The American Coup

[Peter Korsten]

Gert van Santen schreef:

> In the Netherlands, we have a myriad of little parties. 
> Interestingly, every time I vote for a party that ends up in 
> government (or doesn't, for that matter), I get hugely 
> disappointed by it's actions during the 4 year term of its 
> government/opposition. I'm quite sure that Peter will argue that 
> this is the working of a democracy, but still...

Well, at heart I'm a liberal, or libertarian, I'm not quite sure what 
exactly. 'Freedom', so to say. Now there are two parties in the 
Netherlands that use the word 'freedom' in their names, and it just 
happens that these are the only two parties that think that burqas 
should be banned. Huh? So you have the freedom to lie topless on the 
beach, but not the freedom to wear a burqa? Strange. Not that I support 
burqas, not at all, but is it my concern what somebody else wants to wear?

Basically, my philosophy is 'mind your own business', and that the 
government (or anybody else) should not mind my business. So if I were 
gay and I wanted to marry another man, or if I were terminally ill and I 
wanted to end my own life (or have it ended by a physician), the state 
should not interfere here.

On the other hand, the state should interfere in certain areas where 
liberalisation doesn't work, which is pretty much all areas of business. 
So a certain oversight on financial markets (ha!), and intervening when 
necessary. And directing things that are of public concern, like the 
laying of new infrastructure.

So... in the Netherlands, there are two parties that are nominally 
liberal. One of them I mentioned before, and whilst an internet site 
told me that their votes in parliament are the closest match to my own 
opinions, I find it very difficult to actually vote for them. This is 
because, at heart, they're conservatives, and they're trying to go 
towards populism (and failing miserably).

So there's another liberal party, more left leaning, and with a couple 
of policies that I'm very much against, but I'll probably vote for them 
again: it's the general concept, nudging the whole of parliament in a 
certain direction by a tiny amount. I don't believe in 'punishing' a 
party because I'm disappointed or because I didn't get what I wanted.

Democracy isn't ideal, but there's nothing better out there, so we'll 
have to make do.

- Peter