600.000 racists?
The key to my office is inside the office. So this morning I arrived early at the office and couldn’t get in. I decided to wait in Elf for Patrick or Arjen or Robert to show up but they all have appointments until 10 or 11.
I feel evicted.
Elf is officialy closed until eleven but the bartender knows me and made me a cappucino, on the house.
I told him about how I feel a bit homeless because I can’t get into the office. He said “Now you know how it feels”. I asked him what he meant and then he told me that the “Partij voor de Vrijheid” got about 600.000 votes in yesterdays election. That means we have about 600.000 racists in The Netherlands.
Imagine how people who weren’t born in the Netherlands but who do live here feel today.
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Maaike said,
November 23, 2006 @ 2:22 pm (14:22)
You’re so right. I can’t believe they’re actually called ‘Party for freedom’. Let’s just hope they’ll disappear in 4 years like the LPF did.
November 23, 2006 @ 6:39 pm (18:39)
I don’t think its bad news at all. First off, if you asked me before the elections how many ‘light’ racists (in the sense they don’t actively don some pointy hats and bedsheets and know their way around torches) this country has, I’d peg it around half a million already. This confirms something that already existed.
So, the shock is actually a good thing: people who weren’t aware now know. This is good. There are 600k people who voted PvdV. The publication of such a number is good news, then.
But, are they all racist? Let’s see, Geert Wilders is the only relevant party that tries to tackle bureaucratic inefficiencies, and given the current political climate of the Netherlands, there is no -WAY- that actual racistic measures get implemented. The ‘cordon sanitaire’ around his party (no other party is willing to suffer the PvdV in a coalition) highlights the truth of that notion.
It’s a dangerous ploy, but some of those 600k might just be ‘tactical’ votes. That should be worth about 50k votes.
Playing devil’s advocate for a moment, I think calling PvdV policies ‘racistic’ is overstating somewhat. Something like ‘Vlaams Blok’ is far larger and much worse, policy-wise. I do not doubt a landslide victory for PvdV might lead to a slippery slope best avoided, but a vote for PvdV’s immigration policy right now could simply be a vote only for the policies as they were stated right now (which, while harsh, aren’t racist just yet) - not what we all suspect would happen if PvdV was allowed to pilot this country on its own. That should be worth another 200k.
Leaves 350k, well below what I suspected. More good news, in other words.
I think a much more telling sign of PvdV’s ironic name is that they support the newly instated identification laws (requiring you to identify yourself with a government-sanctioned document when asked by police or risk a fine), and they consider fighting terrorism to be more important than preserving civil liberties. How’s that supporting ‘Freedom’ exactly? Suggests to me similar practices as ‘the democratic republic of congo’, or the ‘democratic people’s republic of korea’. A name which actually opposes what’s happening.
Then again, the only political parties that -actually- favoured freedom over freedom-restriction legislature were D’66, Groen Links, and the party for animals. One 3-seat (200,000 votes) has-been, environmentalists (450,000 votes) and extreme environmentalists (140,000 votes). Hm.
That scared me somewhat more - I was not aware the Dutch didn’t care about this issue, nor was I aware the political parties are scared and chasing America in overreacting on issues like this.
Michiel Ebberink said,
November 24, 2006 @ 11:53 am (11:53)
I agree with Reinier Zwitserloot on this matter….and I voted PvdD (party for the Animals).
November 29, 2006 @ 11:58 am (11:58)
Lucky you to get some coffee on the house.
The last time I could not get in, was because of a guy from Tunesië - living in the Netherlands - who had robbed me and taken my keys and my money.
I think some people can handle all situations, also freedom of migration, while others florish in a more protected environment.
For many preople living in the Netherlands it is a threathening idea if borders are open to everyone. Geert Wilders gives them a voice.
This is only justified in a democracy. I myself find it very difficult to relate to globalisation, to different cultures, but I did not vote for PvdV.