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"When Ukrainians fight for dignity, they think in the Kremlin, it's because Washington and Brussels are instigating them. That's the only world Putin knows: a world without freedom." According to Thom, when people want something, it's not because they love freedom but because they are being manipulated. "When Ukrainians fight for dignity, they think in the Kremlin, it's because Washington and Brussels are instigating them. That's the only world Putin knows: a world without freedom." #Poetin #Oekraïne #Europa (translated)

Steven Arrazola de Oñate described Trump's response as interesting and wrote that there was much speculation about the backgrounds of the war. He suggested that the American president might have information that was not public. As a reason to critically examine the official narrative, he referred to previous CIA involvement in regime changes and the destabilization of governments, including in Iran in 1953, Guatemala in 1954, and Chile in the 1970s. According to him, that did not prove anything about the current war in and of itself. Arrazola de Oñate found Trump's wish to end the war even more important. He wrote that thousands of soldiers were dying every month and that preventing more casualties should carry more weight than trying to prove one's own point. At the same time, he stated that a large part of the European political elite depicted Trump as a dangerous dictator, while those same politicians, according to him, insisted on continuing the fight. He wrote that negotiations were framed as weakness and continuing to fight as moral superiority. Finally, he stated that the truth would ultimately come to light. #Trump #oorlog #waarheid (translated)

The author praised Nayib Bukele and wrote that he believed Bukele had a cognitive understanding of the issues and the courage and power to act on that insight. According to the author, the Netherlands and Europe needed such a leader, while politicians there fell short and let themselves be guided by others. The author called for resistance against what he described as a consensus of betrayal of oneself, to ignore criticism from opponents, and to show courage. He stated that negative reporting in the Volkskrant or criticism on blogs would not deter Bukele from doing what was necessary. He compared critics to flies and ants on a lion. He claimed that Bukele was a global exception among politicians, which he found utterly frustrating. #Politiek #Leiderschap #Filosofie (translated)

You have to make sure from the back that you are not the last one later. Groenewoud thinks differently: "You have to make sure from the back that you are not the last one later. It all crawls on top of each other, which greatly increases the chance of falls. It will be a fight for your spot, yes. And that makes it very dangerous." #Schaatsen #Massastart #Veiligheid (translated)

Roy, who described himself as a politically right-leaning former member of the VVD, wrote that he no longer knew who to vote for. He excluded a populist party on the right and even mentioned considering PRO, although that didn't make economic sense and wasn't logical for him personally. According to him, the party members were at least honest and human. Roy wrote that he had previously found Jesse Klaver weak and unconvincing, but that he now made a different impression: Klaver was, in his opinion, substantively strong and seemed to be developing leadership qualities. Roy also stated that Mark Rutte had called for people to look out for one another upon his departure, while the VVD under Dilan Yesilgöz did the opposite according to him. Yesilgöz, according to Roy, had ruined much for her party, although he found her good on Defense and previously on Justice and Security. According to Roy, PRO was precisely a party that paid attention to others. As an example, he mentioned the Self-Podcast by Sander Schimmelpenninck and Jaap Reesema featuring Lisa Westerveld. He claimed Westerveld dedicated herself day and night to underprivileged Dutch citizens. In the podcast, he also heard how demotivating work in the House of Representatives could be: requested debates from Westerveld sometimes did not make it to the agenda, while the right-wing majority preferred to debate asylum again. When a topic made the news, politicians were, in his opinion, always at the front. Roy wrote that the world would be a better place with more people like Westerveld. #politiek #VVD #Nederland (translated)

The article highlights the differing opinions of parents regarding their teenagers' participation in protests, with some encouraging them to fight for their rights while others are concerned about the dangers of demonstrating. #Manifeste #RévolteDesÉlèves #Parentalité (translated)

Sander Sassen reflected on the legacy of October 7. He wrote that three years earlier he had watched livestreams filled with rage and disgust in which, according to him, Palestinians were killing Jewish civilians while the Palestinian population celebrated the murders. Sassen stated that he commemorated the victims and argued that Israel was still being attacked from all sides and that Jews worldwide had to fear for their lives. According to him, October 7 had shown that civilization was an illusion for many and that antisemitism had returned in 2026. He said that his support for Israel and the Jewish people remained unwavering and called for speaking out against antisemitism, which, according to him, had also reached institutions, governments, politicians, and policymakers. Sassen referred to antisemitism as a "canary in the coal mine" and a measure of the tolerance and freedom of a society. In the Netherlands, he claimed that things had been declining over the past three years: propaganda was dominant, antisemitism had once again become socially acceptable, dialogue was often made impossible, and ideology drove many Dutch people. He wrote that the Netherlands had completely ignored the warning of the "deceased" canary. #antisemitisme #Israël #solidariteit (translated)

CIDI wrote that professor, sociologist, and migration expert Ruud Koopmans placed the responsibility for a possible genocide in Gaza on Hamas. By way of comparison, CIDI stated that the Japanese army during the Battle of Okinawa at the end of World War II had extensively used its own civilian population as a shield, but that the American continuation of the fighting had never been considered genocide. CIDI asked why the situation in Gaza was assessed differently according to Koopmans. https://t.co/FKOQqFEgy8 #Gaza #genocide #Hamas (translated)