I suppose that the privilege of anybody interested in politics is to engage one or two well known discussions that are absolutely useless. It has to be a privilege, because if not we would not do it. And engage them we do. I myself have fallen several times for arguing about the ideological underpinnings of the venezuelan despots, when everybody with half a brain knows that the current government is best described as a band of murderous thieves. Yet there is another discussion that I engage, once a year around these days. I believe that not being born in The Netherlands is what makes me unable to escape the matter. I would actually prefer to have the apparently inborn dutch trait of raise the shoulders slightly to the argument and always tell that the french, or the northamericans are worse off. The insouciance... that manages so well to raise my latino fury, making me repeat the well trodden arguments, knowing that they will not manage to raise an eyebrow in the bored dutch that hears my tirade.
I am talking, of course, of arguing against the monarchy around Kings day.
I actually think that the dutch royal house, at least once upon a time, did really understood their subjects. Because in order to celebrate the birth of the current monarch, they did and still do authorize the people, for a full day and the previous night, to freely trade. No taxes, no rules, nothing. Just open the doors of your house, put a fabric in the floor and display stuff that you want to get rid off. People will walk by and make offers. You will sell, or not, but you will be trading. Happily, that is. Nobody can imagine the whole population of The Netherlands being as happy as when trading, so trading is what they do in the celebration of the monarch. I strongly believe that to understand the Swiss you need to attend the carnivals in Basel as much as you need to attend to the free market in King’s day to understand The Netherlands.
And of course, you need to hear us foreigners arguing against monarchy. Also part of the local landscape. The funny thing is that dutchies most likely will agree with you. They are not amused by the multiple blunders that their monarchs have done and probably will go on making. Also, dutch people despise authoritarianism. So you hear this and some other stuff, and you believe to have won the discussion. But you have actually lost it. Not only because this usually happens when the king has granted his subjects the immense pleasure of limitless trading, but also because dutch people, a very pragmatic people that is, don’t care.
So they look at you with some mix of boredom and amusement, probably thinking in how cute you are, trying to engage them in a more or less seemingly important matter about which they don’t give a hoot. And they smile, and they do their soft shoulder shrug, and they smile again. After all, the King doesn’t bother anybody, and many silly turists come to spend money looking at the palaces. How can that be wrong? So you realize again that you can’t win this argument, and say something about the french revolution, and give up and walk away.
Until the next year, that is.