Week 37
Week 37
Seems to be a few animal/insect references this week
From the Australian version of The Guardian
the arms race against the cockatoos raiding our wheelie bins - made me wonder...
rat catcher
Our cats (Possum and Tassie) often bring things home and leave them in their food bowls - almost like a contribution back to us... mostly mice, but we have also had bats and moles - and last week a RAT!
false wolf spiders
These have now been reported in the Netherlands. They are quite common near the Mediterranean, but it is getting warm enough here now. A TV report said they are not dangerous, but can bite.
wasps/hornets
We had to call the Wespinator again this week (€80,00) - a nest of Hornets under our thatched roof. There is also a variety called Giant Asian Hornet, but that is not this far north - yet. (The ones we have a BIG enough!)
rare dragonfly
Across the road from us, I have seen a few people with cameras walking around some of the pools. Apparently, there is a rare dragonfly - to be photographed, if possible.
Boeke's haircut - another €55,00!
Ben's animal photos
Ben had a few days off with a mate who now lives in Singapore - they hired a camper van and went touring - a couple of days in a Wildlife Park (in Thailand). He also had a video of a bear...
Selling the farm
Janny's brother has been in negoatiations for some time about selling their farm. The deal is just about done, I think - a body called Land van Ons (Our Land) has agreed to purchase the farm and use it it for environment-friendly agricultural use. This is because there is no "next generation" prepared to take on the farming.
New crops are to include boekweit (buckwheat) and huttentut (Camelina sativa is a flowering plant in the family Brassicaceae and is usually known in English as camelina, gold-of-pleasure, or false flax, also occasionally wild flax, linseed dodder, German sesame, and Siberian oilseed. It is native to Europe and to Central Asian areas).
Seems to be a lot of text here - I wonder if my kids/grandkids have the time to read it? The articles are meant to be a picture of life here in the Netherlands - from my point of view. I quite often copy and paste things of interest during the week and collect my thoughts on Sunday mornings...
Housing Shortage
I have written before about houses in our village being sold at prices above the "asking price".
With the acute housing shortage, this causes a problem for local people wishing to buy local. People from "Down South" usually have more money to spend because of their own higher property values.
From next year, local authorities will be allowed to allocate half of the vacant owner-occupied houses to people from their own municipality. This concerns homes up to the NHG limit of 355,000 euros. Preference may also be given to home seekers with an important profession as a teacher, nurse or agent.
Municipalities are already allowed to give priority to people with a local bond or a crucial profession when allocating rental housing. From next year, this will also apply to owner-occupied homes, both new and existing homes.
According to the cabinet, the measure is necessary to give starters with local ties more opportunities on the housing market. They often have no chance because of the high house prices and because buyers from outside the municipalities have more money and can therefore make a higher offer.
Despite European measures to bring energy markets under control, natural gas will remain more expensive than we were used to before Russia cut off its supply. That is what Minister Rob Jetten (Climate and Energy) says to NU.nl. "The reality is that we have to make do with less fossil energy."
"I feel very strongly the wake-up call that this is a lasting change," says Jetten. "We have built part of our economy on very cheap gas that we produced in Groningen or obtained from Russia. That will not come back."
Due to European intervention, the gas price will return to a "more normal level" than now, Jetten expects. "But then the gas will still be considerably more expensive than in previous decades."
For many households, the energy bill will remain high for the time being, Jetten acknowledges. Not everyone can quickly get rid of gas or install solar panels. "That's just the harsh reality. We haven't made enough pace in recent years and you notice that now."
Infrared panels (these might be something for us)
...but the throw-away line at the end was "these are not allowed by local government" - without any explanation.
Sweden election
So the genesis of European social democracy was in the ashes of fascism — and it’s raison d’être was to prevent nationalist-fascist waves from ever rising again. The idea was simple enough: create generous social contracts, of expansive public goods — public healthcare, transport, education, media, which would guarantee the average person a decent life, no matter what, a kind of floor below which living standards could never fall. This was to be insurance against nationalist-fascist waves.
And for a very long time, it worked. Even now, Europe is the last part of the world to have been hit by nationalist-fascism, which has utterly demolished countries from India to Britain to America, rendering them barely functional democracies. That matters — because it tells us that the theory held. Alas, in the real world, there’s no such thing as a guarantee that lasts forever. Even Europe is now succumbing to the tidal wave drowning the world in hatred, stupidity, and rage.
The question then becomes: why?
Gas Prices
This keeps me awake at nights...(as well as having to go to the wc :-) )
We had to wait for the EU decision on a "windfall tax" on the energy companies - this is now coming.
The Netherlands government has also announced a "household cap" on prices - based on the price on 1 January, 2022. For some unfathomable reason this won't be introduced until NEXT YEAR - (without a fixed date??). How many go broke in the meantime?
There was a TV news item about the "popularity" of the current Cabinet - all except two were rated as "extremely poor"...
The top five concerns (of the people polled) were
purchasing power ie shopping
energy prices ie out of control with winter coming
housing shortage ie chronic
refugees ie too many and not being processed quickly enough (some of the workers were interviewed - they might be processing 2 a day, whilst hundreds are sleeping on the ground outside the facility in Ter Apel)
care ie Health Services (we come under this)
All of which were rated as too little, too late - the slow reaction (by the Cabinet) to events probably being of most concern.
Another TV News item was about the cost of school heating - school administrators really struggling with meeting budgets - and having to use money that would normally go elsewhere - ie the kids and their education.
The schools are at least getting the kids to understand the problems - eg why the thermostat is being turned down.
Despite European measures to bring energy markets under control, natural gas will remain more expensive than we were used to before Russia cut off its supply. That is what Minister Rob Jetten (Climate and Energy) says to NU.nl. "The reality is that we have to make do with less fossil energy."
"I feel very strongly the wake-up call that this is a lasting change," says Jetten. "We have built part of our economy on very cheap gas that we produced in Groningen or obtained from Russia. That will not come back."
Due to European intervention, the gas price will return to a "more normal level" than now, Jetten expects. "But then the gas will still be considerably more expensive than in previous decades."
For many households, the energy bill will remain high for the time being, Jetten acknowledges. Not everyone can quickly get rid of gas or install solar panels. "That's just the harsh reality. We haven't made enough pace in recent years and you notice that now."
Last night there was a TV news item about alternatives to gas heating:-
Heat pumps - allowing for the 6 month delay in getting crucial parts!
Pellet Heaters - pellets getting dearer - just because they can
Wood Heaters (ours) wood getting dearer - again just because they can
Kerosene Heaters - even saw these in the shop yesterday - bit of a worry
Infrared panels (these might be something for us)
There was also an interview with a chap who installed all his own stuff - which is all well and good if you have the technical know-how.
This chap was also investigating small wind generators as seen on yachts...
...but the throw-away line at the end was "these are not allowed by local government" - without any explanation.
The Justice Minister
She has an almost unpronouncable name - from a Turkish background, I think - but I found myself cheering her thoughts at the same time as being more than a just a little unsettled that it is so bad here already (I probably don't see it in my Friesland hideaway - although I try to keep up with the alarming developments in the US.) (and now Sweden???)
Justice minister Dilan Yeşilgöz-Zegerius has slammed wokeism, extreme right-wing politicians and conspiracy theorists as a threat to Dutch democracy, in a speech in Amsterdam.
The justice minister said that the government’s own ‘large mistakes’ in dealing with gas damage in Groningen and in the childcare benefits affair that felled the last administration, have created a chasm between rulers and people, but named two new ‘threats’ to democracy. In the annual HJ Schoo reading on Monday night, she said government failings and serious criminality are not the only challenge to Dutch society: wokeism, fake news and extreme politics that feeds on conspiracy theories are others. The minister named far-right founder of Forum for Democracy Thierry Baudet and the splinter Van Haga Group explicitly, but also defended the anti-woke right to cause offence – and for words to be met with words, not threats or a legion of campaigners turning up at a minister’s family home.
Yeşilgöz claimed ‘systematic feeding of mistrust and anti-government sentiment’ by extremist movements has become a threat in itself to modern Dutch society, supported by social media fuelled by likes and hidden commercial interests. ‘People who go far beyond the boundaries, and try to achieve their goals with intimidation and violence, who misuse their right to demonstrate – a huge good in a democracy – who create dangerous situations on motorways, seek out and intimidate politicians at home to force them to change their policies,’ she said. She named far-right politicians as another threat. ‘Without batting an eyelid, politicians are questioning our judges’ independence,’ she said. ‘Thierry Baudet, retweeted a video where police officers were called “fascists” 12 times, and has expressed open hatred of Jewish people online. The dog whistle has been swapped for a complete wind orchestra.’
Facebook
She criticised Facebook and social media companies for algorithms limiting what people see, and – she said – promoting division and hidden commercial interests. ‘A scandal generates attention, and attention means brand awareness, likes, power, money and votes,’ she added. ‘This has become a revenue model for parties such as Forum and the Van Haga Group, which no longer have any real agenda. Just like the woke movement, they mostly draw inspiration from the United States.’ The minister also called out so-called wokeism, saying that ‘tolerance is the basis of democracy’ and claiming over-sensitivity was leading to self-censorship and a muffling of the ‘oxygen’ of open debate. ‘Our free society needs open debate – that’s our oxygen,’ she said. ‘Open debate, where you fight words with words, where arguments determine whether or not you are right, and not the length of your toes.
Man or woman: I’d say, grow a pair of balls and find some resilience. In an open society, you need to have a thicker skin because there might simply be opinions or facts you’d prefer not to see or hear.’
Relationship therapy
She said that government and the people need to go into ‘relationship therapy’ and called on the Netherlands to defend its democracy – not necessarily by ‘disrespectfully’ flying flags upside down, but by governing better and ‘staying sharp’ to threats and acting and speaking up. ‘If enough people are prepared to be heroes,’ she said, ‘then we will have – dare I say it – herd immunity.’
Sweden election
This from Umair Haque
And for a very long time, it worked. Even now, Europe is the last part of the world to have been hit by nationalist-fascism, which has utterly demolished countries from India to Britain to America, rendering them barely functional democracies. That matters — because it tells us that the theory held. Alas, in the real world, there’s no such thing as a guarantee that lasts forever. Even Europe is now succumbing to the tidal wave drowning the world in hatred, stupidity, and rage.
The question then becomes: why?
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