eurealist.co.uk

Helen Szamuely
“We seem to have a problem with the Dutch police” read the full post at EU Referendum

As the moves towards integrating security and judicial as well as policing activity across the EU, we should cast a worried look at the activities of the Dutch police. This is rather surprising, as the Dutch authorities are normally seen among the most liberal of the European ones. But liberal is as liberal does. The new “liberal” ideas in Europe resemble what the Americans call “liberal”. In other words, far from the old-fashioned John Stuart Mill type liberalism that emphasises tolerance and individual liberty, it defines what is allowed and what is forbidden in a “liberal” political structure.

Thus, it is “liberal”, “radical” and daring to criticize certain religions, churches and their members but not others. Judaism and, above all, Christianity fall into the first category. Islam into the second. Of course, the fact that those who are deemed to criticize Islam are often murdered by certain illiberal members of that religion, may have something to do with this attitude.

The story concerns the Dutch police, however. On November 2 the Dutch film maker Theo van Gogh was murdered and a Moroccan young man, who lives in the Netherlands has been charged with the murder.