Ask a Dutchman!

[Agent327]

What? Mormons accept posthumous baptism?

It was covered in the 'Ask a Mormon' thread a while ago

Yes, but apparently it should only be used for Mormon-friendly people. Which doesn´t apply to Dutch royalty or Anne Frank. (At least, as far as I know, there have been no contacts reported of either with the Mormon church.)

 

[anandus]

Just wait until Belgium splits up and divide the spoils with France

It would be something like the 1830 Talleyrand-plan, then
Wikipedia

 

[Agent327]

Meanwhile elections in the Netherlands have been over for some weeks now, and the obvious news was that support for Wilders' PVV has been cut in half and the winners - Liberal Party (VVD) and Labour Party (PvdA) - are currently conducting negotiations on a new government to be formed.

 

[christos200]

I dont know if this has been asked, but how do you view:

A) The Germans
B) The Spanish

 

[Agent327]

I suppose you mean how do I view them personally. As for the Germans, I'm not a typical Dutchmen, as I'm German-born, and my mother was German. So from personal experience I can only describe Germans as being friendly (not much different from Dutchmen, but speaking a different language). As for the Spanish, I can't really answer, not knowing any personally. (But perhaps you are referring to such historicaL events as the 80 Years War and WW II?)

 

[dutchfire]

About the Spanish, there is no hatred or some such thing about the 80 years war anymore, that is long gone. We were pretty pissed about the 2010 World Cup though.

About the Germans, especially some old people might have bad feelings about them, I think younger people no longer have this. I might also be biased though, since I currently live in Germany.

 

[luiz]

I don't know if this was aked before, but how do you Dutchies view the state of your immigrant population? Assimilating well, not assimilating well enough, just too many?

I was there earlier this year and while I was very surprised by the sheer number of immigrants, they seemed better assimilated than I expected. Still very odd to find out there are more non-Western kids in Amsterdam than Western ones, quite a transformation in a very short time.

 

[anandus]

Great timing asking about the 80-year's war.
In the town I was born and grew up, Leiden, the liberation of the town from the Spanish is still celebrated every year on the third of october. The town was liberated in 1574.
Although it's just festivities nowadays, mingled in with some local history, but no real meaning whatsoever.
I'd like to post a link to Wikipedia, but I'm on my phone.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Leiden

The whole town is one big party. And we eat traditional stew. And drink copious amounts of beer.
Can't wait until I'm there tomorrow evening!
(Why tomorrow if it was on the third? Well a lot of people don't need to go to work or school on the third, so everybody goes out on the second )

 

[dutchfire]

I don't know if this was aked before, but how do you Dutchies view the state of your immigrant population? Assimilating well, not assimilating well enough, just too many?

I was there earlier this year and while I was very surprised by the sheer number of immigrants, they seemed better assimilated than I expected. Still very odd to find out there are more non-Western kids in Amsterdam than Western ones, quite a transformation in a very short time.

Note: I'm a leftist with internationalist sympathies. This post is going to be biased.

Ever since Pim Fortuyn, it has become popular to be anti-immigration. However, immigration here seems to have been way more successful than in for example France (French cities are horrible). Criminality under especially Morroccan kids is high, but really not that dramatic. Better policing and more attention to social circumstances in certain neighbourhoods would alleviate the problem a lot, I think. Instead politics has opted for rather populist measures ever since Fortuyn.

For example, recently there have been talks about a ban on burka's (which is rather dubious constitutionally). The number of people wearing a burka is estimated to be around a 100. I would think this wouldn't be worth the bother, but The Hague seems to think differently.

Incidentally, support for the PVV which is heavily anti-Islam is highest in the south-east and in small villages, places that don't have many foreigners at all. The media has made people afraid of things they have never seen. Fear is a bad emotion to rule a country on.

 

[del62]

Questions

1. What are the 5 most popular sports in Holland?
2. Did you follow the cycling world championships in Limburg?
3. Do you own a caravan?
4. Do you think Hisri Ali so badly treated?
5. Do you hate us (the English)?

 

[anandus]

1. Hard to say. I'd think at least in the top five there's football, hockey, swimming and ice skating.
2. Personally? No, but I believe it was in the news
3. No. I did rent a camper (motor home) once, though
4. Personally: Yes, it was an ugly situation.
5. Hate the English? Not at all, plenty of Brits here. Any pubs popping up here as well. Although I still can't get used to the 'chip butty'
But if you mean the many wars we had: The second world war made the Dutch very grateful for the English.

 

[mayor]

About the Germans, especially some old people might have bad feelings about them, I think younger people no longer have this. I might also be biased though, since I currently live in Germany.

Depends, as someone who has worked in a supermarket in the border area (Enschede) I can tell you that the Germans can be a big source of annoyance, especially on Saturday. But besides that, yeah you're right

 

[Agent327]

But if you mean the many wars we had: The second world war made the Dutch very grateful for the English.

Canadians more like.

I don't know if this was aked before, but how do you Dutchies view the state of your immigrant population? Assimilating well, not assimilating well enough, just too many?

I was there earlier this year and while I was very surprised by the sheer number of immigrants, they seemed better assimilated than I expected. Still very odd to find out there are more non-Western kids in Amsterdam than Western ones, quite a transformation in a very short time.

I think I can agree with Dutchfire on this. Also, without immigration the Netherlands wouldn't be what they are today (nor would the 17th century have been a Golden Age). Basically, immigration has been a part of Dutch history since the 80 Years War (if not before). Interesting to note, by the way, that support for Wilder's PVV has halved in the last national election.

Questions

1. What are the 5 most popular sports in Holland?
2. Did you follow the cycling world championships in Limburg?
3. Do you own a caravan?
4. Do you think Hisri Ali so badly treated?
5. Do you hate us (the English)?

Anandus already answered most of these, but as concerns the Hirsi Ali affair it seems to me her party, the 'liberal' VVD, needed to get rid of a critical member (although it's still unclear to me at least what kind of problem she would have posed to the party leadership). The whole affair reminded me of another member, a former member of the government no less, who was also pushed out of the party (not the country though), and, like ex-VVD parliamentarian Wilders, founded her own rightist party. Although Hirsi Ali's stance differ little from Wilders anti-islamism, her views are closer to reality and much more in depth than Wilders' propaganda. (Such as his dubious statement that he has nothing against muslims, just against Islam, whose Holy Book should be outlawed on account of being fascist - if I understand his words correctly, which isn't always easy.)

 

[mayor]

Questions

1. What are the 5 most popular sports in Holland?

The most popular are propably those that Anandus listed. However they aren't the most practiced (Football only reaches 6th place, for instance) Top 5:

1 Fitness
2 Swimming
3 Hiking
4 Cycling
5 Running

You can raise doubts to whether some of thees are sports and whether some of these are practised as being sports, but there you have it

2. Did you follow the cycling world championships in Limburg?

The World Championships cycling were being held in Limburg?

3. Do you own a caravan?

Never

4. Do you think Hisri Ali so badly treated?

Can't really remember, I was just starting to get slightly interested in politics

5. Do you hate us (the English)?

Why would we?

 

[anandus]

Why would we?

Well, there were at least four wars between England and the Netherlands.

Although the question might be reversed, do the English hate us?
As the Dutch successfully invaded England once (fun fact: With a fleet twice the size of the Spanish Armada). Stadholder William the third of Orange took over the English throne.

In England it's known as the Glorious Revolution, in the Netherlands it's known as the Glorious Crossing ('Glorieuze overtocht').

 

[mayor]

Well, there were at least four wars between England and the Netherlands.

Well yes, historical educated persons as ourself know about that. However, having experienced the history lessons provided by our scholingsystem, I doubt the average Dutchman knows about that...

 

[anandus]

True.

On one hand I must say the international approach of the history courses in secondary school is commendable (although very Western, I never learned any history of China, for instance), there's an underexposure of the national history.
(Must be said: I went to secondary school from '91 to '98, so I don't know how it is now).

 

[mayor]

True.

On one hand I must say the international approach of the history courses in secondary school is commendable (although very Western, I never learned any history of China, for instance), there's an underexposure of the national history.(Must be said: I went to secondary school from '91 to '98, so I don't know how it is now).[/QUOTE

History of non European nations is still non-existent ('02-'07), with the exception of Cold war conflicts. The focus is on the 20th century. 80 years war, Golden age, Batavian Republic are only touched very lightly. Dutch-English wars, for instance, are mentioned but hardly covered in a way that people remember it, I believe... Honestly, now that I think.of it, I can't remember my teacher mentioning these wars...

 

[sophie]

Was the 2009 World Baseball Classic (where the Netherlands made a heroic underdog run into the quarterfinals) followed at all in the Netherlands itself?

 

[del62]

There is little about these wars in England either.

Another question though,

Do you wish that the terrain was less flat (I know there are a few hills in the east), I don't think I would want to live in such a flat place?