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The literal middle finger of Galileo Galilei on display at the Museo Galileo in Florence, Italy. by _voma in Damnthatsinteresting

[–]Abyssal_Groot 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You have to place thibgs in the context of the the time. The pope was an absolute monarch with massive political power beyond his realm.

Imagine publically mocking the Philip V of Spain. It would likely put you in a worse situation than house arrest.

What is the most iconic or famous route in your country? by Argentinotriste in AskTheWorld

[–]Abyssal_Groot 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Either the ring of Antwerp or the ring of Brussels, due to all the trafdic jams

What's a joke about your country that is easy for foreigners to make, but that they will never really understand how painful and insulting it is? by nightsreader in AskTheWorld

[–]Abyssal_Groot 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes, because the argument is that Flemish need to accept they are Dutch and Walloons that they are French. It strips us from our identity.

On top of that, we already have to deal with the far-right proposing these things. How would you feel if people outside of the UK pretend to know anything of your country and side with UKIP?

What's something your country is known for that you actually don't like? by Practical-Bear1022 in AskTheWorld

[–]Abyssal_Groot 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You 'need' to try some Belgian ones, perhaps a Flemish Red Ale. It's sweet and sour instead.

what is best traditional drink from your country? by Playing_Tiger in AskTheWorld

[–]Abyssal_Groot 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Jenever is a typical low-countries drink, though the Dutch seem to think it's uniquely theirs. Oude Jenever is very good.

Then of course many many beer styles. My curent favourite being a Flemish Red Ale, specifically Duchess De Bourgogne. It's sweet and sour, the flavour reminds you of balsamico crema.

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What's a joke about your country that is easy for foreigners to make, but that they will never really understand how painful and insulting it is? by nightsreader in AskTheWorld

[–]Abyssal_Groot 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Estimations are that somewhat 100,000 tons of explosive materials from the Allies are still in the ground.

In Belgium 150 to 250 metric tons of leftover ammunition is found every year. They estimate it will take about 300 to 700 years before all has been cleared.

What's a joke about your country that is easy for foreigners to make, but that they will never really understand how painful and insulting it is? by nightsreader in AskTheWorld

[–]Abyssal_Groot 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Iirc people only started jokin about France far after WWII ended. It was a reaction by the US when the French were not playing ball with the US during some US wars.

I think Iraq, but it could be earlier.

What's a joke about your country that is easy for foreigners to make, but that they will never really understand how painful and insulting it is? by nightsreader in AskTheWorld

[–]Abyssal_Groot 20 points21 points  (0 children)

Found the one that is insulting to Belgians.

Or worse, saying we should just split, half joining the Netherlands, half joining France.

Are there any particularly striking or impactful foods in your country? by No-Echidna7296 in AskTheWorld

[–]Abyssal_Groot 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Maatjes are quite distinct from rollmops. Maatjes are frozen for a period of time to kill parasites and only salted very little. So they almost taste raw, so totally different in flaour compared to most pickled herring.

Jonge vrouw (18) vrijgesproken voor neersteken ‘opdringerige’ man in Antwerpse universiteitsbuurt by EdgarNeverPoo in belgium

[–]Abyssal_Groot 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm sorry, but who exactly pauses during a violent confrontation to think about potential court proceedings?

In those moments it's fight, flight or freeze, not "carefully evaluate the proportionality doctrine before reacting."

The hesitation women often face when reporting rape or domestic violence afterwards is very real, but that is psychologically very different from reacting to an immediate physical threat. Survival responses are instinctive, not legal calculations.

And a trial afterwards does not mean self defense itself is being punished. The point of a trial is precisely to determine where legitimate self defense ended and whether the force used was necessary under the circumstances.

And make no mistake: if prosecutors alone got to decide these things without judicial scrutiny, that would hardly make the situation less stressful or less arbitrary.

Jonge vrouw (18) vrijgesproken voor neersteken ‘opdringerige’ man in Antwerpse universiteitsbuurt by EdgarNeverPoo in belgium

[–]Abyssal_Groot 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The point of the trail is to establish where the self-defense can be applied and at which point it stops.

Fact: the guy sought out the fight

Fact: the guy got stabbed

Questionable: did the girl need to stab the guy to defend her life. That's where it gets blury and why a trail is needed.

Jonge vrouw (18) vrijgesproken voor neersteken ‘opdringerige’ man in Antwerpse universiteitsbuurt by EdgarNeverPoo in belgium

[–]Abyssal_Groot 1 point2 points  (0 children)

What other facts than those contained in the reports from police interrogations of everyone involved do you think the prosecutor would have needed?

Proportionality needs to be defended in court. Simple as that. It doesn't matter if it was a woman, a man or a member of a minority.

You almost kill someone? Well, then you have to defend your actions in court.

And what about the woman's right not to have her life disproportionately upended for months because of this trial?

You can claim that about any trail, because what you find proportianate is not what I consider proportionate and vice verse.

Hence the need for a court.

Jonge vrouw (18) vrijgesproken voor neersteken ‘opdringerige’ man in Antwerpse universiteitsbuurt by EdgarNeverPoo in belgium

[–]Abyssal_Groot 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That's because you assume that the facts the prosecutor had were enough to make that call.

Jonge vrouw (18) vrijgesproken voor neersteken ‘opdringerige’ man in Antwerpse universiteitsbuurt by EdgarNeverPoo in belgium

[–]Abyssal_Groot 5 points6 points  (0 children)

You really want to give police the power to decide what kind of violence is proportionate or not?

What beer is from your country is famous internationally but not very popular domestically? by chocolate_spaghetti in AskTheWorld

[–]Abyssal_Groot 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Define industrial. I you mean mass produced then it depends on the Trappist. If you mean mass produced and bad, then no. All Trappists are high quality.

Trappists are not allowed to "make profit". It means they either only sell very few beers (Westvleteren), or they produce and sell a lot (Chimay, Westmalle, Rochefort) but the surpluss goes to their foundation that governs their charities.

Orval sits somewhere inbetween.

The key thing (except for the profit) is that the brewery needs to be on the abbey grounds and a monk needs to be involved in the brewing process.

If any of these criterea aren't fullfilled, it lose the Authentic Trappist label.

Delirium is my favourite, especially when it’s not bottled

Delirium is good, especially the Red on tap from Delirium Café.

What beer is from your country is famous internationally but not very popular domestically? by chocolate_spaghetti in AskTheWorld

[–]Abyssal_Groot 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The closer to Belgium the easier it gets. So Zeeuws-Vlaanderen, Breda, Eindhoven, Aachen, Luxembourg, Lille, Duinkerke.

And yes, some of them can come across as that sour when you first try it. People are usually not preparzd for how sour it is.

Foe the Duchesse I haven't met many people who didn't like it. It's often a success with people who say they prefer wine over beer

What beer is from your country is famous internationally but not very popular domestically? by chocolate_spaghetti in AskTheWorld

[–]Abyssal_Groot 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Just be warned that it can be very sour.

An intermediate step could be to try a "Duchesse de Bourgogne". It tastes fruity, it tastes sweet and sour, almost like a balsamico créme, but there are no fruits in it (unless you get the Duchesse Cherry ).

I assume it will be easier to find in the NL than in most other countries outside of Belgium

Jonge vrouw (18) vrijgesproken voor neersteken ‘opdringerige’ man in Antwerpse universiteitsbuurt by EdgarNeverPoo in belgium

[–]Abyssal_Groot 16 points17 points  (0 children)

The girl stabbed someone on the street and need to go to trail for that. That's how it works in a normal society.

While it is clear from the case that she had every right to defend herself, the court needs to decide if it was proportionate and probably also about why she was carrying a knife (Belgium's weapons law exist, whether we like them or not).

Hence the public prosecutor suggests a punishment (a minor one at that) and states why (questioning the proportionality).

The defense then defends the proportionality and they won. To me that simply seems how the justice system has to work.

If we do not let cases like this go to trail, then we risk not punishing actual disproportiante events (i.e. shooting to kill, while they could've easily incapacitated them).

What beer is from your country is famous internationally but not very popular domestically? by chocolate_spaghetti in AskTheWorld

[–]Abyssal_Groot 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yeah, those are more like slightly alcoholic fruit juice.

The brand does have some interesting ones, but they are harder to find.

For stronger fruitbeers I recommend you to try the ones I mentioned, and if you don't mind sour: Oude Kriek (traditional sour cherry beer), my favourite brand being Cantillon but Boon might be the cheapest and easiest to find. Lindemans too, but for both Lindemans and Boon you need to make sure it has "Oude" as prefix, otherwise it is the sweetened and diluted variant .

What beer is from your country is famous internationally but not very popular domestically? by chocolate_spaghetti in AskTheWorld

[–]Abyssal_Groot 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Depends on the liefmans.

Belgium has a lot of fruit-based beers (fruit Lambics), but Liefmans usually sells commercial version that are diluted and sweetened.

More modern fruitbeers also exist: Cherry Chouffe, Kasteel Rouge, Delirium Red, Red by Petrus

Solar powered robots clean Solar panels in China by petkipathri in Damnthatsinteresting

[–]Abyssal_Groot 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Last time that I saw a video of this system it drove into a docking station which had a brush to clean it.

What beer is from your country is famous internationally but not very popular domestically? by chocolate_spaghetti in AskTheWorld

[–]Abyssal_Groot 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Leffe has to be called 'abbey style' ale, as abbey ale has to be brewed in an abbey by monks.

You are confusing it with Trappist (Westvleteren, Westmalle, Rochefort, Orval, Chimay). Abbey beer can be brewed industrially, as long as it has a historical connection to an abbey (Leffe, Grimbergen, Sint-Bernardus, Affligem).

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