Henk van de Goor's Bloggers@large

I love Holland, but we sure do have some insane people politicians with the dumbest ideas you can think of. Today was a prime example. Some time ago a commission of wise men decided to examine the future of Dutch newspapers. As we all know there is an economic crisis going on and this hits every part of our society. Newspapers suffer because they lose money on advertising. Most companies spend their marketing budget on other media or a different media mix; they go where their target audience is. And guess what: their target audience no longer reads newspapers. Besides this most newspapers in Holland depend on a steady income from subscriptions (business model). This is different from other countries where most newspapers depend on just selling newspapers on the streets. Off course people are tying to save money and they cut back on those subscriptions. As a result newspapers suffer more. In light of these facts, the commission tried to come up with ideas how the Dutch newspapers are going to survive in these hard times. Today they presented their findings in a report presented to our minister of culture and came up with an insane idea.

So what did these geniuses come up with? Well, they propose a tax for all Dutch Internet users. You can get your news for free on the Internet - and that should stop. Right now! You - yes you too - need to pay for the fact that newspapers have been unable to innovate and come up with an answer to the needs of a new digital generation and a business model too. With the money they get from this tax they will subsidize old, obsolete media!

In other words: even though I do not read newspapers anymore because I decided (years ago) I did not want to pay for yesterdays news, they would force me to pay for it indirectly?

My God. It's by far the dumbest thing I have heard off.

And you know what: it is the same stupid idea that people came up with when we had the industrial revolution in the 18th century. During that period steam powered devices where gradually replacing manual labour. This off course had a deep impact on all kinds of jobs.

What I mean is this: around 1900 the first automobiles got created and this gradually replaced the horse and carriage. This off course meant that there no longer was a need for blacksmiths making horseshoes. So, people panicked by this new development and politicians came up with plans to tax companies that where using steam powered machines, essentially punishing them for being innovative.

Luckily for us those plans never made it through.

So, blacksmiths had a choice: evolve or become obsolete and die. Just like the dinosaurs did. Indeed, many blacksmiths did disappear because they were unable to evolve. They either didn't know how, or did not want to.

But some survived. They survived because they understood what was going on: times where changing. So they adopted to a new age and started to produce auto parts! In fact many blacksmiths started to build coaches for car builders. Those coachbuilders later had to evolve again because new car manufacturing procedures forced them to mass produce cars (thanks to Henry Ford). And so on. Evolution is a continuing cycle!

So the idea to subsidize something ancient and obsolete like newspapers is just certified insane! Essentially it's rewarding an entire industry for a total lack of innovation and vision!

People, this is exactly the same problem the entertainment industry has. New technology (Mp3) comes with new possibilities and they totally and utterly do not get what it means for their industry. It means that they need to evolve or die! They need to come up with new business models to fit the new situation! Stop protecting the old crappy, outdated technologies!

Newspapers have proven to be utterly incapable of innovation. Their whole production and distribution system is obsolete. So is their business model. The ink hasn't even dried or the news is already old. I can get better information - and faster (real time in fact) - using the Internet. Who needs newspapers? TV and even radio is superior! The whole concept of printing "news" is a contradictio in terminus.

Why the hell is it taking newspapers so long to see that new technology offers so many chances for them? Why can I not get a newspaper subscription using a e-reader using e-paper? Amazon has a nice e-reader and you can get (wireless) subscriptions for that.

The answer my friends, is easy. Just as with the industrial evolution the "old" companies have no answer to new developments but have much to lose. So they turn to the one thing they can do: try to stop progress. The same goes for the auto industry, the energy (oil) industry etc..

If it was up to these companies and this Dutch commision, we would still be using a horse and carriage for transportation. Wars would still be fought with a bow and arrow! We would drink water from a well, cook on a campfire, have an outhouse instead of a toilet, use coal for heating and listen to records instead of MP3's.

But if there is one thing we Dutch should know is that is it utterly pointless to put your finger in the dyke to stop a leak, if the rest of the dyke is completely breached in other places.

Please evolve or die already! Be bold and embrace the future!

Ps: I studied to become a newspaper journalist and worked briefly for some Dutch newspapers/magazine in the early '90's. In 1995, after seeing the potential of the World Wide Web, I immediately switched to digital. Along with just one other journalist in Holland (Francisco van Jole) I published exclusively online on the WWW for about a year and a half. Currently I am a senior project manager at an IT department at a graphical company that is evolving from a print (and print related) company to a "marketing support" company. It is my firm belief that paper and print will be replaced by digital media in some form. Cutting down trees to produce paper is just as dumb as clubbing baby seals to death to get some fur. There are way better and smarter ways to get the same or better results. I believe in a digital life-style and am convinced we are living in the most exiting and promising century in human history!

Yes, it's one of those "summers" again...

Man does time fly or what? Can't believe it's 2008 already. I'm going to turn 41 this year.. Arghh! The idea.. The horror! Ah well who cares anyway. Here is a bit of fireworks to celebrate.. I shot it in the street my sister lives, so it's no grade A stuff like in Amsterdam, but it's still a lot better than the fireworks they are allowed to use in Florida.

Anyway: Happy 2008 y'all!

It gives me great pleasure to see Hollywood posthumously picked up on a great movie by the late Theo van Gogh; "Interview". Even though they made a remake out of the original, it is a testament to the genious Van Gogh was as a filmaker. It is also particulary flattering (I think) that a guy like Steve Buscemi (who I love as an actor) took it upon him to direct and star in this movie. Obviously it is not blockbuster material, but not all blockbusters are good movies per se. Anway, I think that Theo van Gogh probably would have been flattered too and it is a shame he is not here to see the result.
The storyline itself is simple and there are no big sets or special effects involved: it's psychology of the two characters and how they handle themselves in the situation they are in that makes this a true actors movie. Off course the previous comments are on the Dutch version. But I am sure that the version Buscemi made is equally good. I for sure will try to see it when it comes out here.

Berlinale 2007: Steve Buscemi about his film "Interview"


Click here to see the trailer.

On March 15, 44 BC, Julius Caesar was stabbed by an angry group of senators, including Marcus Junius Brutus, Caesar's great friend and senator. Caesar initially resisted his attackers, but when he saw Brutus, he supposedly spoke the words "Et tu, Brute?" ("You too, Brutus?" or: "Even you, Brutus?") and resigned himself to his fate. People often cite this quotation when they feel they have been betrayed. It is also the quote that comes to my mind when I see what is happening in the Dutch political party called VVD. The VVD (the "Dutch People's Party for Freedom and Democracy") lost a lot of voters during last weeks election. A lot of the people voted for other right-wing parties. One of the main reasons for this is the fact there is an internal power struggle within the VVD between the leader of the party, Mark Rutte, and the number two, Rita Verdonk.

On May 31, 2006, Verdonk lost out to Mark Rutte in the 2006 VVD leadership election with 46% of the vote. So Rutte became leader of the VVD with Verdonk sort of as a 'running mate'. But clearly both can't stand each other. Verdonk developed a reputation for toughness and outspokenness, with her uncompromising immigration policies earning her the nickname IJzeren Rita (Iron Rita). But in my opinion she is just a populist politician with an impulsive style of governing and a peanut where her brains should be.

However, in last weeks elections Verdonk received a greater number of preference votes (620,555) than Mark Rutte (553,200) did. A first in Dutch politics: never before did someone that was second on the voters list receive more votes than the number 1. So clearly people seem to prefer her over Mark Rutte (who, I admit, has as much charisma as a beached whale). Probably the same kind of people that otherwise would for right-wing enfant terrible Geert Wilders (the man whose hair looks like a beaver exploded while sitting on his head)

And now a new crisis unfolds in the VVD party; Verdonk effectively drove a dagger in Rutte's back by announcing she still wants to lead the party (although she says this is not an issue at the moment because the party said Rutte is the current and only leader of the party) and thinks there should be a committee that "investigates" the unique situation that occured (meaning that she got more votes than Rutte).

Verdonk - in my opinion - stands for all that I hate in a politician. Populistic, riding on negative sentiments about foreigners (anti-Islam) and only thinking about her own benifit and not that of the party. If you look at her track-record in politics she is just one big disaster. And now it looks like she is going to succeed in tearing apart the VVD as well. The party has assembled for a crisis meeting at 19:30 tonight and I have a sneeky feeling that either Rutte or Verdonk is going to leave the party. In essence: "this town is too small for both us".

Et tu, Brute?