The word ‘crisis’ is subject to enormous inflation

Letter of the day

What’s the matter with de Volkskrant: the word ‘crisis’ must appear on every page. On Friday, August 19, the front page even treated us to that word five times. A crisis is a situation where you don’t know if you’ll be alive the next day.

But we will all survive the nitrogen, asylum, housing, credit, benefits, climate, energy, Manchester United, heat and drought crisis.

These are not crises, these are situations, problems or issues that need to be resolved. Humanity is very innovative so for all these problems or issues we find a solution sooner or later.

Only use the word ‘crisis’ when something is really life-threatening (Ukraine for example). Because as now the word ‘crisis’ is subject to enormous inflation.
Piet PostArnhem

Wages

Now that purchasing power is decreasing and Kaag is calling for wages to rise, the top executives of companies immediately start to protest. With the argument that high wages lead to high prices and that inflation would rise even more as a result.

How can that argument not hold if they raise their own wages exorbitantly?

Corien Neleman, Breda

Lend

In her column of Saturday, August 20, Sylvia Witteman wonders how one of her favorite books has gotten to wander. Most likely she lent it to someone. The tendency to lend books you like to others is as uncontrollable as it is perilous. The French writer Anatole France already noted: ‘Never lend books, because nobody gives them back; the only books I have on my shelf are the ones others have lent me.’

Marlies Jansen, Oegstgeest

watchtowers

In 1987 I drove a long car route through western Russia in a red Lada with two college friends. This route was planned in advance in collaboration with a specialized travel agency in Amsterdam and then approved by the Russian embassy.

Once on the road we came across a watchtower every 15 kilometers, manned with armed agents or soldiers. All this was for our safety only. Russian authorities are masters of rethinking.

Vincent Eibergen, YOUfunnel

CDA

Wim Kan already said it at the time of Van Agt: ‘The CDA does not bend to the left and does not bend to the right. It’s slowly sinking in.’

S. Hakse, Harderwijk

stutter

The Volkskrant comment rightly states that it is a good thing that cherry picking is limited by curtailing the free choice of doctors. A disadvantage of this restriction is not mentioned, however: there will be even more power in the hands of health insurers. In addition, the small, well-intentioned care providers should not be forgotten. Like in my case, the speech therapists. The health insurers already have so much power that there is hardly any market forces for us. It is drawing at the cross. The rates are so low that a competitive salary is hardly possible. There has therefore been an outflow of practicing speech therapists for years. The waiting lists are increasing, waiting a year is no longer an exception. The last straw we have is the free choice of doctors. We can’t draw and still help people. If enough providers do this, the insurer will not comply with its statutory duty of care. If the cabinet opts for curtailing this, it must also opt for a minimum rate. The non-binding rate that is reasonable according to the Dutch Healthcare Authority has not been achieved for years. The waiting lists will become even longer due to the proposed curtailment. For example, for a child who starts to stutter, this means the difference between always stuttering or getting rid of it.

Yuri van Ormondt, speech therapist, fluency therapist and practice owner, Purmerend