When I was a kid my mother was against school uniforms.
When I was a kid we emigrated to Australia in a BOAC plane that had to stop three times to refuel.
When I was a kid my parents rented a television for one night. They watched a movie that had something to do with a leaking submarine. Continue reading
Posted in Australia, Education, Elections, Emigration / Immigration, History, Lists, Movies, Society, Technology, Television, Travel, Writing Prompt Responses
Tagged Age, Australia, childhood, history, humor, memories, politics, school, society, technology, television, the '60s, the 1960s, Writing prompt Age
This post doesn’t live here anymore. It has emigrated to my other blog:
The Big No-No: An Outsider on American Fascism, where it resides under the title:
This post doesn’t live here anymore. It has emigrated to my other blog:
The Big No-No: An Outsider on American Fascism, where it resides under the title:
“Charlottesville: From Patriotism to Nationalism to Malignant Nationalism”
Posted in Education, Government, History, Language, Media, Migrate, Psychology, Slavery, Society, US Politics, World War Two
Tagged Charlottesville, education, Fascism, group psychology, Indoctrination, Nationalism, Opinion, Patriotism, Pledge of Allegiance, politics, society, Trump, white supremacy, writing prompt education, writing prompts
This post doesn’t live here anymore. It has emigrated to my other blog:
The Big No-No: An Outsider on American Fascism, where it resides under the title:
“The Blurry Lines Between White Responsibility, White Privilege and Racism”
This article is written by my cousin. If you live in Holland or in Europe and you’re able to donate to keep the magazine Lotje&Co afloat, please do. Parents of special-needs children can feel so isolated and this magazine helps them with support and communication.
Posted in Healthcare, Psychology, Writing
Tagged crowdfunding, gezondheidszorg, Lotje&Co, samenleving, society, special needs children, support, welzijn, Writing, zorgintensieve kinderen
Breakfast in Central Park, May 1998
Yesterday I was reading something that reminded me how much I loved breastfeeding. I’ve been meaning to write about it for years, and I keep forgetting. It’s one of the best things–if not the best thing–I’ve ever done. Talk about having a purpose! My very body was keeping this brand-new little human alive and thriving. Continue reading
Posted in Eating out, Food, Society, Writing Prompt Responses
Tagged breastfeeding, motherhood, newborns, Opinion, society, writing prompt contoversy
Image: amazon.com
Sometimes I think that I should take a break from the news, just turn the car radio to music and not read my Flipboard or Facebook feed for a few days, because it gets too stressful. But right after that I think, what a luxury to be able to contemplate turning it all off for a while because it’s too hard to hear, too much to read about. Continue reading
Posted in Government, Psychology, Society, US Politics, Violence
Tagged anxiety, centering, escapism, meditation, Opinion, politics, Racism, society, Trump, Violence, Xenophobia
Image: snopes.com
My friend and neighbor had a dilemma two days ago. He wanted to “like” my post to support my family going to the march, but he himself has started holding meetings in Austin to discuss how we can bring back the civil discourse, and my last post wasn’t that civil. Continue reading
Posted in Language, Media, Psychology, Society, US Politics
Tagged civil discourse, misogyny, Opinion, politics, Presidential Election 2016, presidential inauguration 2017, Racism, society, Trump
Once a week I have three hours to kill in East Austin. I kill them at Denny’s, because it’s close to where I need to pick up R when she’s done, and because they play 60s and 70s rock–my music. I usually take my laptop and sit at one of the two tables near an outlet, so I can write. Continue reading
Today’s writing prompt is Graceful.
Ha-ha-ha!
If there’s ever a word that describes what I am not most completely, it’s graceful. I’m the epitome of the proverbial bull in a china shop. More like a stumbling drunk bull in the British Museum’s Asia section. Watch out folks, here she comes. Hide your valuables! Continue reading
Posted in Emigration / Immigration, Language, Psychology, Society, Writing Prompt Responses
Tagged clothing, compliments, emigration, etiquette, grace, graceful, immigration, language, make-up, Opinion, psychology, society, writing prompt
I’ve started reading Immigration and Identity by Salman Akhtar. He speaks about the loss of identity and the mourning process involved for emigrants. I had never thought about it in those terms, but yes, when you emigrate, your identity changes to a degree, and yes, there is definitely mourning involved. Continue reading
Posted in Emigration / Immigration, Psychology
Tagged career, emigration, family, friends, identity, identity loss, immigration, independence, loss of identity, mourning, Opinion, psychology, society
image: nairaland.com
On July 14, a man ran his truck into crowds of people enjoying the Bastille Day fireworks in Nice, France, killing eighty-some and wounding so many others.
Bastille Day celebrates the birth of the French Republic, with its motto, Liberty, Equality and Fraternity. Fraternity means, among other things, communal support, friendship, brotherhood. Continue reading
Posted in Austin, Government, Police, Religion, Society, Travel, US Politics, Violence
Tagged Bastille Day attack, Baton Rouge, human connections, opinie, Opinion, peace, police shootings, Police Violence, politics, religion, six degrees of separation, society, terrorism
image: abc7chicago.com
Terrorists have shot and blown up 132 people (at last count) in Paris. ISIS has claimed responsibility and says this is just the beginning of the wave. Continue reading
image: huffingtonpost.com
I mention in my yellow sticky post on the homepage that I often seem disgusted and elated in quick succession. Well, I wasn’t kidding. Continue reading
This post doesn’t live here anymore. It migrated to my other blog:
The Big No-No: An Outsider on American Fascism, where it resides under the title:
“Lies, Disinformation and Conspiracy Theories in the Information Age”
Posted in Media, Society, Violence
Tagged conspiracy theories, false claims, Internet, journalism, media, news, society, television, truth, Violence
image from offclouds.com
The writing prompt of the week asks what evil means to me.
Well, I don’t believe it’s a thing, something that exists on it’s own. As an atheist/humanist I obviously don’t believe that the devil makes people do things. That would be very convenient, but no, people do bad things because we’re human. We are responsible for our own values and rules and behavior. Continue reading
Posted in History, Psychology, Religion, Society, Violence, Writing Prompt Responses
Tagged atheism, Christian values, crime, humanism, information, morality, Racism, society, tolerance, universal values, writing prompts
image: popefrancisnyc.org
So, the pope. CNN was wall-to-wall pope from the moment he set foot in Cuba to the moment he left America. It was hard not to get carried along in the enthusiasm oozing from the (Catholic) reporters. He was wonderful! Amazing! Best pope ever! Rock star Francis! It was like the Beatles were coming to town! Etc. Continue reading
image: askusfortcollins.com
An argument you hear often for not helping the homeless is that if you give them money, they just spend it on drugs or alcohol.
First of all, there are plenty of people homeless who aren’t drug addicts or alcoholics. It’s often hard to tell the difference. Continue reading
I think it’s time for a sequel to my post Rated R, where I literally translated some Dutch swear words and phrases into English. So here are several words I used when I was a kid in the early seventies. They’re not as R-rated as the first post. I found these “retro swear words” on this site. Continue reading
Posted in Language
Tagged Dutch swear words, history, humor, language, Nederland, Netherlands, samenleving, society, taal, translation, vloeken
It’s high time for another one of my pet peeves. This commercial by CSX, one of the big railroad companies, annoys me no end: Continue reading
I treated my homeless friend Steve to a meal of chicken fajitas at Magnolia Cafe the other day. Talking to him for a while is often overwhelming. So much information. So much of it shocking. Continue reading
Tagged Austin, community, daklozen, health care, homeless, homeless camps, no camping ordinance, Opinion, society, United Way
image: abcnews.go.com
Judging by the news coverage, you’d think that the biggest worries related to the freezing winds this Thanksgiving are the flight delays and the possible lack of giant balloons at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Continue reading
Dear Police Chief Acevedo,
I’m an Austin resident. I drive my kids downtown to school every morning and back every afternoon. Since I’ve been driving the same route twice a day for five years, I’ve befriended some of the homeless who stand on corners I almost always stop at. These guys sleep mostly under bridges and overpasses. Continue reading
Posted in Austin, homeless, Police
Tagged Austin, camping, harassment, homeless, letters, no camping ordinance, open letter, Opinion, Police, police chief Art Acevedo, society
I discovered this blog, Conservative Newswire, only last week. I immediately became a follower, because I felt sorry for them. Such inexperienced boys, they were obviously never going to make it without the benefit of my help. Continue reading
Posted in Society
Tagged Conservative Newswire, featured blog, humor, interviews, Opinion, parody, satire, society
image: austinchronicle.com
It’s that time of year again here in Austin. More rain and cooler nights are wonderful unless you’re homeless. And further north winter is already in full swing.
Oh, and it’s Veterans’ Day. Many homeless are war veterans, guys who gave their souls for this country. They got chewed up in wars and were spit out by society and now they’re reduced to holding up cardboard signs at traffic lights. Continue reading
Posted in homeless
Tagged homeless, how to help, society, veterans day, volunteering, winter
I know I promised in my last post that I would continue with a post about my gear, but I walked into the garage to find my lightweight camping stuff and two steps into it I changed my mind. First our garage will have to be straightened out. Ugh!
Posted in Writing
Tagged being Dutch in America, blogging, education, Facebook page, Gun Violence, healthcare, humor, Opinion, photography, politics, religion, resident alien, Social media, society, Writing
image from beforeitsnews.com
Wow, a few hundred kids and teachers weren’t shot by a guy with an AK47 yesterday. No doubt because another guy one-upped him with an even bigger gun, and shot him full of holes while hysterically screaming “Fuuuuuck you, cocksucker!” and then… What? What’s that? Those kids and teachers weren’t saved by a manly-man with a big gun and a bigger mouth? Oh. They were saved by an unarmed, level-headed woman? Who TALKED THE GUNMAN DOWN? Well shucks, imagine that!
Posted in Society
Tagged Antoinette Tuff, de-escalation skills, Gun Violence, Opinion, School Shootings, society, vuurwapengeweld
image from blogs.scientificamerican.com
Daily Prompt: Is political correctness a useful concept, or does it stifle honest discussion?
Definition of politically correct:
1. Of, relating to, or supporting broad social, political, and educational change, especially to redress historical injustices in matters such as race, class, gender, and sexual orientation.
2. Being or perceived as being overly concerned with such change, often to the exclusion of other matters.
(http://www.thefreedictionary.com/political+correctness)
Where do I stand?
There are more bicycles than residents in The Netherlands and in cities like Amsterdam and The Hague up to 70% of all journeys are made by bike. The BBC’s Hague correspondent, Anna Holligan, who rides an omafiets – or “granny style” – bike complete with wicker basket and pedal-back brakes, examines what made everyone get back in the saddle.
Click here for the entire article by BBC News.
Posted in Holland, Transportation
Tagged bicycles, cycling, Dutch, Fietsen, Nederland, Netherlands, society, transportation, vervoer
image from city-data.com
The smaller the town, the bigger the chance that your police “chief” and mayor are below par. A small town simply doesn’t have the tax base needed to attract qualified people and there are too few qualified people in the borough itself.
Gilberton ranks way below the Pennsylvania average in pretty much everything, like income, house values and education. It definitely has a very low tax base. And how big is the pool Gilberton has to fish in for its government employees?
image from tumblr.com
Right around the time I wrote my post about Gilberton, PA Police Chief Mark Kessler, there was also a meme going around Facebook asking not to make stupid people famous. So I wondered if I–with many others–was guilty of giving this guy the spotlight, or if I was doing the right thing in drawing attention–again, along with many others–to a disconcerting phenomenon. Continue reading
We were driving in southeastern Okalahoma and then into southwestern Arkansas last week, in beautiful, lush green hills, when what did we see?
Yes, so I had to Google this to find out why on earth there was a Queen Wilhelmina State Park in Arkansas, USA.
Posted in History, Holland, Recreation
Tagged Arkansas, geschiedenis, history, humor, KCP&G, Koningin Wilhelmina, koningshuis, monarchy, Netherlands, Queen Wilhelmina, Queen Wilhelmina State Park, railroad, royalty, society
Dear Mr. Police Chief Mark Kessler of Gilberton, Pennsylvania, Continue reading
Posted in Media, Police, US Politics
Tagged America, DPchallenge, freedom of speech, George Zimmerman, Gilberton PA, god and guns, Gun Rights, gun sense, Gun Violence, humor, letters, obscenity, Open Letters, Opinion, police brutality, police chief Mark Kessler, police intimidation, politie Amerika, religion in America, society, Tea Party, Trayvon Martin, vuurwapens
image kenmore-wa.showmethead.com
(Response to Daily Prompt “There’s No Place Like Home”.)
America is full of nomads, aka retirees. They live in RVs, some moving around from one beautiful spot to another, others staying in one place.
Posted in Healthcare, Housing, Society, Transportation, Travel, Vacations, Writing Prompt Responses
Tagged America, DPchallenge, housing, recreation, retirement, RV's, society, There's No Place Like Home, travel, vacations, writing prompts
image from buzzfeed.com
One of the things that remind me regularly that I’m still an alien here is what makes me laugh. Continue reading
Posted in Emigration / Immigration, Society
Tagged daily prompt, emigration, From the Gut, Grumpy Old Men, Heat the movie, humor, immigrants, laughter, Opinion, society
In light of the restrictive abortion law the Texas Republicans are going to get passed, and considering the reckless manner in which many conservatives throw around terms like “communist” and “socialist”, this post by someone from Russia is a must-read. The number of times she uses the word “stupid” n the first few paragraphs may be off-putting, but she gets it out of her system and gets going with the real meat!
As someone who grew up in a totalitarian Communist state, nothing infuriates me more than the incessant conservative droning-on about progressives being “communist”, “socialist” and “Stalinist”. People who say these things use such words as mere slurs, not much different than calling someone an asswipe, and of course, they betray both a profound ignorance of history and a great deal of contempt for it. But more than that, they’ve got it completely backwards. Truth is, American conservatives have remarkably a lot in common with Russian communists: the same obsession with ideological purity, the same irrational intolerance towards loyal dissent, the same prioritizing of ideology over practicality, the same preparedness to sacrifice liberties, human dignity and lives for the sake of ideological totems, the same clash-of-civilizations thinking, the same pretensions at worldwide cultural and political hegemony. And of course, the modern American conservative and the Russian communist of the bygone era…
View original post 2,404 more words
Posted in Healthcare, Society, US Politics
Tagged Abortion, history, ideology, Opinion, sex education, society, Soviet Union, Tea Party
Yesterday I just accepted all comments without replying to each one. I was venting, not looking for a conversation with people who have never been emigrants themselves. I thought I’d leave that for after I’d calmed down a bit.
This post doesn’t live here anymore. It migrated to my other blog:
The Big No-No: An Outsider on American Fascism, where it resides under the title:
“There Should Be Gun Restrictions For People With Mental Health Issues”.
Tagged gun control, Mass Shootings, media, mentally ill, Opinion, Piers Morgan, Second Amendment, society
(Image: charlesdickenspage.com}
Since I’ve been blogging about Victor Hugo’s stories, let me jump over to England and Charles Dickens.
This winter break I had the bad luck to get the flu. For days I could barely get out of bed. But every cloud has a silver lining, and this cloud’s lining was that I got to read Martin Chuzzlewit in a few days. Continue reading
Posted in Books, Education, History, Society, Travel, US Politics
Tagged 19e eeuw, 19th century, America, American, Amerika, Amerikaans, books, Charles Dickens, Engelse literatuur, English literature, maatschappij, Martin Chuzzlewit, Opinion, society
In my last post, I addressed the idea of giving teachers guns in the classroom. But the NRA wants more than that. They want everyone to have a gun, because, as they say, “The only thing more dangerous than a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun”. Or something like that. Continue reading
(Image from:
members.virtualtourist.com
Sometimes a homeless man with a huge horseshoe mustache panhandles at one of the intersections in southwest Austin. I don’t talk with him much, because the timing is rarely right. He’s accompanied by a black Labrador, who usually sits under an umbrella stuck in the ground, a water bowl within reach. Continue reading
(Image from tonic.com)
Disclaimer: I know most of my readers are compassionate people. So this is directed toward–well, you’ll know who you are.
Posted in Austin, Food, homeless
Tagged America, Amerika, Austin, daklozen, DPchallenge, giving money to the homeless, handouts, homeless, Opinion, society, there but for, thuislozen
(Image from andilit.com)
I know this is a man, but it’s a good picture, isn’t it?
In an earlier post I wrote about Steve, a homeless guy I see almost every day after dropping off the kids at school.
The homeless can always use help, but winters are especially hard. So here’s a list of things that are easy and inexpensive and can make a big difference for someone trying to stay warm and dry out there. Continue reading
Tagged Amerika, Christmas, daklozen, feestdagen, helping the homeless, Holidays, homeless, Lists, society, Thanksgiving, thuislozen
(Image from idolater.com)
I filled out a U.S. citizen application form last night, when Obama won re-election. After nineteen years I decided to bite the bullet; this seemed like a fitting moment. I’d been waiting for some evidence of common sense, even though I knew I had to do it sooner or later, regardless. I mean, let’s face it, after nineteen years and with both kids teenagers here and T not being a billionaire just yet, it’s pretty obvious I won’t ever be living in the Netherlands again. Continue reading
Tagged America, Amerika, Austin, culture, homeless, maatschappij, society, thuislozen
(Photo: farmwars.info)
One thing I’ve learned is the difference between Dutch politeness and Texan politeness.
To A Texan, being polite is not just a matter of saying please and thank you, holding the door open for the person coming behind you, not belching loudly at the dinner table, etc. It also means avoiding embarrassing someone. Continue reading
Posted in Emigration / Immigration, Language, Society
Tagged America, Cultural Differences, culture, embarrassment, emigration, humor, immigration, language, manners, politeness, society, The Netherlands
Time for one of my pet peeves.
Scene in a restaurant: Continue reading
Posted in Emigration / Immigration, Holland, Society
Tagged aDutch heritage, America, Being American, Dutch-Americans, emigration, European, healthcare, immigration, nationaliteit, nationalities, Opinion, Patriotism, safety nets, society, taxes
In the late 60s Richard Proenneke built his own cabin in the Alaskan wilderness with only a few simple tools. He spent most of the rest of his life there. Sam Keith fleshed out Proenneke's diary of his first 16 months, when he was making his home by a lake. I love these kinds of books!
An old Oji-Cree healer and her nephew canoe down a river in Canada, away from the world of white people. They both have to come to terms with their past. The woman has lost most of her tribe and the young man is traumatized from his recent experience in the Belgian trenches of World War One. My second book by Boyden. Can't say enough about him.
An incredibly comprehensive history of everything related to slavery in the Southern United States, from the beginning of the colonies to the end of the Civil War. Over 700 pages and I took over 30 pages of notes. I will be sharing over many posts to come!
Hamid's debut novel. I love this author. A young man in Lahore, Pakistan, is the victim of love, drugs, obsession, the class system and his complete lack of self-awareness.
A golem, created in Poland and brought to life on a ship to America, and a jinni who was trapped in a flask a thousand years ago and released in New York -- the most unusual immigrants you'll ever meet.
The only part of her life a Korean woman can control is her body, so she withdraws into it. Harrowing.
Autobiography lightly disguised as a novel about the son of Southern migrants growing up on the streets of Harlem, New York City, in the 1940s and 50s. Written like you're hearing the whole story in a bar. Quite a feat.
The story of a man struggling to make a living in Morocco. No plot, no clearly defined characters, but fascinating in its authenticity.
Pakistani man tells an American about his experience as a college student and employee of an assessment firm in America years ago. Smart, nuanced and pretty darn honest considering the unreliable narrator.
Wow! The answer to the inane platitudes about how all parents love their children and how children should always respect their parents. The protagonist must come to terms with his deeply flawed immigrant parents in order to change himself.
Seven short stories about life during the Kim Il-sung regime, by a writer who still lives and works in North Korea, were smuggled out of the country and translated. Mind-boggling stuff.
A 15-year-old autistic narrator wants to know who killed a neighbor's dog, and ends up much further out of his comfort zone than he planned. Wonderful read!
In politics, education, religion, agriculture, business--it turns out that dumbing down has been here from the start.
Fifty years of Istanbul seen through the eyes of a street vendor who migrates to the city as a young boy. It's also a window into the complicated dance between men and women in Turkey.
Hey, don't laugh, at least I'm trying.
A Norwegian immigrant is cooped up with six other people on a tiny island off the coast of Maine all winter in 1873. A woman in the present researching the Norwegian immigrant is cooped up with three other people on a tiny sailboat. What could possibly go wrong?
A man stuck between two worlds in more ways than one. Fascinating!
Historical novel about early contacts between first nations and the French in Canada. Beautifully written story that doesn't pull any punches. I bought his other two novels right away.
Beautifully written. By my children's favorite English and Creative Writing teacher! It's got rave reviews and we're all very proud of her.
Suki Kim is a Korean-American journalist. She poses as an evangelical Christian posing as an English teacher at a school for the sons of North Korea's elite. Her experience and the information she manages to get via writing assignments are incredible. Definitely a lot more eye-opening that any CNN special.
This. Explains. Everything!!!
Why has Islam not undergone a reformation like Christianity? Why is it so easy for Islamic extremist groups like IS to recruit young muslims? What would it take for Islam in fundamentalist Islamic countries to enter modernity? Does the West have a role to play?
Amazing! A man wanders endlessly through a dreamscape, becoming other people, himself in the past, everything is fluid. Kafkaesque disconnect between people and their different needs.
A multi-layered novel about the history of Libya. A fast read, but one you can repeat and find something new each time.
Twelve Americans go missing in Burma/Myanmar during a tour. Touching and hilarious, but mostly hilarious.
The most unusual murder mystery I've ever read. Incredible writing. It haunted me for days.
The quote on the front mentions that these stories are exhilerating. I couldn't disagree more. They are almost unbearably painful to read, and yet I couldn't put them down. Very well done, apart from the third story, which is written in the second tense. Please let me know if you know of ONE story that works in second tense.
Rants, essays, and diatribes.
Fascism, Nationalism and Authoritarianism in U.S. History
He was in India. I was in Ireland. Now we're in Paris. New posts every week.
Making Sense of a Vexing and Perplexing World
Cogito Ergo Sum
daily gadfly
Understanding the psychology that drives our politics
A daily selection of the best content published on WordPress, collected for you by humans who love to read.
Longreads : The best longform stories on the web
making sense of the news one week at a time
The Art and Craft of Blogging
Words by RRN
The journey of a Graphic Design graduate
Explore Scotland through my stories, photos and videos. She's a beauty!
Wanderers on two wheels!
Quintin Lake's photographic Journey walking around Britain's Coast
Adventures in the world of history
Amsterdam days and nights
196 countries, countless stories...
Postcards from afar: Immersion Travel, Cultural Travel. Currently in... Singapore!
Adventures in absurdity
navigating a world of noise as a quiet soul
Art + Photo + Words
art design & oddities
Historian, Folklorist, Writer, Re-enactor, Museum Professional. Follow me on Twitter: @stuartorme
“I have tried my best to keep my country alive by writing about it.” - Nuruddin Farah
Trimming the bush of life...
een amerikaanse schrijft over liefde, ouderschap & volwassen worden in nederland
I write books--cuz I love words. Sometimes they love me back.
the past in pop culture
a place to showcase
When will we ever learn?: Common sense and nonsense about today's public schools in America.
Rising from the ashes of domestic violence
a chronicle of recollections
There are 5 sisters. She's the middlest.
Visual Arts from Canada & Around the World
Resident Alien -- Being Dutch in America 