To spray or not? I notice that I have a dilemma

Also look at the results of innovation

The conclusion of Peter de Waard’s column, ‘the old-fashioned model with a rigid labor market, more rules and less market forces is better for innovation’, raised my eyebrows. This can not be true.

Because that would mean that the southern European countries are more innovative than the northern European ones. How? While everyone agrees that the country with the fewest rules and the most market forces, the US, is the most innovative country in the world. Just think of ICT, pharmaceuticals, gene technology and weapons.

The key point is, of course, what do you do with the results of innovation. More local production, or as a result of innovation-enabled globalization, shifting production to low-wage countries, resulting in the creation of the Rust Belt in America.

And then – as described by David Graeber – we make up millions bullshit jobs for the army of unemployed people created by innovation, instead of a much shorter working week, coupled with a basic wage for all.

In principle there is nothing against bullshit jobs as employment. The big disadvantage, however, is that many people with a bullshit jobmake up countless nonsense rules and checklists, so that the few people with real jobs – such as cleaners, carers, nurses, teachers, doctors – spend a third of their working time on pointless administration and get frustrated, quit, and just a bullshit job to take.

Applying innovation in this way is indeed very bad for productivity.
Hans MoonenUtrecht

To spray or not

As a result of the discussion about spraying or not, I notice that I have a dilemma. We choose to have a blooming garden in a neighborhood where there is a lot – and increasingly more – petrification. This against the heat, for insects and birds.

If I don’t spray, everything threatens to die. Then I would have to start paving, because of course I don’t feel like just dried out and dying plants. Moreover, everything is getting warmer and nature is getting even harder.

I think that municipalities should pay more attention to the importance of greening in gardens and that all that paving should be limited. In any case, I find it very annoying when I have to feel burdened, because I try to nurture our bee, bumblebee and butterfly paradise, which we all have so much interest in, with some water.
Mathijn van ZonStruggling

New revenue model

The intimidating terrorist actions of the farmers are successful: CDA, VVD and ChristenUnie recently took their first steps on the slippery slope to capitulation. And for the few farmers who will eventually have to disappear, they have also created a wonderful new business model: tractor rental for demonstrations. An unbeatable weapon for torpedoing cabinet plans you don’t like.
Pierre DaanenAmsterdam

heroes

Such a shame that the farmers do not see that they could become the heroes of the nitrogen crisis. They can solve the crisis and be the ‘Saviours of the Netherlands’. Think again, turn things around, the flags are already upside down.
Lineke FokkemaHurdegaryp

Electric car

Is the electric car a sensible alternative to the car with a combustion engine from a climate point of view? The article ‘A new autopie’ was about that question. Usually attention is focused on the use of electric cars, and the harmfulness of their production (and of their batteries) is not mentioned or only in passing. Likewise in that article. But the large-scale consumption of steel, glass, rubber and cobalt forms a heavy burden on the environment.

One thing is certain: the electric car fits seamlessly into the existing ultra-capitalist pattern, in which the big owners, investors and speculators rule. He offers a fantastic (heavily subsidized) revenue model for the mammoth companies and their shareholders.

From a social point of view there is a much better alternative: that is the replacement of a lot of private mobility by public transport by train, metro, monorail, bus and tram. Unfortunately, this was not discussed in the article.
Daan BrouwerAmsterdam

Olivia Newton John

It’s a few days after Pride, Olivia Newton John passed away. I read in de Volkskrant that teenage boys were in love with Olivia and wanted teenage girls to be like her. This is exactly what Pride is about, apparently it is still natural to look straight, even for the newspaper.

I was in love with Olivia as a girl, I can say with certainty that many boys were in love with John Travolta as well.

And of course Pride was also about gender. Some guys might have wanted to be Olivia too.
Rianne van ZelstUtrecht

Emigrants

It is with pleasure and admiration that I read the columns of Mohammed Benzakour. The TV program in which Nadia Moussaid and her father followed his journey to a better life also made it clear to me once again how brave those emigrants were to leave everything behind and take a leap into the unknown. Now that we are presented on NPO2 how the Dutch followed the same path after the Second World War, we can perhaps look at our new compatriots with different eyes.
Jef ClaassenBoxtel

Entry ban Russians

Here we go again, now with an entry ban for Russians who want to go on holiday to Europe. Does that make sense? No, because how many Russians are now coming to vacation in Europe?

The previous sanctions may have had some effect where we wanted to hit the Russians most, in the circles of Putin and his supporters. But just like banning Russian writers or music, this sanction will not have the desired effect.

Most Russians don’t want this war at all, but they don’t have access to the real news. And the richest Russians often have duplicate passports. With a Maltese or Cypriot passport they can go to Europe. A lot of effort with little result.
Ilona DekkerNieuwegein

Ikea

The new Ikea in Santiago has no less than 65,000 m2, reports the newspaper. Huge, so as an exclusive reference point for his Amsterdam readers, the local reporter helpfully mentions the dimensions of the smaller establishment in a neighborhood called Zuidoost. Banana-for-scale moment for the rest of the Netherlands: the Chilean Ikea is about nine football fields in size.
Trees RooseHaren