just great to look at, and not many words are needed. The picture you see here, is funny, paradoxical and very sexy. It was used as a poster in the "AIDS Awareness Campaign". Click the Pic and you will find the source. There will be something for the ladies there too.
• 06-10 : Mobile Democracy (3) (Verzet & strijd)
  
  In these times of exposed greed I see one very positive article in the newspaper, sticking out like a sore thumb in the abundant landscape of negative reports; all of them about the current financial crisis. The good news: small African farmers are going mobile.
• 01-10 : Crisis? What Crisis…? (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  As I am recovering from a nasty tummy-bug that has been running amok in my innards, the rest of the world is slowly sliding into a global recession. This is what I think, in any case.. This recession, however, is not at all certain to hit on a global scale, but since a few days I know that one can loosely say anything about the economy, because the chances of stumbling upon some truth are considerable. Economics, as I know now, is not only not a science (I already knew that) but "those economists" are also almost always wrong when it comes to explaining or predicting phenomena in our economy. The field is simply too chaotic to cover.
• 26-09 : A History of the Arab Peoples (0) (Digestives)
  
  As a follow up to "Jerusalem 1913", I have just read "The History of the Arab Peoples" by Albert Hourani. I came across it a few weeks ago at the airport on my way to Italy, and I have finally struggled my way through it. The book is a very comprehensive piece of work. This is what I think, as a non-versed-one in Arab history. I must say that it gave me valuable information, not only on the Arabs and how they have been living, but also more generally on the formation of complex, urban societies with rural hinterlands, and the allocation of power in developing communities.
• 24-09 : Swap This: Legal Guns – Illegal Drugs (0) (Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  After the so many-eth killing-spree at a high school - this time in Finland - the idea of firearms being freely obtainable is becoming increasingly hard to swallow. After an event like that, I always wonder why the National Rifle Association in the USA is so bent on keeping guns in the American households. By insisting on this right to own a gun, even they would surely understand, there is the risk of enormous catastrophic abuse.
• 22-09 : The Second Giant Falls (0) (Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  Fully in line with the "hip" wave of economic disaster that is striking the world at the moment, Russia has seen a huge part of its exchange value evaporate over the weekend. The same thing has happened to the USA in the past few weeks. At last, these two cold-war adversaries find each other, be it in the same misery.
• 18-09 : The Naf Doctrine (1) (Verzet & strijd)
  
  My countries political elite are at each others throats over the way they intend to spend the tediously earned taxpayers money. Two days ago, our cabinet of ministers presented its budget for the coming year and as tradition prescribes it, they are now being dissected by parliament. It is "Prinsjesdag" again... It's all very entertaining yet not overly interesting. I'll see soon enough how much I'll have to pay or what I'll get back. I don't mind furnishing half of my salary to the state, so that they can do all these wonderful things with it.
• 14-09 : Heil Nazinger! (0) (Notabelen)
  
  Or should I say Ben-Dick16..? Hell, I am losing track of all the funny names these weirdos make up for themselves. In any case, H. points out to me that Old Ben still hasn't lost his streaks, cunning little fox that he is. He is still trying to sell his imaginary friend to a broad public of gullible idiots, and tries to take 'the idiots still to be' with him in his fall from eternal credibility...
• 10-09 : Belgium, Divide Divide! (1) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  The total cost of dividing up Belgium into a couple of regional state entities is estimated at 7 billion Euro. That is what I read in the newspaper today. This information is pitched to the Belgian people at a serious moment of national despair.
• 07-09 : Cat Complexity (1) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  My great example Leonardo da Vinci said: "The smallest feline is a masterpiece." I know it is silly; no, I know that most people find it silly, especially the ones who know me: today we have let one of our grandkittens - Roosje - go to her new personnel and leave the house where she was born and raised until now. She was a very sweet companion to us, her mother Phoenix, and of course to her little sisters and brothers.
• 03-09 : The Art of Pissing-One-Off (0) (Digestives)
  
  Just as I am coming to terms with the idea that coincidence is just a hollow phrase, like "fear of commitment", a buddy invites me to insert the "Random Sun Tzu Quotes" application to my FaceBook profile. Indeed, the author of the famous "The Art of War".
• 01-09 : Claus Barbie Saves Helen Mirren (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  It is touching how actress Helen Mirren declares her breakaway from the regular snort of cocaine with the arrest of Nazi concentration camp butcher Claus Barbie in 1983. She states to have come to this decision after she realised what drug money was used for: Amongst other things, namely, to harbour highly sought after war criminals in the Southern Americas.
• 27-08 : Italian Neighbours (0) (Digestives)
  
  On instigation of my brother Rob, who was with me on my last visit to our little home hamlet Almadis, I am reading the book "Italian Neighbours" by Tim Parks. One evening, we sat outside on the doorstep, contemplating the ins- and outs of village life, exchanging the little gossip we knew, while drinking some fresh wine. It turned out that my father was entangled in a local dispute about something futile.
• 25-08 : Bella Friuli (2) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  I must have mentioned it before, but after a visit to the country of my ancestors, Bella Italia, I feel somewhat lost in the Netherlands. The reason for this is a short but serious mismatch between my temperament - freshly re-inflated after a weeks stay with my explosive father and his brother - and that of my dear but docile Dutch colleagues.
• 22-08 : Career Change? (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  I wish I could produce what you see in the pictures below. I would almost consider a career change if one gets to work with models like these nowadays. I visited the School of Mosaic in Spillimbergo, Italy last week, and it is amazing what they can do with that stuff. My father as well as my uncle were trained there, many years ago. My father in Terrazzo, my uncle in Marble and Mosaic. And I always thought that they only made old fashioned Piëta images. Well, sort of.
• 19-08 : Notre Corbusier Du Haute (1) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  In an early life I used to live with a bunch of Architecture students of the University of Technology in Delft. We occupied (squatted) two rows of houses, good enough to provide for the quarters of about 50 people, of which some 30 percent were students. They taught me a lot about architecture and I learned to appreciate the contemporary State Of The Art.
• 16-08 : Jerusalem 1913 (0) (Digestives)
  
  Maybe it's against better judgement and utterly pointless, but my quest to understand the conflict in the Mediterranean "Middle East" has reached another milestone. Well, it sounds better than it really is. The book "Jerusalem 1913, the origins of the Arab-Israeli conflict" by Amy Dockser Marcus has only taken me a tiny step further. Maybe I should not expect more than that from a tiny book. On the other hand, maybe the conflict is so simple yet deeply rooted, that there is not much to understand at all.
• 09-08 : Georgian Olympics (0) (Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  I can't help myself. I must make an entry in this diary about the war between Russia and Georgia, that broke out yesterday on the 8th of August 2008, the same day the Olympic games started in Beijing, China. Traditionally, this opening day is an earth spanning time-sanctuary, in which all governments of all nations are called to end any hostilities against any opponent. This tradition has been severed. Perhaps not for the first time in our violent history, but it is rather hectic nevertheless. On the first day after the breakout of the war, already an estimated 1.600 people died in the shelling and the jet fighter assaults.
• 07-08 : Death By Stoning (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Iran has some new laws in the making, which will render death by stoning obsolete. I wonder if this has anything to do with the fact that the Iranian government and its larger ruling elite are far behind the peoples social and cultural advance, and a possible attempt to catch up.
• 04-08 : As Smart as 150.000 Years Ago (0) (Digestives)
  
  Now how is this for an interesting headline: Antikythera Mechanism: Scientists Crack Secrets Of 2.000-year-old Astronomical Computer. The headline rubbed my nose in an idea that occurred to me already a while ago. I was discussing human evolution with an acquaintance, and this person stated that in the last few thousand-something years, we were evolving only very slowly, smart-wise. My answer to that was, that we have not been evolving at all since the last 150.000 years or so. That is roughly the age of our current hardware design.
• 01-08 : Home Alone (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  In the emptiness of a by children and wife abandoned house - because of their trip abroad on which I will join them shortly - one has ample opportunity to think, drink and stink. And to mentally sag in, like a deflating beach ball. Basically, that is what I am doing right now. I am home alone, with my six cats. This will be the situation for the coming week, and I notice that by lack of activity in the house, my head goes lazy. My reading has come to a grinding halt and somehow I cannot muster the discipline to pick up that bloody book.
• 28-07 : Progressive Church vs Conservative Science (0) (Denkers)
  
  It is often heard, when the relationship between church (or religion) and science is discussed, that: "In Medieval times, we used to think that the Earth was flat. This point of view was enthusiastically promoted by the church. However, when science found out that the Earth is round, they had a hard time bringing this across to the public. This was because the church put up a fierce resistance. Some scientists even ended up burning at the stake."
• 27-07 : Blind Faith (1) (Digestives)
  
  Many years ago I read a book by William Gibson called Neuromancer. This book was - at the early start of the diffusion of Internet 20-something years ago - rather prophesying as to the impact of the emerging technology. The Neuromancer became a cult hit and climbed up to be the Cyberpunk movement bible. And with good reason: William Gibson was able to accurately depict the effects of a world encompassing information network, and he did this many years before the Internet went commercial.
• 26-07 : North Pole Eldorado Bollocks (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  To my great dismay, our most popular newsreader Philip Freriks announced on the evening news, the finding of a new Eldorado on the North Pole . And what was it precisely, what they had found there? Exactly: oil and natural gas.
• 23-07 : Lesbos (0) (Verzet & strijd)
  
  Its official: homosexual women can continue to call themselves Lesbians. The verdict comes from a Greek court, cast upon this world yesterday. It ruled in favour of the women, and against three inhabitants of the island of Lesbos, who wanted to have the term 'Lesbian' preserved for people living on the Island.
• 22-07 : Karadzic Busted At Last (0) (Notabelen)
  
  Finally it's done: Radovan Karadzic was arrested in Belgrade, Serbia. One of the most wanted criminals Europe was trying to get its hands on, is now in jail and will be prosecuted and put on trial in the Netherlands shortly.
• 21-07 : Wag The Pope (0) (Notabelen)
  
  Preliminary statement: I have no qualms to insult any church. I will try to avoid insulting anyone's higher being, though. The pope, leader of the Catholic Christian Church or C.C.C. - not to be confused with my old friends the "Cellule Combattant Communiste" - is NOT a deity and he is certainly not infallible. Pope Benedictus XVI, the leader of the most party-loving contingent of Christians this faith is able to muster, and our Dictator of the day, is holding on to the hard line of his eluded and misguided predecessors. Birth control in any guise is prohibited. Not by any law, but by His Holiness Himself, H.H.H. - not to be confused with my favourite adolescence past-time, the Hardcore Hurricane Hand-job.
• 16-07 : Smokers, Gamers and Pornographers (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Our society is the subject of many restrictive measures. Some are very old, like the age-threshold for pornography, others are slightly younger. Under them, the restricted selling of alcohol, tobacco and cannabis to kids under 16 or 18. Yesterday I saw, for the first time in my life, a video game for adults, although selling it to minors would not be restricted in any way. It was a very, very violent game, where the objective was to kill as many people as possible in as many ways as are conceivable. I have seldom seen such stomach twisting graphics and it made me wonder what the rules actually were, concerning this kind of rubbish.
• 14-07 : The World Biggest Polluter (0) (Notabelen)
  
  I already knew that G8 summits were nothing to be proud of. One of the attendees, our dictator of the day, George Bush, president of the largest congregation of mislead constituents the planet momentarily harbours, had just the kind of good-bye joke that reveals the extent of his wickedness.
• 11-07 : Dear Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (0) (Notabelen)
  
  I have moved you from one category to the other, and personally I would not be happy with such a migration. You went from "Resistors" to "Dictators" because of the launch of your ballistic missiles yesterday. Tell me why, Mahmoud, you are making offensive weapons that have a reach far beyond any enemy who can pose a direct threat to you or your country? I can understand a country for having a military force to protect itself from invasion, but these missiles?
• 08-07 : Europe, Unite Against Italy! (2) (Notabelen)
  
  I knew it! With the election of Brother B. for a new term as Prime Minister in Italy, the road is going to be paved for the largest move - inside our European borders - towards a criminally infested, totalitarian police state. We had all hoped such a state would have vanished from our European quarters a long time ago...
• 07-07 : Conspiracy, or is it me? (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  I notice in my life, that I have made an important shift in principles. I used to think that labour-less income was a good idea, and that it should be left to the individual to go out and work or not, with the consequence of having a marginal, minimal or substantial income. Nowadays, I no longer share this point of view.
• 02-07 : Dennetts Beard (0) (Denkers, Digestives)
  
  The good thing about the way we learn is that we, after having a tremendous revelation of some sorts, can radically change our position on a certain topic. I remember when I was still very young, ignorant and stupid, I had very icky ideas about the composition of the universe, man and his mind.
• 30-06 : Energy Pigs (0) (Digestives)
  
  I was pointed to a very interesting book; mandatory reading, I should say, for any involuntary depressed cynical pessimist, especially concerning the survival of our civilisation. Not that I am such a person. There is no other compulsively positively-thinking person like I am. Back to business. The book I am referring to is called "The Upside of Down" and it is written by a bloke called Thomas Homer-Dixon. Great name. And the book is not so bad either. At first glance, it comes across as a somewhat non-academic book, but that is just appearance. Mister Homer-Dixon is a professor and an academic all right, but he popularized his book a little to make it readable for the common audience. Well, that is what I think.
• 27-06 : Illegal to be Illegal (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Sometimes policies are even crazier than usual. The Christian Democrat Party in this country, stimulated by the emerging intolerant "Right", is planning to adopt one of their idiotic policies: they want to make "Illegality" - that is, being in this country without a permit or title of some kind - "Illegal", as in: prohibited and punishable by law.
• 26-06 : Heil und Sieg und Fette Beute! (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Yesterday evening, 65 years after Hitlers defeat at Stalingrad, Germany won the semi-finals against the Turks. Entirely in contrast with the events in Russia long ago, where Sick Adolf got what he deserved when he saw his luck turn against him at the beginning of his path to total failure, I would definitely appreciate full victory for Germany now.
• 24-06 : Historology (2) (Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  There is a difference between mathematics an numerology. The first is about figures, formula's, philosophy and real meaning. The latter is the esoteric attempt to see meaning in relations of figures and events, which are randomly selected as well as connected, mostly bearing no meaning - other than one of reconstructed logic - at all.
• 23-06 : Byzantium, Constantinopel, Istanbul (0) (Notabelen)
  
  A friend tells me that Berlin is the second Turkish city in Europe. The first one being Istanbul. This will make for a very exiting soccer match on Wednesday. Turkey against Germany, in Austria, of all places.
• 22-06 : Code Orange (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Finally, the Orange madness has a reason to cease in this country. Yesterday the Cheese-Heads were defeated by the Ruskies. I somehow got to get used to, or even like, this crazy substitute for religion. One rarely sees such cohesion in this country as at times of a big soccer tournament. So now what? We have an easier time, in the family. We have roots all over the place, so our next favourites of opportunity are Germany and Italy. The first are playing reasonably well but have terrible shirts, the latter are playing like crap but have great taste in garment. I know squat about soccer, but I do know that the Dutch should have won yesterday because they wore better colours that the Russians.
• 19-06 : That Little Shit (0) (Notabelen)
  
  Can anyone tell me why this terrible, ridiculous, sorry excuse for a ruler Robert Mugabe is still in power in Zimbabwe? Is there still some hope for his cronies and members of his elite? I can hardly imagine that, after his blatant fraud and intimidation of opposing political players. The whole planet can see what an idiot this RM is. Man, WHAT a mess.
• 17-06 : Work… And Keep Working (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  After heated debate in the Dutch political arena between employers and unions, about the "Right To Sack" employees in a slightly more streamlined way than the current regulations allow, we were turned on that dime yesterday by a government-instated committee, that simply slapped the workers Walhalla on the table: There is work enough for everyone to stay on the ball until the age of 67.
• 11-06 : Organs Are Us (1) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  A discussion has been going on in this country about organ donorship. The question being, if we should assume that a person who dies, is a donor by default, unless the bereaved object to this. Well, let me start by making a clear statement about myself: When I am dead, "they" can recycle any part of mine in any which way they think is useful. So I'd say: "Treat yourselves, chaps, it's all yours - when I'm done with it." All usable organs can be transplanted into other people, the bones can be made into glue and gelatine, and any rest can serve as a pets meal. Provided, of course, that for the latter it will pass a chemical waste screening, which I seriously doubt.
• 08-06 : Man Made Man (1) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  John Harris. Remember that name. This man - a hot-shot in the field of bioethics - is making intelligent statements about the augmentation of our species. And he is talking sense. To cut a long story short: according to Harris, mankind is entitled to...., no OBLIGED TO improve the human species by the means it has at its disposal. And by the means it will still develop. This includes anything from implementing certain educational methods or wearing glasses, to genetic engineering or stem cell interventions. I like that way of thinking. I might have made statements along the same line in this Blog already: we have a big brain. Because of this, we are able to survive on this planet. We need loads of unnatural devices to do that. "Naturality" is not an argument for us to either do or not do something. Those days have past since a very long time.
• 06-06 : Our Obsolete Monarchy (2) (Verzet & strijd)
  
  I have considered it once: to write a doctoral thesis on the usability of the monarchy as a business model for a "head of state". In our country, we are mainly talking "Ceremonial". And the question is of course: "What serves us Dutch the best, for the best price?" Currently, we have a queen. A queen has advantages, especially if she is good looking - now or in the future - entirely depending on ones taste of course.
• 05-06 : Serious Recommendation! (0) (Digestives)
  
• 04-06 : Congratulations, Barack! (0) (Verzet & strijd)
  
• 03-06 : Joint Hit Team (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Do the Dutch, Belgian, German and French law enforcement people actually understand what they are saying when they call their war-on-drugs patrols along the Dutch border with Belgium and Germany "Joint Hit Teams"? I happen to know from well informed circles, that a Joint is mostly smoked in a Team where everyone Hits it a few times and passes it on. I could think that this has something to do with the governments sense of humour, but is that really possible?
• 02-06 : Danish Cheese (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  It appals me that our National Bigmouth Geert Wilders was received like a hero in Denmark. A few years ago I was somewhere in South-East Asia, where I met with a small group of Danish people. They seemed very reasonable, but when I told them that I first thought they were German, they were taken aback and wagged their finger at me. "Don't compare us to Germans!" was what I got in reply.
• 30-05 : Das Boot II (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  For all the "Das Boot" fans, amongst which I count myself with great enthusiasm, there is a way to experience The Deep oneself. Of course, this will be different to anything a WW-II submarine crew had to stomach. They had no idea as to what was going on outside the boat, except, maybe, for those happy events that made a lot of noise. Like the blasts of the depth charges aimed at their lives. As it were, only the "Kapitän Leutnant", the U-Boot commander, ever looked through the periscope, so he was the only one with visual contact to the outside world.
• 28-05 : Integration versus Cultural Diversity (1) (Digestives)
  
  Some weeks ago, I saw something on the Italian news. It was about elections, those famous ones where B. won for the second (or third) time, due to which he is PM of Italy again. The item was on the Lega Nord (LN). The Lega Nord is a right-wing political party, that is trying to move Italy towards a separation of the northern- and the southern part. People who know me, also know my jokes about "sawing Italy in half, directly along the southern borders of Tuscany, Umbria and Marche to sell the rest - including Lazio with its capital Rome - to Northern Africa. The highest bidder, either Morocco or Algeria, gets it. We'll even throw in the islands of Sicily and Sardinia."
• 26-05 : Squatters in Amsterdam Armed…? (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  ...I don't think so. I know from the days when I was active in the squatters scene, many, many years ago - before I became a Decent Citizen with Wife, Kids, Job, Car and Mortgage - that the state always had some misinformation ready about us to pump into the press.
• 23-05 : Guru’s and Messiahs (0) (Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  After watching something on TV about the "Helter Skelter" murders, in which - amongst others - Roman Polanski's pregnant wife Sharon Tate was killed by three deluded hippies under the influence of a maniac going by the name of Charles Manson, I couldn't help wondering why so many people are drawn to guru-like persons, or to their messianic nonsense.
• 22-05 : Lady Godiva (1) (Verzet & strijd)
  
  If naked women can ride horses in Stiff-Upper-Lip Super-Prude England, I should be able to make a small tribute to a lady who - allegedly - had a very special way of telling her husband, Leofric (968-1057), Earl of Mercia, that he was levying taxes on his tenants that were too heavy. The lady was Godiva.
• 21-05 : Those Greedy Bastards (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Just take a wild guess as to whom I am referring to in the title up here. You got it. Those money raking, fully loaded, callously greedy captains of industry. In the Dutch media, a discussion is going on about the extravagant compensations the CEO's of Dutch based companies are funnelling into their bank accounts. This is done, as any well read Marxist would understand, at the cost of the people who actually WORK in these companies, thus making the actual profit margin possible by adding the fruit of their "capital" (their work) onto the products they make.
• 20-05 : Satire is Dead, Long Live Satire (0) (Verzet & strijd)
  
  These are sad times for our country, The Netherlands. We used to be a place where one could open one's mouth to agitate against the elusive, the dangerous, or the powerful, to put them in their place and give them the opposition they deserve. These times are over. Our secretary of "Justice" has decided to prosecute one of our cartoonists, working under the pseudonym "Gregorius Nekschot", because he allegedly stepped over the line of what is permitted in this "free" country.
• 19-05 : Fat! (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  It has become an interesting topic, in our house: the feeding habits of our fellow humans. It becomes more and more apparent that we are losing it. Well, maybe the rather the exact opposite; we are in fact gaining it. Weight, that is.
• 17-05 : Artificial Intelligence (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Tomorrow night I'll be watching a documentary on Artificial Intelligence. I am very exited already. The topic has been a welcome teaser for any birthday party discussion, getting everyone well on their way to explain to me, in a very emotional manner, as to why the human intelligence, the best known non-artificial kind, should be more valuable and less fearful than the 'plastic' one.
• 15-05 : Gaius Julius Caesar (0) (Notabelen)
  
  No listing of men with this very desirable job of Dictator is complete with one of the first - or maybe even the first - who had this title: Gaius Julius Caesar. This man has been in my dairy pipeline for a while, but the trouble is, that it is difficult to write anything "new" about him. But then it occurred to me that I don't have to write anything new. This is a blog. And the category this posting will end up in, serves merely as a container for People Of Note. My note, that is.
• 14-05 : Anarchy? (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  In my early days as a young independent adult, I was very much charmed by the Anarchistic principles of basic democracy, rule by all and abolishment of the state. No wonder, because I was recruited by these weirdo's at my 18th or so, fresh out of school and still very dumb and inexperienced. And at high school, I was already campaigning against the nuclear bomb and militarism, so I was susceptible to the thought-domain of the very left.
• 12-05 : China’s New Order (1) (Digestives)
  
  Naomi Klein's book "The Shock Doctrine" contains a chapter about the transition of the Chinese economy, compliant to the Neo Liberal or Neo Conservative template of the Chicago School of Economics. She mentions the fact that the Tianamen Square Disaster in 1989 was not about beating down the popular movement that was roaring-up against the monocratic Communist structure, but - at least for an important part - the resistance was aimed at the move China was making into the direction of Neo Liberalism, thus following Friedman and his crazy ideas.
• 04-05 : Das Boot I (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  It is a daring thing, to walk around with a U-Boat clasp on ones jacket, especially when it holds a swastika. So I decided not to, although I finally found this thing after a long quest of searches on German flea markets.
• 30-04 : Brain Engaged (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
• 24-04 : Heim Ins Reich (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  For the next two weeks, I will be writing my BLOG from Germany, the country that I have learned to cherish & love. If you have visited this site before, you might have noticed my special tie with that country. I was in England a while ago, where I was visiting a private family in a nice, sunny garden-drinks cocktail kind of setting in the hood of London. Here, one woman, who noticed that I was from "the Continent", found it necessary to remark on the "well known fact" (in the UK, that is) that "Germans are very good at following orders..." After I had recovered from the sip of punch that shot into my windpipe after hearing such blatant, aggravating horsebollocks, I explained this to her:
• 22-04 : Socioplacebic Therapy (0) (Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  I have decided to put the knowledge and skills, that I have acquired over the years, to the advantage of other people. I will do that by starting my practice in Socioplacebic Therapy. What is Socioplacebic Therapy? It is a therapy against weariness, low energy because of illness or depression, anxiety, self-image problems and general feelings of insecurity because of the state of the planet or regional political reality. The therapy will bring your energy back, it will remove your anguish and it will simply make you feel better.
• 21-04 : Family Ties (0) (Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  In a moment of utmost disgust, I found out, that my father, that dear old precious, politically obviously totally spaced out man, voted for Berlucsoni. Since I organise his entire administration, I should punish him by taking a few hundred bucks out of his account and put it in the Veltroni war-chest.
• 17-04 : Spring Nipples (1) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  After a series of articles, mainly displaying my disgust about the politics of some countries, it is time to invite the spring into this blog and pick up the cheery spirit. Maybe Salome - (by Pierre Bonnaud, 1865) - is not the best person to carry this, but I must admit that this notoriously wicked lady has something that stirs the male nature. This was also noticed by the guy whose head is lying on the platter. John the Baptist, also not particularly known for his gifted diplomacy, found out the hard way that some women have dangerous powers over men in high places.
• 16-04 : Congratulations! You IDIOTS! (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Well done, you silly southern-European halfwits. You Italians have done it again: electing Berlusconi and his gang of criminals to form the next government. Even a donkey won't stub himself on the same stone more than once, as we say in this beautiful country called the Netherlands.
• 14-04 : Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (1) (Verzet & strijd)
  
  I am not fond of fanaticism or fundamentalism of any kind. That much should be clear. But the resistor of today, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, currently president of Iran, although politically worlds apart from my preference, gets a little feather in his cap. Not because he is maybe building a nuclear weapon, although I dare to doubt that, and I rather suspect the acquisition of that to be the next excuse for the USA to promote its disaster economics in the middle-east, but mainly because he is able to piss off the United States of America in a very effective way. For that alone, someone deserves to be praised.
• 13-04 : SB again (0) (Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  Some years ago I promised myself, and my family in Italy, to never set foot in that country again if this very silly man Silvio Berlusconi was going to win the elections. Now Italy has a tradition of not having a real government since the last 65 years, and it has a vast class of professional politicians who make shiploads of money for themselves and their families, without, if I understand some of my cousins, doing anything. And the Italians, they don't really seem to mind, because in all these years they have never managed to organise their country or its political system properly.The state of Italy is poor and short before bankruptcy.
• 11-04 : An Idiot’s Reign (0) (Notabelen)
  
  In my encounters with the ins- and outs of "how power accumulates" with one person, even against all odds if necessary, and with people who have NOTHING going for them, I must admit that there is some truth in the statement that "a people gets the leader they deserve". Although I cannot sustain that position for long, especially if I reread my posts on Germany and their former leader-Idiot.
• 09-04 : Das Hitler-Bild (0) (Digestives)
  
  I reckon this will - probably - be the last book on AH I will be reading for a while: Das Hitler-Bild. Die Erinnerungen des Fotografen Heinrich Hoffmann; by Heinrich Hoffmann & Joe J. Heydecker. Do we recognise the first name? My focus on Adolf Hiltler is coming to an end. I wandered through the German History from 1814 - The Vienna Congress after Napoleons defeat - through Bismarck, the Weimar Republic, to Hitler. I have been reading biographies, political comments, and even a Russian Secret Service assessment on him. During this exercise, several great German and Russian authors were my guide. One of them - Sabastian Haffner - even told his personal story in his book "Geschichte eines Deutschen". Now Hitlers court photographer, Heinrich Hoffmann, will tell me the last missing bits about the private man Adolf Hitler. After that, it is Schluss! Finally.
• 08-04 : On Blogging (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Yesterday I saw someone on TV, who was desperately trying to resist the WEB 2.0 progress, it's spin-off - in terms of democracy and the spreading of knowledge - and it's popularity. This man, of course, was a representative of the old media. A writer, with a very big mouth. He had some interesting things to say. For one, he pointed out the danger that lies in the "unmoderated "knowledge"" which swamps the internet. In principle, a very agreeable position. But he also made a very stupid statement: the content of the Blogsphere - and I paraphrase it here - is all rubbish.
• 07-04 : Wiki-Truth (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Since some time, the Wikipedia has become one of the most visited websites on this planet. It is, according to their own statistics, in the daily-visit-top-ten. Often, when I think I have to link outside this BLOG site, to provide the reader with some background information on the subject I am writing on, I link to a Wikipedia lemma. Usually, this link will then give you at least some global insight into the subject and - if one is lucky - some in-depth stuff as well.
• 04-04 : Adolf Hitler (1) (Notabelen)
  
  Most of my reading on "Dictators" has been about Adolf Hitler. I estimate it was an amount of 15 books or so, besides a host of articles and documentaries made on the man. Somehow, this man remains to be a fascinating and riveting subject. Not in the first place because he caused the death of - and I estimate cautiously - 20 million people or so. In the Dictator Cabinet, this is not even the highest score. My main interest lies in the fact that he had so much influence on the course of history, and he possessed so much power on this continent. All this was accomplished by a man who was actually destined to fail in any conceivable way, because he had no drive, ambition or stamina for a real big-people career.
• 02-04 : How does that work? (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  So there is a hell of a hassle going on about how the film Fitna is insulting Muslims and how the Dutch should all be collectively condemned for that. But I don't get this. I see radical Muslim brothers writing off anyone who is not a Muslim, thus insulting free thinking people and using violence to propagate their position. How sick is this "measuring with two measures"? And besides that, they are the ones with the highest media profile. So should we condemn all Muslims? Should we boycott them and their products? Should we shut out all Muslims countries from our tolerance? Should we throw a holy war against them?
• 31-03 : Rain (0) (Verzet & strijd)
  
  So this morning, as I looked out of the window and peered into the pouring rain, it occurred to me that I actually like the weather in this country. The rain makes it very fertile and in the interim season, that is spring, plants and trees can grow up to 30 centimetres in a few weeks. The rain is good for us.
• 30-03 : Rapture (0) (Mafketels en rariteiten)
  
  Last night I had a very frightening dream: I dreamed that all people on earth were "raptured" away. It was very elaborate, the whole thing, and the dream seemed very long; long enough to carry a storyline of Indiana Jones proportions.
• 28-03 : Dear Arthur… (0) (Denkers)
  
  Only yesterday I heard of the death of Arthur C. Clarke, exactly on my - 44th - birthday, on March the 19th, 2008. With him, this world has lost an extraordinary thinker and visionary, to whom we owe much of our accomplishments in communication technology, not to mention one of the best Science Fiction novels ever written.
• 28-03 : Muqtada Al-Sadr (0) (Verzet & strijd)
  
  Maybe it's getting boring, but I must point out one more time how important it is to read Naomi Klein's "the Shock Doctrine". You'll find more on her on this site, and a lot more on the web. From her we learn, that the man who is currently wreaking havoc in Baghdad, Iraq, by defending himself against the regular army, is actually the only force against the Friedmaniac revolution to be taken seriously in his country .
• 26-03 : Ghenghis Kahn (0) (Notabelen)
  
  I saw something on TV about Ghenghis Kahn. He is mostly known for his ruthless warfare and conquest of large parts of Asia, slaughtering the inhabitants of the cities he laid under siege. The Mongolian Hordes were widely known for their lack of consideration for anything else than their own interests. And their interest was to destroy anything that could pose any opposition. For this reason, anyone of the opposing forces or - for that matter - any civilians above knee height, were killed; regardless of age or sex. After raiding the unlucky city, it was looted and its valuables were carried away, to Mongolia.
• 22-03 : It Takes a Stranger (1) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Yesterday I took a stroll through Delft with an ancient buddy of my wifes. They went to school together. He is an architect in Frankfurt. The funny thing is, as I showed him around town to brag about the highlights of our little patch on the map, it occurred to me that most of the stuff you see here is old and tired.
• 20-03 : Gravity since 1916 (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  I can't resist to call one event to our attention. On March 20, 1916, exactly 92 years ago, our dear, late Albert Einstein published his paper on General Relativity. It is since that point in time that we - the simple people - understand what gravity actually is.
• 19-03 : 18 for 27 years already (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Today I turned 18 for the 27th time. That makes me 44 years young. If I am lucky, I am half way my life now. If I am VERY lucky, and all goes according to plan, I am at two-thirds. I reckon I need that much time to reach my lifetime goal. If you have seen this site before, you know what that is.
• 17-03 : Towards Homo Sapiens (1) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  I had a chat with someone about how we "men" are able to switch off all kinds of irrelevant issues and features in communication between us and other men. "How do you do that?" she asked, and my reply was, jokingly, that we miss the gene for that. And I am possibly not even far from the mark. In my observation, men, when they communicate about an issue or a problem at hand, strip this communication of any emotional fringes (as far as is possible) and they will try to go towards a solution in a straight line. The chit-chat about who is to blame for what, the thousands of words or grunts required for that, those come later, if ever.
• 14-03 : Einstein did it too (0) (Denkers)
  
  That is, fuzzing up his hair when he saw a photographer. This picture of him, with his hair standing upright, making him look like an eccentric professor, was PR induced. I have a week spot for Einstein because he was able to take on and topple over the Giant of Physics at that time, Newton, by turning the world upside down. Later he showed that this was mainly an issue of relativity. If it was not already a humongous achievement to figure out how things with matter and the speed of light come together. (He did this with this very eye catching formula that made it to T-Shirt level: e=mc² and his Special Theory of Relativity.) After that accomplishment, he went on to figure out gravity in his General Theory of Relativity. Any other man would have leaned back, put his boots on the table, and chewed his cigar.
• 12-03 : Noah on the Moon (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  I am not really sure if it is a hoax and I don't feel like finding out either, but I saw something on the Net about building a "Noah's Ark" on the moon. Of all places, why would one want to build an Ark on the moon?
• 10-03 : Religion vs Church (1) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Religion has a special function in a society. I don't mean the consolation for grievous occasions it provides to the individual, or answers to BIG QUESTIONS anyone might have. No, I specifically mean Society.
• 08-03 : My Human Arrogance (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  It seems to come with the species, but, as you may have seen in previous posts, I perceive our greatest challenge to be our escape from this solar system with billions of us, in a handful of billion years. That will be the moment our sun will go super-nova. And I still think that getting the hell out of here might be our greatest task to come, and that on the way to finding a solution, we will get smarter and better every day.
• 04-03 : Does God Exist? (2) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Frankly, I was entirely done with that question, since childhood actually. The answer being: "NO!" But recent events made me reconsider the question. Or, better said, I was forced to reflect on my inability to reach back to the comfort of a higher being, to which I could attribute - in this case - the disappearance of my beloved cat Jucifa and maybe even stick a reason to it, in the guise of my "alleged bad behaviour" or something.
• 02-03 : Aha…, Adolf Hitler Again? (0) (Digestives)
  
  Since a long time, actually since I met my first German girlfriend in my mid-twenties, I have been wondering about the German side of the Second World War. At school, we had some lectures about it, and of course we were saturated with the Hollywood interpretations of the whole happening. But when I got a personal connection to Germany, it gave me the opportunity to "interview" witnesses of that war-time, people who had fought on "the other side", on the Eastern front, the Baltic, the Ardennes offensive and so on. And they were of all ranks and divisions: Wehrmacht, SS, Luftwaffe, Deutsches Rote Kreuz, you name it.
• 29-02 : Die Welfenkaiserin (0) (Digestives)
  
  I never thought of this, but the anti-globalist "avant la lettre" was the second wife of Kaiser Ludwig, son of Charlemagne, who broke up the Empire: Die Welfenkaiserin. You'll see more of that here shortly, but in the mean time, look here.
• 27-02 : Oh My, WHAT a Buzz (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  So what is all that hassle about again, the whole drug thing; prohibiting the use of XTC, Pot, Horse and what not? Okay, I understand the need to protect our youth from frying their brains.
• 24-02 : Niccolò Machiavelli (0) (Denkers, Digestives)
  
  I don't know what people have against this man, Niccolò Machiavelli, but I love him. Not because he is Italian, just like one of my other idols, Leonardo da Vinci, but because he wrote the book on how to use power.
• 24-02 : Leonardo da Vinci (0) (Denkers)
  
  He is one of my favourites: Leonardo da Vinci. He was a true "Homo Universalis". Excelling in all the major art en scientific disciplines of his time, he is my example for the attitude one should have: curious, ambitious in acquiring knowledge and a sucker for beautiful things. In the latter respect, he was an Italian all the way.
• 24-02 : Amongst Philosophers (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
• 23-02 : Our Brain is speeding up! (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  I came across a very interesting thought ("Consumed" - Barber): it seems that we are not getting dumber at all, like one might have thought. Since our brains are subjected to ever more stimuli by the media-devices we have around us, we are training our perceptional as well as our computational faculties. We are actually getting smarter / better by all those snazzy gadgets. Barber: "Our brains happily gravitate towards that new complexity."
• 22-02 : So Beograd is Burning (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
• 20-02 : I am Schrödinger, and Jucifa is my cat (1) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  This is actually the first time of my life, if I recall correctly, that all the reading I did on Quantum Mechanics pays off in some positive way. My cat Jucifa has vanished and went missing almost two weeks ago. And I am very, very sad about that. Now Schrödinger. In a paper - called the EPR paper - to Einstein, he put down a paradox in Quantum Theory, that has me baffled, along with just about everyone who occupies him- or herself with Quantum Physics. It's about the difference between the state of a particle, when observed and when not observed.
• 13-02 : Left-F.A.R.T. (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Today I founded the Leftist Free Autonomous Radical Thinkers (Left-F.A.R.T.) movement. It is a platform for anyone whose political leaning is to the left, and who is willing to explore new, radical and independent avenues of thought. What does the Left-F.A.R.T. want? Here it is:
• 12-02 : Mister Barber, I am trying! (0) (Digestives)
  
• 30-01 : I Support Obama! (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
• 27-01 : Easy Catch: The Dictionary of Philosophy (0) (Denkers, Digestives)
  
• 20-01 : The Shock Doctrine (1) (Digestives)
  
  I reposted this, because this book is actually more important than I thought when I first picked it up. "The Shock Doctrine" by Naomi Klein... It will anger you to the bone, if you read how terribly callous and barbarous the capitalists really are. It actually makes the blood boil and it made me - emotionally - go back to my years of "Autonomous Radical Activism". This book might even spark exactly that again.
• 18-01 : The 1927 Solvay Congress: The Physical Reality Set For All Time (0) (Denkers)
  
• 12-01 : Ditch Your Dollars !!! (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  So what will happen if the dollar falls off the edge of the planet? The American economy is building up its largest deficit in history. The Bushman has been able to wipe away a (Clintonian) surplus of the USA economy effectively with his crazy wars; the ones in Iraq and Afghanistan AND the domestic one, against “terror”, the one that is targeting his own people. Let’s run that by ourselves again: America thinks that the world economy needs it. The USA are a big market for Europe and Asia to export to and we can use our spending power, in the form of our savings, to finance the American deficit. This runs into the billions of dollars per day. The biggest stakeholder in this game is Asia, which buys the Dollar by the shiploads to keep it afloat. And America still thinks it is entitled to this support, because… well, because of what actually?
• 11-01 : Friedmaniacs all over the place (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Since we are getting close to the American Presidential elections, one wonders if this country will choose a leader who will give this nation back some goodwill. I have been reading Naomi Klein’s “The Shock Doctrine” for the past few days, and I am feeling more and more amazed, frustrated and angry about that country.
• 06-01 : Mission Statement (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  Yesterday I heard myself telling someone what my purpose in life is. Well, there is a whole story to that. But if I subtract all the obvious things like procreating, being a good father and husband, providing for my family and avoiding to offend everyone in my environment, I have set myself an ultimate task, independent of anyone else. It's mine alone.
• 04-01 : From Cradle to Cradle (0) (Digestives)
  
  It is apparently time to break away from the concept of using our planets raw material until it ends up in a landfill. Even recycling it seems to be no more than down cycling it until it ends up in a dump anyway. If we look at nature, we see how trees grow, how they shed their used material - the brown leaves - which becomes entirely reusable as a nutrient for the next generation of life. What ever life that is, but the recycling and up cycling of the material is a natural fact.
• 01-01 : Democracy and its Critics (0) (Digestives)
  
  As I was wondering about the sanity of our culture, because of the constant headlines in the press stating that our democracy was in jeopardy with the arrival of fierce resistance against our western lifestyle from radical thinkers, I actually asked myself: "Is it bad, to threaten democracy?"

Artikelen in het jaar: 2007 (7) in totaal.

• 16-11 : Rites of Peace (1) (Digestives)
  
  A book about ...The Fall of Napoleon and the Congress of Vienna (1815) by Adam Zamoyski. Forget about your floozy Angelique Novels with their phony intrigues. This is the real thing! In this book you will read how almost all the crowned heads and their side-kicks, princes, entourages and the lot, had a months long party, where they - at the moments when they did come to serious business - divided Europe after the old "Nobles" of Europe got rid of Napoleon.
• 13-09 : Disorderly Perfection (0) (Digestives)
  
  After a few weeks of serious reading I thought I'd had to digest something a little lighter. I ran into this book"A Perfect Mess" by Eric Abrahamson & David H. Freedman and I have been reading it in bed with a big grin on my face since. Amber looks over at me from her side, slightly disturbed by my chuckling, wondering why her notoriously serious hubby is having so much fun.
• 06-08 : Big Lies (0) (Digestives, Uit de losse pols)
  
  I must admit, not all Americans are stupid, uninterested, too patriotic or using rhetoric that was in fashion here in the 30-ies and 40-ies within the circles of the very questionable politicians and demagogues. Of course, we already new that, and my tone is seriously biased when it comes to describing Americans. But that has it's roots in the relentless stream of stupidity one sees coming from that country.
• 26-07 : American Fascists (2) (Digestives)
  
  By a weird coincidence I walked into this book of Chris Hedges about the rise of the fundamentalist, ultra right wing religious "Christian" politicians in the USA. Hedges describes how this formerly isolated and marginal group is currently becoming very powerful. Reading this will give you shivers down your spine. It becomes clear how in the USA the fascists are slowly but surely gaining momentum and how they are taking a front seat in American politics. They prey on innocent, vulnerable and (mentally) challenged people to build an "Army of Jesus" that will save the world in a cataclysmic orgy of violence, in which all non believers will perish Armageddon style, while the soldiers of god will remain in a demolished world that will be theirs for eternity.
• 17-02 : The State Of Africa (1) (Digestives)
  
  You want to know more about the history of Colonial Africa. I have a tip for you. Read the book "The State of Africa: A History of 50 Years of Independence" by Martin Meredith.
• 02-01 : Hitlers Wien & Hitlers Bayreuth (0) (Digestives)
  
  Brigitte Hamann (historian) and her view on Adolf Hitler, the Wagners and the emerging racial theories in the beginning of the 20th century... it is amazing how this author has put a bottom in my thoughts about these things. For anyone who is interested in the question as to how it was possible that a man like Adolf Hitler came to power, maybe you should read one of the many other biographies on him.
• 01-01 : Carlito’s Certified Opinion Spinner (0) (Uit de losse pols)
  
  GREETINGS EARTHLING. WELCOME TO CARLITO'S OPINION SPINNER. ON THIS SITE YOU WILL FIND ALL THE STUFF YOU NEED TO MANIPULATE, AGGRAVATE AND IRRITATE ANYONE, ANY TIME, ANYWHERE. HAPPY HUNTING!

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