Tag Archives: Netherlands

The All Marriage Equality World Cup

Several readers have written to note that Sunday’s World Cup final will be between Holland and Spain and will be played in South Africa. All three nations grant full marriage equality rights to their LGBT citizens. That’s pretty cool, eh? UPDATE: A reader in Italy sends us his map of this year’s World Cup participants and the status of marriage …

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You Know One When You See One

Dutch scientists say that an experiment using geometric shapes showed that homosexuals were more adept at identifying smaller shapes within larger ones, leading to the curious conclusion that there really is such a thing as gaydar. A total of 42 men and women were shown pictures of outlines of large squares and rectangles, each of which was packed with smaller …

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NETHERLANDS: Bicycle Rush Hour

According to this clip’s description, one-third of all trips in Utrecht, Netherlands are made by bicycle. The U.S. average is less than 1%.

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Gen. John Sheehan Apologizes To Dutch

Retired Gen. John Sheehan has apologized to former Dutch Chief of Staff Van den Breemen for his U.S. Senate testimony that openly gay Dutch soldiers caused the Bosnian genocide. The ANP news agency reported that Sheehan apologized in an e-mail to Van den Breemen, saying his memory of discussions they had fifteen years ago about some social issues were ‘inaccurate.’ …

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Eurovision 2010: The Netherlands’ Sieneke

This song was criticized by the Dutch public as “too old-fashioned” when it was chosen as their Eurovision 2010 entry. It is very mid-70s Euro-pop, but that’s a good thing in my book. The lead vocalist is only 17.

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Dutch ‘Pink Army’ To Sue Gen. John Sheehan Over Genocide Allegations

Last week retired US Gen. John Sheehan ridiculously claimed that the Bosnian genocide of thousands of Muslim men and boys was the result of the homo-infested Dutch army. A group of openly gay Dutch soldiers has announced their plan to sue Sheehan for libel. “Gay reproach is world news,” reads NRC Handelsblad’s weekend headline. “The fall of the Balkenende cabinet …

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The Dutch Are PISSED At Gen. Sheehan

Led by Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende, the Dutch government today blasted retired U.S. Gen. John Sheehan over his claim that gay Dutch soldiers caused the Bosnian genocide. “The remarks were outrageous, wrong and beneath contempt,” Balkenende told a news conference. The Dutch Defense Ministry called Sheehan’s claims “absolute nonsense” and added that gay Dutch soldiers routinely cooperate with the …

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Gen. John Sheehan: The Bosnian Genocide Happened Because Of Gay Soldiers

Retired Gen. John Sheehan testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee today, claiming that openly gay soldiers in the Dutch military were partially responsible for the failure of the NATO peacekeeping action in Bosnia, a failure which resulted in the genocide of thousands of Muslims. The chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Carl Levin, pressed him to clarify his …

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Gays Protest At Dutch Catholic Church

About 300 protesters, many in pink wigs and shirts, walked out of services at a Catholic church in the Netherlands yesterday in reaction a gay man being denied communion for being a hell-bound sinner. This dispute began during Dutch carnival celebrations earlier in February, when the man chosen to be carnival prince in nearby Reusel was refused communion because of …

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Dutch Studies: Newly Diagnosed HIV+ Will Have “Near Normal” Lifespans

According to a just-released pair of studies out of the Netherlands, newly diagnosed HIV+ people will live a near-normal lifespan provided they begin treatment fairly soon after infection. With that proviso, a typical person diagnosed at age 25 is expected to live another 52.2 years, yielding an average lifespan scarcely different from the uninfected. It should be noted that patients …

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World’s Weirdest Apartments

Koldcast has posted their Top 20 Weirdest Apartment Buildings, of which I really dig the above complex in Rotterdam, Netherlands, where it looks like you really could fall out of the windows.

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Amsterdam’s Mayor Weds NY Couples To Send Message To U.S.

Yesterday the mayor of Amsterdam married five bi-national couples on a gay Pride party boat to send a message to the United States about marriage equality and immigration reform. The mayor of Amsterdam married five American-Dutch gay couples on Saturday in an implicit criticism of the lack of same-sex marriage in many U.S. states. Tens of thousands of spectators cheered …

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Holland: Schools May Ban Gay Teachers

In what some say is evidence of the increasing influence of Muslims in the Netherlands, a leaked letter from the country’s Council Of State advises that the nation’s state-funded religious schools are allowed to fire gay teachers. The Council of State, the highest advisory body to the Dutch government, says religious schools can exclude gay teachers if they behave in …

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Dutch Eurovision Entry Threatens Boycott If Moscow Police Stop Gay Pride Parade

Russian gay activists have asked contestants at this weekend’s Eurovision Song Contest to boycott the finals if Moscow police attempt to interfere with the gay pride parade on that day. The lead singer of the Netherlands’ entry, The Toppers, is the first to agree. Dutch singer Gordon has said he will boycott the Eurovision Song Contest if Moscow police use …

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Operator, Get Me Jeebus On The Line

A Dutch performance artist has set up a voicemail account for God, just in case you’d like to leave a few words about the way the Almighty has been running things lately. Van der Dong said he set up the number to give people an opportunity to take pause and contemplate life. “Like praying, leaving a voicemail message is a …

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Disco Power

A nightclub in Rotterdam is using a dance floor that generates energy from the movements of the dancers. If you felt that the atmosphere in the new hip Club Watt was somehow electric, you would be right: Watt has a new type of dance floor that harvests the energy generated by jumps and gyrations and transforms it into electricity. It …

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Dutch Cops Want Legalized Cruising

Dutch police want to legalize sex in public parks in order to reduce gay-bashing. AMSTERDAM, 08/03/08 – The police’s National Diversity Expertise Centre (LECD) wants sex allowed in all public parks in the Netherlands. The police institute has advised the cities to follow the example of Amsterdam, De Telegraaf newspaper reported Friday. In Amsterdam’s Vondelpark, owners of dogs let off …

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Dutch To Fight Homophobia
At Home And Abroad

Saying they “will not shy away from difficult discussions”, the Dutch government has pledged 2.5M euros to fight homophobia at home and abroad. The money will be spent between 2008-2011 and will be used to target young people, mostly Muslim youth in schools and sports organizations. The Dutch also plan to request the legalization of homosexuality from the countries to …

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