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A New View on Theo Van Gogh

Sunday, January 02, 2005

It’s said that you need to be outside the pack to understand the pack: This weeks “The New Yorker” magazine has a very good story on the recent murder of Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh. Friend Max Pam talks and tours author Ian Buruma on the many haunts of the late independent filmmaker, and the conversation shows the kind of balanced research and thought that perhaps only an outsider can find.

It’s a damn good read.

The Netherlands is in a difficult state right now - it’s not sure how to weather the levels of intolerance and violence it’s occasionally experiencing. It’s certainly not a constant barrage, and by comparison to some other countries it’s not even so bad. But there’s a nobility in tolerance that is starting to wear thin, even for the current government, and I think some Dutch question if they’ve been too passive in general and if so, how much to tighten up rules. Nearly two years past the the death of politician Pim Fortuin at the hand of a liberal Nederlander, the public opinion is that this danger comes from outside, not within.

Fortuin’s legacy is perhaps this telling quote - “Holland was full.?  The handiwork of Mohammad B. only adds punctuation to this powerful malapropism.

Posted by Admin on 01/02 at 12:52 PM
Posted in: Living in Holland   • Comments (0) • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink

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