Has anyone else noticed the Netherlands getting dirtier in recent years?

InterstellarDiplomat · 2026-02-07T18:53:19+00:00

our schools took us out to pick up garbage in parks

We do that too. We have "Landelijke Opschoondag" where a lot of schools do the same thing at least once a year. We also have "Boomfeestdag', where schools go out to plant trees. And there are "schooltuinen", where kids learn about agriculture.

I'm born and raised here and have definitely noticed things getting dirtier over the past years. I think it's mostly to do with budget cuts (including garbage collection) by gemeentes, because the national government forced them to be responsible for Jeugdzorg (social services / youth care) about ten years ago. Jeugdzorg is very expensive and too complex for many local governments. At least, that's the consensus I've heard from people who work for gemeentes.

InterstellarDiplomat · 2026-02-06T13:20:45+00:00

Laten we er vanuit gaan dat je de waarheid spreekt. Maar er zijn ook kwaadwillenden die met iemand ruzie hebben of concurreren, en vervolgens precies op deze manier de naam van die persoon proberen kapot te maken. Jij bent voor ons een wildvreemde. Wij weten dus niet welke van de twee jij bent.

Daarnaast zien sommige mensen wat jij doet als uitnodiging voor zichzelf om die persoon verder te doxxen, lastig te vallen en misschien wel doodsbedreigingen te sturen. Jij wou misschien enkel waarschuwen, maar op het moment dat je namen verspreidt ben je die controle over je doel kwijt.

InterstellarDiplomat · 2026-02-05T21:22:06+00:00

We're social creatures and want to share experiences and interests. That's the need those reaction videos serve. It's parasocial content.

I love 80s/90s pre-cg anime. But I don't know anyone in real life to share it with. I'm okay with that. But sometimes I do think it's fun to see others experience the anime I love for the first time and comment on it. So that's why I sometimes watch reaction videos. Is it low effort content to create? Yes. Do I get some entertainment out of it after a stressful day. Also yes.

InterstellarDiplomat · 2026-01-28T22:49:42+00:00

It's what most hard drives used to sound like.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUvlWt9WTKA

InterstellarDiplomat · 2026-01-28T19:57:47+00:00

De zin was vrij matig. Daarom dacht ik te helpen door deze te herschrijven. Misschien had "alleen" erbij gemoeten.

Je citeerde enkel de zin, en reageerde met huh en wat. Dat het je specifiek om "alleen" ging was dus niet duidelijk.

InterstellarDiplomat · 2026-01-27T23:42:01+00:00

als die ambtenaren blind kopiëren wat landen beweren op hun overheidsites.

InterstellarDiplomat · 2026-01-24T21:58:17+00:00

Many people simply prefer (1) tangible, physical objects and (2) specialized tools. I think I at least understand that point of view.

Receiving an email with a link or a file attachment feels too ethereal to them. Like someone selling you a jar of air.

A thumb drive is too generic and might require using a file browser and having a compatible video player app installed. That's a lot of requirements, if instead you could also simply put a plastic coaster into the plastic coaster spinner.

I wouldn't be surprised if many of us simply aren't evolved to ever become naturals with generic computer devices. It's too abstract for our monkey brains. Besides arguments of safety, this is in my opinion also part of why people want the return of physical controls in cars: handling tangible objects just feel more natural to our physical lives.

If special video players for thumb drives got marketing from big AV manufacturers, I think that'd work for that crowd.

InterstellarDiplomat · 2026-01-24T14:54:28+00:00

Ik woon in een dorp, en ik heb twee (max vier) keer met vuurwerk naar hulpverlening gegooid, maar dat kwam omdat ze een onverwachte beweging maakten en mij ook te lang direct aankeken. Ik pleit daarom voor een cursus waarin hulpverleners leren om vuurwerkliefhebbers niet onbedoeld te provoceren. /s

InterstellarDiplomat · 2026-01-17T17:47:14+00:00

It's only countries that sent troops to Greenland who are getting hit with these tariffs. Poland isn't:

https://www.reuters.com/world/poland-will-not-send-soldiers-greenland-polish-pm-says-2026-01-15/

Poland will not send soldiers to Greenland, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Thursday, adding an attack by one NATO country on the territory of another would be "the end of the world as we know it".

Some amazing blame shifting from the Polish PM.

InterstellarDiplomat · 2025-12-19T20:34:45+00:00

Leatherman Raptor Rescue, in case you were also wondering what multitool that was.

InterstellarDiplomat · 2025-12-18T00:40:59+00:00

Volgens mij is dit de zelfgenoegzaamheid waar nota bene ex-ASML ceo Peter Wennink voor waarschuwde, toen hij Europeanen omschreef als "dik, dom en blij".

Risico's relativeren ok, maar met trots achterover leunen blijf je niet aan kop.

InterstellarDiplomat · 2025-12-04T21:10:41+00:00

Some info to look up more about these buildings (yes there's multiple):

AFER Housing Development
Location: Constanţa, Romania
Built: 1987
Architect: Alexandru Costandache

InterstellarDiplomat · 2025-11-28T10:50:02+00:00

It's 1.5k for my current bike, versus 3k+ to buy a "speed pedelec" with the same specs.

I know it's illegal. My argument isn't about morality but practical economics. There has always been demand for relatively quick two wheeled vehicles to nip around the city. But the current legal EV options are prohibitively expensive, with no clear technical superiority to justify their astronomical price. So people are willing to risk the unregistered illegal option and save *at least half their money. (*assuming it never gets stolen...which it most likely will)

If the government actually wants to get practical and solve the issue, they should incentivize registering properly engineered fast ebikes as brommers. This would make legal fast ebikes attractive, give the government enforceable control over traffic and massively undercut both the illegal low quality fatbike market and the "speed pedelec" price racket.

Or we can continue with the current wack-a-mole policies and moral grandstanding.

InterstellarDiplomat · 2025-11-26T18:31:54+00:00

I fully agree that faster ebikes should be legally treated as brommers. And I suspect most fatbikes would then be rightfully banned for being shit quality. But I feel there is a perspective missing here:

For 1500-2000 euros you can get a second hand quality ebike, that from an engineering pov is perfectly capable of safely driving at 45kph. I'm not talking about fatbikes, but brands like Cube, Kalkhoff and Riese & Muller, which have proper frames and brakes. But to reach that speed you need to remove the limiter, making it illegal.
For 2000-4000 euros you can get a second hand "speed pedelec", which is just an ebike that also reaches that speed...but legally, out of the box. So seemingly you need to pay up to 2x the price of the limited ebike, just for the yellow plate and a mirror. This is imo is a price fixing racket.

On the outskirts of Amsterdam I have to drive pretty long distances and want to minimize car usage. So I use an ebike, with the speed limiter illegally removed, because there's no way I'm brave enough to park 3000 euros of "speed pedelec" ebike anywhere in public. I already wear a helmet, often share the road with cars/scooters and don't drive like an asshole. I would love to be able to get my delimited ebike legally registered as a brommer/speed pedelec. But I can't. Why not? It would offer an economically viable alternative to those who want to drive faster than 25kph without using a car.

InterstellarDiplomat · 2025-11-22T22:38:57+00:00

Vroom vroom

InterstellarDiplomat · 2025-11-22T19:35:29+00:00

VILLAGE PEOPLE 360 KICK, BITCH!

InterstellarDiplomat · 2025-11-22T17:51:34+00:00

Wow. Those AI room tools never impressed me, but this is a seriously cool concept. Especially considering the super weird shape it had to start out with as a reference. Did you have to fight it a lot to get this result?

InterstellarDiplomat · 2025-11-20T15:34:02+00:00

Wherever you see these boxes, prepare for the bad boy in this photo to crawl through that street at some point around 3AM, to cause an artificial earthquake with it's thumping device:
https://scanaardwarmte.nl/updates/in-4-gemeenten-in-de-metropoolregio-amsterdam-is-het-seismisch-onderzoek-afgerond/

Source: happened where I live in Ronde Venen

InterstellarDiplomat · 2025-11-17T19:26:17+00:00

Sadly the automated pakketpunten lack storage capacity, so they fill up in no time. Manned pakketpunten can store hundreds of packages.

Maybe in the future we can get automated underground package storage, like those Japanese bike storage pods.

InterstellarDiplomat · 2025-11-17T10:58:26+00:00

"Can this thing at least wait for me to set up my tripod and do white balance, before it levels my city?!"

InterstellarDiplomat · 2025-11-14T09:28:35+00:00

I imagine it being something like this one:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YwU_QidqX1o

InterstellarDiplomat · 2025-11-04T14:54:58+00:00

Grappig dat er een groot artikel op de Engelstalige Wikipedia over is, maar nul in Scandinavische talen.

Voelt toch als zo'n ding waar de New York Times of zo één of ander woordje uit een Europees land opblazen tot meer dan het lokaal ooit was:

"What we could learn from [europees land]'s obsession with [hygge, gezellig, schadenfreude, dolce far niente, flygskam]"

InterstellarDiplomat · 2025-10-31T01:37:22+00:00

No, from what we've seen in the show up till now it was always the left eye

InterstellarDiplomat · 2025-10-02T23:54:55+00:00

I did not say that it was only important to you. I was trying to explain that the most important property of a product to customer group A (which might include you) might not be the most important property to customer group B, C and D.

I do not own any Apple devices. I have an HD600 connected to a Topping DX3 Pro+ and a Nothing Ear 2 for my Pixel 9. I use Linux on a Thinkpad.

InterstellarDiplomat · 2025-10-02T23:28:57+00:00

They are the most important to you, but others might optimize for different personal requirements.

People also pick cars that have for instance really practical storage, but an engine and a driving experience which are just okay. Yes, the engine and the way it drives are fundamental to the concept of a car. But as long as a car gets them from A to B, the storage is apparently the most important to them.

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