Freedom of speech

Yesterday morning, around 9:00am, the Dutch controversial director Theo van Gogh was shot dead in Amsterdam. He had gotten death threats because of his subversive opinion on the multicultural society and the islam. Only recently had he made a film about passages in the koran that are hostile towards women. He made this film (Submission) together with Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a Dutch member of parliament born in Somalia.
Theo van Gogh was shot dead because he had the guts to voice his opinion. His latest film about that other Dutchman who got killed over his opinions, Pim Fortuyn, will premier in a couple of weeks.

For the Irish

Roddy Doyle explains why there will never be a sequal to The Commitments: "A lot of the lines in the book would have to change. When Jimmy says that the Irish are the blacks of Europe, Ireland is now one of the wealthiest countries in Europe, so we can't get away with that line anymore." And: "It's a better story if they break up. [...] We love failure in Ireland."

I wonder if there's a relation between the Irish and the Belgian. How long does it take before someone gets some kind of recognition in this country? We prefer them to fail. ;-)

(Via onepotmeal)

Some observations on the elections in the USA

• Although democrats were from my point of view more prominent on the internet and tried to persuade more voters of the importance of doing their civic duty, the republicans won this election. Being more prominent in the public forum doesn't necessarily mean having a large group of supporters within the population.
  
  
• In one of the biggest democracies of the world people are actively discouraged to vote. Votes are being challenged in the hope voters will go away without voting. Living in a country where you get a fine when you "forget" to vote, I wonder if there shouldn't be a law against this behaviour.
  Also: check out this entry from Weez.
  
  
• Belgian (European?) press have overtly supported Kerry. This was easily detectable between the lines of their coverage of the elections.
  
  
• For Americans democracy doesn't necessarily mean the separation of state and church. Heard on vrtnieuws (Flemish public network) from a democrat: "I will not vote for Kerry, because I think he doesn't believe in God."
  
  
• You are a republican or a democrat and therefore you vote republican or democrat. Families are republican or democrat, like they are catholic or protestant or jewish. Voting doesn't seem to have much to do with your own conviction, but with the conviction you were raised in.
  
  
• I believe you can place the votes for Bush in a broader tendency of people to attach more importance to tradition, nation and morals than to innovation, solidarity between states and ethics.