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Diana M. Wilson's avatar

Fabulous essay, Claire--I especially love this line-"We must limit the spread of harmful ideas—whether it’s fascism, fundamentalist Islam, racism, or something else entirely. We must protect our freedom and democracy." Amen.

Some of my favorite memories took place in Amsterdam in the 90s and early 2000s. I used to have an office in The Hague--many, many moons ago. Rather than weed and sex shops, my interests involved the great jazz heritage --the extraordinary tenor sax player- Ben Webster lived in Amsterdam for 3 years in the 60s. I could (and did) spend hours perusing the vintage/antique shops. Thanks for taking me back....(I loved Amsterdam so fiercely, that a part of my novel takes place there.)

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Brent Hartinger's avatar

Fascinating -- love the personal anecdotes too. It seems like the modern age exists to test the limits of everything, even Dutch tolerance. My mind is reeling.

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