Archive for June, 2009

Internetdemocracy: how not to

Wednesday, June 24th, 2009

I just read that the Dutch government has opened a site where they ask citizens for input on pending legislation. Sounds promising, no?

I checked, curious as I am (it’s in Dutch, of course). The items I saw:

  • Wet prejudiciële vragen aan de Hoge Raad
  • Implementatie EU kaderbesluit recidive in strafzaken
  • Regeling gewasbeschermingsmiddelen en biociden

Great! We get to give our views on legalese!

They have got to be kidding.

“De consultatie betreft het voorontwerp van de introductie van een prejudiciele procedure…”

I really thought no one was using such language. Well, I guess this is doomed to failure untill they get a translation into Dutch.

Posted in in the news, politics | Comments Off on Internetdemocracy: how not to

Funny home video: having your car stolen

Thursday, June 18th, 2009

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rHadC4zlwXw. Nuff said.

Posted in fun | Comments Off on Funny home video: having your car stolen

Engeland, here I come!

Friday, June 12th, 2009

Just so you know: I will be working in England for a short while. I’ll still be reachable via the usual channels though, so no worries :)

Posted in travelling, work | 2 Comments »

David Eddings passed away

Tuesday, June 9th, 2009

Jake alerted me to the fact that David Eddings passed away. Eddings wrote the Belgariad, a series of books which was my first exposure to non-Dutch fantasy, and (if I remember correctly) even wrote the first non-Dutch books I read. Over the years, I have frequently re-read the Belgariad and the Mallorean, every time enjoying it. I have read quite some fantasy books since then, but apart from Guy Gavriel Kay’s “Fionavar Tapestry” I have not come accross works that capture me as much as Eddings did. He wrote more than I have read. I plan to address that oversight in the future.

If you haven’t read fantasy yet, you might like it. As Eddings himself explained in “The Rivan Codex”:

I planted more mythic fishhooks in the first couple of books of the Belgariad than you’ll find in any sporting goods store. I’ve said (too many times, probably) that if you read the first hundred pages of the Belgariad, I gotcha!!

Go ahead, give it a shot. It’s fun!

Posted in books | Comments Off on David Eddings passed away