/sl
sh/
issue 4 - april 2017 Academic issue
university college groningen
We are happy to inform you that we are busy with re-shaping the image of UCG’s journal. But do not worry: there will be plenty of space for your funny quotes and cute compliments in the next issue!
contents 1. Interviewed: Ferdinand Lewis
02
2. Human Cloning 04 3. Intergroup Relations
06
4. Dutch Elections 08 5. Interviewed: Marthijn
10
6. Astrophilosophy 14 7. The Trump Card
16
8. Interviewed: WoodWatch
20
9. America First 24
interviewed:
Ferdinand Lewis By Olle Hermsen Where did you grow up? I grew up in South-Louisiana, I originate from the French Acadians, who migrated the province after settling in Nova Scotia. I graduated high school here. Did you have a job during high school? A few actually, my first ‘job’ was for my neighbours. They asked me to paint a mural for them. When I was 14, I also worked as a radio announcer for the local commercial station. For this job, you had to be good at cold reading (reading text on the spot), something I could already do quite well when I was a teenager.
2
Where did you go after you graduated? After high school I wanted to go to an arts college. In America, you have three options when it comes to arts colleges; New York, Chicago or Los Angeles. Coming from the deep south, Los Angeles was the best fit for me, although I love New York. In LA, I did a bachelors in fine arts, more specifically, Film & TV.
After This, I finished my masters in theatre. Did you play any sports back then? I loved to run, I still do actually. I’ve also practised yoga for a long time. This was required for an acting career, alongside Tai Chi, which is great fun as well! It is a type of kung fu, but you don’t do any sparring, it is mostly about keeping balance. I used to do this for a long time as well, but not anymore now, unlike running and yoga. What happened after your graduation? In 1992, I started teaching theatre at the California institute of Arts. Besides this, I cofounded the theatre company ‘Ghost road’. This company is still active in LA nowadays. In 2003, I went back to University (USC), where I graduated in 2008 in ‘Policy, planning & development’. During this time I also taught full-time in neighborhood engagement and public art studies.
Are you still active in the world of theatre here in Groningen? Yes, I am supervisor of the theatre play that is being produced by some of the third years right now. It is a lot of fun to do. I would also love to set up an extracurricular introductory class in acting for UCG students. Or a class on mindfulness. What is the weirdest thing you ever had to do for work? Well, I have done a lot of weird stuff in my life. I once made a christmas tv special in college. But for me, I think that my weirdest work experience has to be the time when I was asked to edit a maths textbook. This was when I worked for local television station. They asked me to edit this maths book they wanted to release, after they aired the movie ‘stand and deliver’ (a movie about maths). Knowing me, a person who is intimidated by numbers, this was probably the weirdest job I ever did.
Why did you decide to come to UCG? The kitchen community, this needs a bit of explaining, has always been really important to me. So when I got here last year for an interview, I asked one of the third years: “That kitchen, is that really being used? Are you really in here that much? To which she replied that she cooked there almost every day. That sold UCG for me; the fact that everyone is so close, like a family. Now that I think about it, this is probably the weirdest job I ever had, helping to create this very special place, called UCG.
What are you most proud of in your life? My son, definitely, he is now 23 and graduates this year in LA. He is a welder, just like my brother. You see, South-Louisiana has plenty of oil fields. So my family has always been full of mechanics. It is nice to have him carrying on a family tradition. 3
Human Cloning:
Madness or Moral Duty? By Anna-Lotte Reitsma
4
Of the various methods of cloning that are known to us, therapeutic and reproductive cloning are the most controversial. In therapeutic cloning, embryonic stem cells are derived from human embryos and manipulated to treat a variety of diseases and disorders. In reproductive cloning, a cloned embryo is transferred into the uterus of a female of the same species, where it is allowed to develop the same way a naturally fertilized egg would have done (Alvarez Manninen, n.d.). Many debates and viewpoints have been formed as a result of this scientific breakthrough, primarily in the domain of ethics and morals. This essay will provide arguments in favor of* legalizing human cloning and its many possibilities.
to them, possess. An important distinction that can be made here is the difference between creating for research and employing for research (Outka, 2002). After some fertility treatments, like IVF, a surplus of embryos might be left over (Alvarez Manninen, n.d.). As these embryos are condemned for demolition anyway, I believe that employing them for stem cell research is not unethical. By making use of these embryos, many individuals coping with diseases such as cancer and Alzheimer’s disease could potentially be cured. From a Utilitarian point of view, we could state that using therapeutic cloning is even morally required, as, in many cases, it produces the best overall results by reducing suffering.
The main reason why therapeutic cloning is a controversial concept is because of its use of embryos. As a result of isolating its stem cells, an embryo used for therapeutic cloning would be destroyed, and for many people this conflicts with the moral rights that those embryos, according
In most of our Western world, reproductive rights are seen as important, applying to all human beings. However, not every human being is capable of reproducing through conventional conception methods. For these individuals, reproductive cloning can provide a valuable solution. For couples
conceiving embryos via IVF, cloning would result in an increase in the quantity of embryos, therefore increasing the chance on a live birth. Moreover, for males incapable to produce viable sperm, cloning would provide an option to use a genetic copy of their genes, instead of using a sperm-donor (Alvarez Manninen, n.d.). Another argument in favor of reproductive cloning concerns so called ‘’savior siblings’’. In this concept, a child is conceived so it can provide a means to save the life of an older sibling (Alvarez Manninen, n.d.). Although this might seem immoral, I think that we can, again, make the distinction between creating and employing.
In my opinion, as long as the child is not used as a mere means, but is treated equally as the older sibling, and as long as the child has autonomy over her own body, reproductive cloning is morally justified and should be legalized. To conclude, human cloning should be legalized because it provides us with optimistic prospects for the future. Additionally to its usage for creating genetically identical children for infertile couples, it can also be an answer for many individuals dealing with various diseases and disorders. From a Utilitarian point of view, human cloning can be seen as our moral duty, as (and only when), in many cases, it maximizes well-being.
*I was assigned to this position Alvarez Manninen, B. (n.d.). Cloning. Retrieved March 13, 2017, from http:// www.iep.utm.edu/ Outka, Gene (2002), “The Ethics of Human Stem Cell Research.” Kennedy Institute of Ethics Journal 12.2: 175-213. 5
Intergroup Relations Prejudice and discrimination are widespread problems in our society. There are various theories on how to reduce prejudice and discrimination. In the following letter, we address some of these theories and how they can be applied. Dear Sir/Madam, A recently published article in ‘The Volkskrant’ demonstrated that teachers are worried about the segregation that is currently occurring in primary schools. Children clash in their crosscultural classrooms and children with a non-Western background cluster together as a result. This issue of segregation is another demonstration of ‘failed integration’ according to teachers and politicians. In this letter, advice will be provided on how to reduce prejudice and discrimination in children with the aim to combat segregation in Dutch primary schools. But where do prejudice and discrimination actually come from? The main sources are parents and 6
peers. Particularly parents appear to impart racial stereotypes, mostly through indirect means. While peers influence each other in contexts such as classrooms where children interact with each other most of the time. Teachers also influence the extent to which children exhibit prejudice and discrimination by rewarding and punishing them for their beliefs and behaviors. This is what Bandura labeled as social learning theory, where people learn about social behavior (dis)continuing certain behaviors by punishing and reinforcing them. This leads to parochial altruism - an outgroup hostility and an ingroup favouritism or a well-known concept of “us versus them”. Moreover, the influence of media should not be underestimated as it represents the expectations in a society and the boundaries of its tolerance. There are several actions that can help diminish these negative attitudes and beliefs. It would, of course, be ideal if these prejudices can be counteracted before they start to develop and become rooted in the personality of the young. That is why we advise to
take action especially in schools, and to keep a close eye on bullying and other negative attitudes towards ‘non-Western’ children. It is however also of vital importance that prejudice and discrimination are diminished among the adult section of society, for they serve as role models for the children and can/must provide immediate change. Research has shown that intergroup contact greatly reduces prejudices. For this approach to work however, certain conditions must be met. The individuals must have equal status; they must work together to achieve common goals; they must have the chance to get to know each other as individuals; the initiative must have the support of certain authorities, laws or customs. An example of a situation like this could be the playing of a team sport together. Organising intergroup sport playing is also relatively easy to achieve, and can be arranged for both children and adults. Another idea is to implement the concept of jigsaw classrooms. This is a researchbased technique for cooperative learning that reduces racial conflict among students. Each student is responsible for a particular part
and students must work together to complete the final product, like a jigsaw puzzle. Prejudice and stereotypes are inevitable, but people should become aware of them and not act on them. As children have to learn about the world from the scratch, it is especially crucial to give them the right foundation to build their opinions on. Tackling prejudices is all about teaching children how to tolerate difference and accept its existence and try to gain a new experience from it - doing this is the only way to understand each other and create a better society.
Yours sincerely, Emmi Kraan Hanna Dosenko Luca Leithuijser
7
Dutch elections: small country, big decisions By Olle Hermsen The last couple of weeks have been politically themed in the Netherlands. After Brexit and the election of Donald Trump, many were concerned that populism would strike here as well. Despite the 28 participating parties and 1,114 candidates, the eyes of the world were nonetheless mostly focused on one man: Geert Wilders and the PVV. He closely aligned himself with Trump’s views on Islam, proposing to ban the Koran in the Netherlands. Wilders also wanted a referendum on a potential Nexit, spurred on by the success of Nigel Farage’s EU membership referendum campaign in the UK.
8
But Wilders was not the only one people were talking about during the election period. The young leader of GroenLinks (lit. green left), Jesse Klaver, proved himself to be a star among the other candidates. Almost the polar opposite of the right-wing Wilders, Klaver’s election promises focused on integration for incoming refugees and promoting a sense of
compassion and openness towards others, no matter what their ethnic background may be. His energetic and youthful style of campaigning was a huge hit with large swathes of the younger electorate, with many of his speeches across the country drawing massive crowds, including a sold-out slot at the Heineken Music Hall in Amsterdam. Late night show Zondag met Lubach had some fun during the election as well, releasing the app ‘KamerGotchi’ on mobile devices. This game allowed users to take care of a virtual politician, by giving them food, love and ideas. The game became popular quickly, with more than half a million people looking after their micro-politicians. Statistics showed that among female users, Jesse Klaver was the most lookedafter politician. And among males, Geert Wilders was the one getting most of the attention. The results As it transpires, however, all the hysteria surrounding Wilders and his controversial views was largely
unnecessary, as the PVV ended up performing far worse than predicted- securing only 19 of the 30 seats they were hoping for. In the end it was Rutte’s incumbent VVD that came out on top, winning a comfortable 33 seatsa significant drop of 10 from the previous election- but still more than enough to begin conducting coalition talks with other parties. The other big winners of the night were Klaver’s GroenLinks, who gained an unprecedented 16 seats in a fierce victory that could easily see them become a key pillar of the country’s next government. The centre-left PvdA meanwhile, took a huge and wholly unexpected
nosedive in popularity to just nine seats, making their future in parliament suddenly seem very uncertain indeed. With the fires of Dutch populism seemingly kept at bay for the time being, all that now remains to be seen is what sort of coalition Rutte will be striving to create. But in spite of all the buzz surrounding the PVV and Wilders, it’s clear that the Dutch electorate have very much taken Rutte’s campaign slogan of normaal doen (just act normal) to heart, with the population choosing to elect a government that will most likely be, for all intents and purposes, pretty much normaal.
9
interviewed: Marthijn By Anne de Vries
It must have not gone unnoticed. The critical essay on the public sphere within our college ‘Why we need a deliberative public sphere at UCG’ by third-year student Marthijn Kinkel, was spread on nearly every platform . Next to the overflow of exposure, seeing that in his article Marthijn openly criticized our journal, we thought it was about time to sit down and discuss his essay with him. Can you tell me about the article? It is a critical reflection on our university college and our faculty, because I thought that it is time to reflect, or evaluate, the democratic
10
progress we have made and I think that in terms of representation of students, not a lot has happened in these three years and therefore I thought it was time to make this noticeable to the others. Can you summarise the main point of your article? UCG lacks a public sphere. It basically means that I think that there is not enough of debate, communication, deliberation, among students and staff, which causes that a lot of people are frustrated and have issues with the program or are not satisfied with everything, but nothing ever happens. I think that if we
can improve this communication between students, staff and also the board, then all these issues and all these frustrations can go away and our college can become even better than it is now. Where did you come up with the theory for your article? It started in a course I took last block: Knowledge is Power. Every Wednesday we had a ‘public sphere breakfast’, where we discussed the articles we had to read and current affairs. At a certain point we had to write an essay and I thought, “you know what? This discussion we are having, this should be integral to our entire college”. Do you think your article was balanced as to what different bodies can do, or was it more related to the student body than to the Faculty Board? I think that I chose to focus more on the student bodies, because there more can already be done. By focusing more on the student representatives bodies and the staff representative bodies [Caerus, Educational Committee, Faculty Council], more can be arranged already and progress can sooner be shown to the others and I thought that that would be a better focus initially.
What are the measures you propose? One thing I mentioned was a forum, for example, that is accessible to all and can also be tracked as a database to see what can be improved, so that it can be a very helpful platform that serves a multitude of functions. I also said things about media that need to be in place, I was quite critical on your journal as well, because I thought it was too much fun. Yeah, there some steps have to be taken. But, it’s not me who’s going to do this all, I just hope to inspire others. I know that in half a year I won’t be able to make this and a deliberative public sphere happening at UCG. But what I can do is show the initial steps. Do you think this essay is enough to motivate the students? In its own? No. I think this should be a start. So if anyone wants to come up or share ideas, I’m always willing to help. I think it will not stop at this point. We already saw the journal [Slash ‘n Hash] published and I was surprised that in such a short time, people took the time to write some very funny and critical and underground and sometimes on the edge pieces and I thought: “this is a great start”.
11
Then, do you think that at the college it’s the job of the media to facilitate deliberation, or is it also the Faculty Board who should be active in this? It is a two-way street. For the input and also for keeping the public sphere active, media can play a large role, they can have a nice take on certain current affairs within our college. And people start talking about it, then you have a discussion and then you have an active public sphere. Also the Faculty Board needs to serve a larger function or should be more communicative towards the students. That is also something that is lacking, and might cause frustration with students. The Faculty Board and the Faculty Council should start communicating more with the 12
students. Then people see that they can influence something or that their opinion actually matters. What do you think the article itself adds to UCG? What I hope and what I also said in my message to all the students and staff, it that it sparks a debate, that it motivates people and inspires people that have had these frustrations. I hope that they become active and show their ideas, their frustrations or improvements. What is your overall message to the UCG students? A lot of people feel as if they are unheard, and I think that we, here at UCG, have the chance to be heard, to be active. Just by practicing now,
it can benefit us. And maybe we can become what they want us to be: the leaders of the future. Share your voice, improve our college, improve your own program, get rid of your frustrations and‌ make this happen. One last question: did you have any response from the Faculty Board itself? This can be a very short answer: no, nothing. From the people you truly want to reach, we’ve heard nothing yet.
We think it is safe to say that Marthijn mentions relevant and current issues at our college. But what we think is the biggest shame is that indeed, the people that we truly want to reach, have not replied to any of it yet. It would do us, as students, and the college good if they did share their opinion on all of this.
13
Astrophilosophy:
Observing the night sky and explaining the philosophy behind it By Jona Haxhialiu At University College Groningen you have the freedom to combine different disciplines and shape your own curriculum. Finding similarities between different sciences is a very exciting journey. The final destination can be unpredictable but the path of finding it is extraordinary. The expansion of your horizon becomes multidimensional. As you may have understood my major will
14
be a mixture of two hard sciences, Astronomy and Philosophy. Yes it is challenging but it is also intriguing. Think of it this way: How can one discover the extreme edges of the universe without practicing deep, abstract thinking first? I don’t want to discover the cosmic mysteries by following a narrowed course such as pure or applied physics or astronomy. The formation of the universe, Milky Way galaxy, the
fuzzy quantum world and space warps have always triggered my fantasy. All these cosmic features are built upon scientific theories and hypotheses. Thus there’s always something you can play around with. By digging deeper and deeper into them and gazing at the late night sky, I discovered what I wanted to do. I chose to tackle the origin of life from a systemic, abstract point of view. First year students who are interested in doing hard sciences have a lot of options they could choose from, such as: Introduction to Programming, Calculus, Linear Algebra, Modern Physics etc. All these electives are given in different blocks, therefore students have the freedom to choose other non-major related subjects.
I, for example, took a science and a humanities elective. During your studies you might change your mind and decide to take a programme in another RUG faculty because you want the course to be more structured. In my opinion, the difference between the courses offered at UCG and those offered at the faculty of Natural Sciences is not that great. True, you will have some extra projects and workshops, but they offer diversity and colour a student’s mindset. You will not have the same, identical electives but University College offers the most essential ones (mentioned above). I believe Physics, Astronomy and Philosophy create an interesting puzzle for the real origin of life, thus I want to start finding all the missing pieces as soon as possible.
15
The Trump Card: A Greater America Awaits By Abidur Rahim Trump has been the butt of jokes and the subject of memes for far too long. As if a character from a comic book suddenly became real, the realization that the US had voted a television personality into power has led many to lose faith in a portion of humanity. Today, however, I shall make an earnest, modest attempt to show you how there is a silver lining to every cloud: Trump is not nearly as bad you have been led to believe. But first, a little background on this notorious personality. Donald John Trump is an American businessman, television personality and politician; born into the home of Frederick Trump, an American real estate developer and philanthropist. Although Donald’s father was well-off (to put it simply), he made sure that his kids appreciated the value of money. Trump once asked his father for a $45 baseball glove but was refused on the ground that he should save up and buy it with his own money. At the age of 13, 16
Trump lost his father and joined the New York Military Academy. He was even Commander of the Honor Guard at one point in his involvement with the military. At the age of 25, he took over his family firm and, through ups and down, persisted his way to becoming a tycoon. Trump is the oldest - as well as richest - president in US history. It is also worth noting that Trump’s uncle, John G. Trump, was an electrical engineer, inventor, and physicist associated with MIT. Along with hosting The Apprentice, Trump also owned the Miss USA and Miss Universe pageants from 1996 to 2015. Did you think he hates women? Also, if he truly hates immigrants, why were two of his three wives immigrants? Populism is defined as the support for the concerns of ordinary people, and is the word most associated with the personality of Trump. As he has mentioned several times, he knows what people want, even if they fail to express it. Figuratively, he chooses to not wear a mask,
21
and he speaks what he thinks. This personality is what attracted such a large number of people to take his side. Perhaps the main reason I sympathize with Trump is because of how negatively the media portrays his personality. If you’ve ever watched any of his speeches completely, you’ll know what I mean. For instance, he talked intensely about the unstable condition in major Muslim countries and how the current immigration laws allow almost anyone who is well-off (including those who have ulterior motives) to immigrate to the US. He recognizes that not all Muslims want to form a caliphate and overthrow America. But the fact remains that the current policies allow extremists to infiltrate the USA. Despite the fact that I myself am officially a Muslim, I completely understand the source of his fears. Yet no media focuses on his reasoning; they just term him an Islamophobic. Additionally, Trump is the first president to recognize the damage the States is causing to the Middle-East. He was the only candidate that wants to stop weapons supply to said countries and bring peace on the long run. He also understands that it was wrong for the US to intervene in the political workings of other 18
countries in the hope of harvesting some of their resources. To me, he brings hope, not despair. As much as it hurts to say it, the health-care in America is ridiculous to say the least. Obamacare, although a noble effort, is still failing to provide affordable medical care to a great number of people. Trump, for one, hopes to cut regulations, allowing people to seek cheaper, better alternatives elsewhere in the States. By cutting taxes for everyone, Trump hopes to encourage private investors to set up more businesses and also give the not-so-well-off some form of financial relief. This is in the hope of increasing competition, the number of private businesses and economic growth. Is that actually so bad? In addition, he aims to modernize and expedite services for veterans, who themselves are a neglected minority, suffering from a whole world of problems such as financial instability, PTSD, depression, and family problems from increased separation. Veterans left their families and risked their lives to fight for their country. To give you some facts, there are at least 300,000 veterans sleeping on the streets every night, and 1.4 million are at risk of becoming homeless. Is it wrong to support this minority?
Although it is near impossible to convince someone that their viewpoint is flawed in such a limited number of words, I hope I have been able to provide at least some reason to not hate Trump. Although Trump may have some questionable agendas, he, at the same time, holds unseen potential
in fields we are unfortunately overlooking. Some people have radical ideologies and convictions, but if Trump can be half as successful as a president as he was being a business, we can rest assured that a greater (although unconventional) America really does await.
19
interviewed: wood watch By Jacky Yuejie Wang How did you get the idea for WoodWatch? We started our business four years ago with three founders. Our idea originated from a similar product. One day, one of the founders reached us and showed us a picture of a wooden watch made in the United States. We all thought it was a super cool product. However we discovered that it did not yet exist in the Netherlands or even in Europe. Also, there was a
20
tendency of purchasing wooden sunglass in the Netherlands at that moment. So, we basically were very enthusiastic about the material wood, and we decided to do it in our own way, designing and making fashionable wooden watches. That’s basically how we got the idea for WoodWatch. In short, our idea was raised from another company and the fact that wooden watches did not yet exist here in Europe.
What steps did you take to become the company that you are today? We started ordering samples of three models (male, female and unisex) and two colors (bright colors and dark colors) from the factory in China. After that, we took pictures with those samples and did a bit photoshop. Then, we opened our website so that people were able to order with a delivery time of approximately six weeks. Noted that we didn’t have the stock here yet. So basically, people ordered online and paid beforehand, and then we used that money to place the order for the watches to be shipped from China to the Netherlands. It was kind of our own crowdfunding thing. However, I have to admit that it was a big risk, because if we received a broken watch, for example, the customers had already paid and we basically would have nothing to ship to them. When did you get your capital from? We did not have any capital or investments. We only used some of our own savings, but that was not a lot. But, we still managed to do it. Of course, we were aware of that there was an option to go to an investment bank. But we wanted to start as soon as possible and we
did not want to spend time making business plans for the investment bank. What are some of the difficulties you stumbled upon along the way? The biggest risks or difficulties we encountered were in the beginning with our financial matters and some manufacturer issues in China (poor quality). Later, we also tried to expand our product line. For example, we tried to make and sell wooden wallets as a side business, but unfortunately it totally failed! I guess that was the difficulty we faced in terms of company expansion. Why are people attracted to your watch? Firstly, we always try do have unique and updated designs. For example, our newly launched watch combines two different materials, namely wood and stone. The watchband is still made from wood, but the back plate of the watch is made from stone now. This, I believe, would give our customers a fresh experience and feeling. Secondly, we never offer discounts! Imagine you would buy a watch for €100 now, next week it will be €80. Basically, it is saying that you need to pay €20 extra now. That is just not very nice for 21
32
the customers as well as for the company. How do you distinguish WoodWatch from other wooden watches? At this moment, WoodWatch is original, has a unique design and high quality. Also, WoodWatch is linked to a sustainable project, in which we donate trees to a charity in the Philippines. I think these are the reasons why WoodWatch is different from other wooden watches. One thing to be noted is that we do not compete based on price. As you may know, most of the companies try to lower their price or give discounts, but that is just something we do not do! Is there anything more your company would like to achieve? We would like to expand our company into more countries. Currently, we are shipping our products to France, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, and recently to Spain and the UK. But later, we would like to ship our products to the United States, Canada and maybe Asia. In addition, we would also like to expand our product line as an important growth strategy for businesses like us. We are now thinking, for example, about making luxury watches with automatic movement, so
that we can sell for a higher price. Furthermore, we would like to have some physical stores. At the end of this year, our goal is to have our products in 100 stores within the Netherlands, and we are going to hire salespeople to achieve that. Do you have any advice for those who want to start their business? One of the things I learnt throughout my experience is that people often think their product’s price is too high, so they tend to start with a pretty low price. For example, at the beginning, we sold our watches for €30 or €50. Of course, we still earned some money. But it’s not enough, since we put a lot effort in it; the design, selective materials and many other things. In fact, higher prices are even better, because people tend to have more faith in your product! Price is also a selling point! So just have confidence in your products. If you think your products are good, then do not start with a low price. Besides that, having an original design or maybe a story behind your product will also be a plus point.
23
America first, late night shows second By Olle Hermsen In January, Donald Trump held his inauguration speech, clearly emphasising one thing and one thing only: that above all else, he wants to put “America First”. The Dutch late night show Zondag met Lubach responded to this ridiculous proclamation with something that got a lot of attention. They produced a video addressed to Mr Trump directly, introducing the Netherlands in a hilariously satirical manner. In the video he was acquainted with Dutch delights such as the Afsluitdijk (a great wall to “keep all the water out from Mexico”), aging crooner Lee Towers (the Dutch version of the Trump towers variety), and most importantly the magical Ponypark Slagharen, where the American president was cordially invited to grab the creatures “by the pony”. The video ends with a request from the narrator on behalf of the Dutch people: that if Trump really is determined to put America first, then could the Netherlands at least be second. After the video went viral, many late night shows across Europe produced a version of their ownthe bulk of them carrying much the same message, although with most, 24
of course, being nowhere near as funny. The story of the video’s meteoric success was also picked up by several major news outletsboth Dutch and international- as the country’s particular brand of cutting humour made its way across the globe. The website http://www.everysecondcounts. eu/ collected all these so check them out! The Trump administration has yet to officially respond to the video, and Trump himself has yet to incoherently Tweet about it, so it’s safe to assume that nobody in the White House is aware of its existence just yet. However, it can only be a matter of time before someone high up finds out about it, at which point the president will probably decide to declare war on the entirety of Europe. Don’t say we didn’t warn you. In the meantime, however, it’s good to know that the Dutch are becoming known for more than just cheese, tulips, and permissive soft drug legislation, and that the world is starting to realise that maybe, just maybe, the country might have a sense of humour, too.
7
Editorial office: Asyana Eddy Jacky Yuejie Wang Jona Haxhialiu Olle Hermsen Emmi Kraan Abidur Rahim Roos van der Reijden Anna-Lotte Reitsma Anne de Vries With thanks to: Ferdinand Lewis Hanna Dosenko Marthijn Kinkel Luca Leithuijser PIXEL WoodWatch