http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/holland/ en-us Sat, 4 May 2013 21:55:04 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/3015805/posts A campaign against Griffon vultures is gathering pace in France after it was revealed that the carrion eaters had devoured the body of a 52-year-old woman who fell to her death in the Pyrenees. Major Didier Pericou of the gendarmerie said the woman had fallen down a 300-metre slope while taking a short cut walking with two friends. "There were only bones, clothes and shoes left," he told The Times. "They took 45 to 50 minutes to eat the body." French farmers are now demanding the right to shoot the protected birds after attacks on sheep and cows. The birds... IBT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/3015805/posts#comment Sat, 4 May 2013 21:55:04 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3014094/posts Willem-Alexander has been sworn in as king of the Netherlands following the abdication of Queen Beatrix. He became the country's first king since 1890 when his 75-year-old mother signed the abdication deed earlier on Tuesday after 33 years on the throne. Huge crowds of orange-clad partygoers are in Amsterdam to pay tribute. Now known as Princess Beatrix, the former queen maintained a recent Dutch tradition of monarch's handing over power to a new generation. Wearing the royal mantle, the new king swore to uphold the constitution at a colourful enthronement ceremony in the Nieuwe Kerk, a decommissioned church, before a... BBC http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3014094/posts#comment Tue, 30 Apr 2013 15:19:20 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3003372/posts Infamous for little boys plugging holes with their fingers and grown-ups plugging their mouth with their foot (D-Boom), it seems Holland, Berlin's most important ally in the goal of greater fiscal discipline in Europe, has fallen into an economic crisis itself. As Spiegel reports, the once exemplary economy is suffering from huge debts and a burst real estate bubble, which has stalled growth and endangered jobs.The statistics make for some worrisome reading: no nation in the euro zone is as deeply in debt as the Netherlands, where banks have a total of about €650 billion in mortgage loans on... Zero Hedge http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3003372/posts#comment Tue, 2 Apr 2013 18:29:59 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2999399/posts Boris Dittrich, a former Dutch politician, was behind the gay marriage campaign in Holland (Sebastiaan ter Burg / Flickr) The politician who masterminded the gay marriage campaign in Holland says that “group marriage” is now being discussed in the country.Boris Dittrich, a former Dutch politician, gave a video interview about how he successfully introduced gay marriage. He said, “There is now a discussion in the Netherlands that sometimes people want to marry with three people and maybe even more.“But that’s the beginning of something completely new and that will take a lot of years I guess.”Dittrich was speaking to a French... Charisma News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2999399/posts#comment Thu, 21 Mar 2013 21:06:19 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2995578/posts Here’s something that slipped through the cracks thanks to the fake drama that was going on during the fake fiscal crisis coming from our fake government in Washington, DC: Another fake green company boondoggle has resulted in federal dollars being spent on …nothing. According to a report issued by the Department of Energy’s own inspector general, employees at LG Chem, a Korean company that operates a battery plant in Holland, Michigan- a plant that’s supposed to support the Chevy Volt- were paid for playing video games, board games, volunteer work at Habitat for Humanity and other local charities. Another fake-work... Townhall.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2995578/posts#comment Mon, 11 Mar 2013 08:58:02 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2988679/posts This comes as no surprise to Hot Air readers, who learned about the value of the Obama administration’s $150 million subsidy investment of LG Chem last fall. After furloughing its workers at their Grand Rapids plant without having a single one of their batteries installed in a consumer vehicle, the local NBC affiliate produced this report on the way taxpayer money got spent: hot air http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2988679/posts#comment Fri, 15 Feb 2013 01:26:26 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2965677/posts Can we count just how many horrid 20th century chapters of humanity this might evoke? In a move that sounds straight out of Orwell, Amsterdam allocated 1 million euros last week to a plan that would relocate trouble-making neighbors to camps on the outskirts of the city, the BBC reports. The “scum villages,” as critics have called them, would lie in isolated areas and provide only basic services to their unwilling residents. According to details of the plan reported by Der Spiegel and the BBC, residents will live in “container homes,” under the watchful eye of social workers or police.... Hot Air http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2965677/posts#comment Wed, 5 Dec 2012 01:50:40 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2964860/posts In a chilling parallel to the scandal sweeping Britain’s towns and cities, where a multitude of girls have been lured into sex-for-sale rings run by gangs, the Dutch pimps search out girls at school gates and in cafes, posing as ‘boyfriends’ promising romance, fast car rides and restaurant meals. The men ply their victims with vodka and drugs. They tell them lies: that they love them and their families don’t care for them. Then, the trap set, they rape them with other gang members, often taking photos of the attack to blackmail the girl into submission. ... Hard-line criminal behaviour... Daily Mail http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2964860/posts#comment Sun, 2 Dec 2012 07:34:53 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2960591/posts "Mommy, what's that???" For anyone reading this, it shouldn’t come as a big surprise that Dutch food has yet to sweep the globe. Although pockets of the Dutch can be found scattering the world, delectable Dutch cuisine never seemed to have caught on. “Fancy I pick up some Dutch food on the way home from work?” or “Wow, you have got to try this new Dutch restaurant in SoHo!” are phrases you will never hear uttered. Isn’t it odd that a nation of traveling, colonizing, patriotic, emigrating folk never managed to sow their own culinary seeds? C’mon, who are we... Stuff Dutch People Like http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2960591/posts#comment Sat, 17 Nov 2012 15:18:11 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2922966/posts The left-wing Socialist party is expected to seize the largest gains in September's Dutch elections, threatening to deprive German Chancellor Angela Merkel of one of her closest allies in response to the eurozone debt crisis. With Dutch voters set to go to the polls on 12 September 12, opinion polls indicated that the Socialist party, which has never formed part of a government, is running marginally ahead of caretaker Prime Minister Mark Rutte's Liberal party (VVD). … The Socialist party is more euroskeptic than the mainstream Dutch parties, leading opposition to the ill-fated Constitutional Treaty, which was defeated in a... EU Observer http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2922966/posts#comment Sun, 26 Aug 2012 06:15:21 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2912640/posts I have a friend from Holland (Netherlands).. he showed me (never seen before) pictures of his grandfather (that was an SS), BUT he is really reluctant to show them because he doesn't want a bad image on his family (name).. http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2912640/posts#comment Tue, 31 Jul 2012 00:46:33 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2887656/posts The 65 page indictment unsealed Wednesday outlines a massive conspiracy to defraud employees, IHOP corporate, investors, the Internal Revenue Service and federal, state and local law enforcement. Background Prior to 2003, Tarek Elkafrawi owned and operated two IHOP franchises; one in Decatur, Illinois and the other in Evansville, Indiana. During his time in Decatur, the indictment alleges, Elkafrowi began a social friendship with Autumn Lee Tangas, an employee of IHOP Corporate in Decatur. Between 2003 and 2006 Elkafrawi purchased, either entirely or in partnership with other investors, 6 other IHOP franchises. Those stores are located in Toledo (2), Holland, Findlay,... Toledo News Now http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2887656/posts#comment Thu, 24 May 2012 21:19:32 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2879615/posts ‘S-HERTOGENBOSCH, Netherlands (Reuters) - When Christianity fades, it doesn't just leave empty pews behind. With each church that shuts, the statues, crucifixes, chalices, paintings or vestments that were part of regular Sunday services suddenly have no liturgical home.In the Netherlands, where faith has faded more dramatically than in many other parts of Europe, two churches close down on average every week. The sacred art left over is piling up in cellars and storerooms around the country.Some congregations elsewhere have the opposite problem. New Catholic and Protestant churches are springing up in Latin America, Africa and Asia, and pastors in eastern... Reuters http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2879615/posts#comment Thu, 3 May 2012 22:39:50 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2862291/posts Montgomer Clift in Judgment at Nuremberg The New York Post usually wins the award for best worst headline amongst the New York metropolitan papers. “Headless body in topless bar” remains my favorite.The New York Times however is giving the Post a run for their money. In the 21 March 2012 issue on page A4 we have “Dutch Church is accused of castrating young men”.This is not a story for the faint of heart. And, if you were looking for a fair, informed treatment of the story, look elsewhere.Here is the lede. A young man in the care of the Roman... Get Religion http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2862291/posts#comment Thu, 22 Mar 2012 13:06:05 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2849060/posts Euro zone finance ministers inched towards approving a second bailout for debt-laden Greece on Monday that would resolve Athens' immediate repayment needs but seems unlikely to revive the nation's shattered economy. Agreement on a 130-billion-euro rescue package on strict conditions would draw a line under months of uncertainty that has shaken the currency bloc, and avert an imminent bankruptcy. As the ministers met, officials were struggling to make the numbers add up. EU sources said they had to find a further 6 billion euros, via various options, to make the financing work, and private investors might have to take bigger... reuters http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2849060/posts#comment Mon, 20 Feb 2012 21:54:52 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2849056/posts European powers struggled to agree a Greek rescue deal on Monday night as politicians doggedly refused to either lower Athens' debt targets or boost the €130bn (£108bn) bail-out fund. Members of the eurogroup promised a deal would be done but the talks ran into the night in a tug-of-war battle over the yawning gap in Greece's finances. There were violent protests in Athens as Greek democracy and sovereignty appeared to be being carved up by demands from individual European countries. Northern European "hardliners" - including Holland, Germany, Austria and Finland - demanded a "permanent representation" of the troika in Athens... The Telegraph http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2849056/posts#comment Mon, 20 Feb 2012 21:42:49 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2849054/posts BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Euro zone finance ministers inched towards approving a second bailout for debt-laden Greece on Monday that would resolve Athens' immediate repayment needs but seems unlikely to revive the nation's shattered economy. Agreement on a 130-billion-euro rescue package on strict conditions would draw a line under months of uncertainty that has shaken the currency bloc, and avert imminent bankrupcty. As the ministers met, officials were struggling to make the numbers add up. EU sources said they had to cut a further 6 billion euros, via various means, to make the financing work, and private investors might have to... Yahoo http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2849054/posts#comment Mon, 20 Feb 2012 21:39:55 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2835091/posts Dutch Queen Beatrix took on the fiery leader of her country's anti-Muslim party today by dismissing as 'nonsense' his criticism of her decision to wear a headscarf during a recent visit to a mosque. The queen made her unusually forthright comment to Dutch reporters covering her state visit this week to the United Arab Emirates and Oman, National broadcaster NOS reported. Her comments were not recorded, but Beatrix told reporters she wore the headscarf in the UAE on Sunday, and again on a visit to an Oman mosque today to show religious respect The popular monarch was responding to questions... Daily Mail http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2835091/posts#comment Thu, 19 Jan 2012 21:00:46 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2825857/posts Ankara accused of ‘abandoning’ Israel and France by Dutch Freedom Party. BERLIN – The Dutch Freedom Party, the Netherlands’s third largest political party, urged the Foreign Affairs and Defense Ministries last week to reconsider Turkey’s continued membership in NATO. Geert Wilders, head of the party, and its Mideast expert, deputy Wim Kortenoeven, accused Turkey of abandoning its allies – Israel earlier this year, and now France. Turkey severed diplomatic and military ties with France last week, over the French parliamentary resolution on the current Turkish government’s reaction to the Ottoman Empire’s massacre of Christian Armenians in 1915. The empire preceded... JPost http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2825857/posts#comment Wed, 28 Dec 2011 15:02:40 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2824166/posts A drastic exodus from the church is underway in the Netherlands. With two churches shuttered each week, one man has become the country's top advisor on how to repurpose the once holy buildings. Some are demolished, while others find new life as mosques, stores and even recreation centers. Marc de Beyer in St. Michael's church in De Bilt, where several parishes have combined. Marc de Beyer is an art historian in Utrecht, located about a half an hour by train from Amsterdam, but one could also call him a liquidator. He's a man who shuts down churches. When a parish... Der Spiegel, Hamburg http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2824166/posts#comment Fri, 23 Dec 2011 09:01:02 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2819667/posts Holland is reviewing its policy of funding the UNRWA agency for Arab ”refugees," which treats them differently from other refugees. In reply to a question from Speaker of the legislature Hans Ten Broke, Foreign Minister Uri Rosenthal said the government will “thoroughly review” its annual contribution of approximately $30 million, according to the European Jewish Press. Holland is the sixth largest contributor to the United Nations agency, which was set up to deal with Arabs, most of whom were encouraged to flee Israel by Arab countries who promised they would quickly return after the anticipated annihilation of Israel in the... Arutz Sheva http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2819667/posts#comment Tue, 13 Dec 2011 09:39:48 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2817133/posts An 81-year-old Catholic priest, expelled from the priesthood because he lives with his 85-year-old girlfriend, says he will take his case to the European Court of Human Rights if necessary, Trouw reports on Tuesday. Jan Peijnenburg, who has lived with his girlfriend for 46 years, was sent a letter at the weekend telling him he has been suspended because he refuses to leave his partner. According to Trouw, the suspension will have little effect because Peijnenburg is retired and only rarely fulfills church duties. Dutch News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2817133/posts#comment Wed, 7 Dec 2011 14:44:47 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2814989/posts A rather interesting speech by the Dutch Chief of Defense, Peter van Uhm, on the role of firearms, military force, and constitutional government in creating a more peaceful world. Quite a bit of what he said is open to interpretation, and could be seen as supporting different viewpoints, but in any event, I thought it was still a fascinating speech, and certainly worth watching. And yes, it's in English. TEDxTalks http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2814989/posts#comment Fri, 2 Dec 2011 04:11:20 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2809606/posts The English Separatist congregation, known to history as the Pilgrims, was known as the Scrooby Congregation before they made their way across the Atlantic in the Mayflower. Named for the Scrooby Manor, which was the Nottinghamshire English home of one of their leaders William Brewster, the congregation had gathered at the Brewster home for meetings and services while in in England. King James I, following the more lenient Queen Elizabeth I in 1602, rejected the demands of the separatists across England who sought independent religious congregations and who had accused the Church of England of being too much like the... A Whig Manifesto http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2809606/posts#comment Fri, 18 Nov 2011 23:23:13 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2810098/posts The EU does not seem to apprehend the nature of the Iranian nuclear program. The Dutch helped it happen. On October 21st 2003 the EU and Iran signed an agreement called the Tehran Declaration which stated the following: "The Iranian authorities reaffirmed that nuclear weapons have no place in Iran’s defense doctrine and that its nuclear program and activities have been exclusively in the peaceful domain". Last week's publication of the latest IAEA report not only showed the futility of signing this kind of agreement with a fanatical Islamist regime but it also delivered the ultimate proof of the bankruptcy... Arutz Sheva http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2810098/posts#comment Sun, 20 Nov 2011 15:52:51 GMT