Amsterdam

The Dutch recently celebrated their Christmas style day, "Sinterklaas Dag" or something like that... It involves Santa, a horse and a bunch of people in blackface pretending to be elves. That's right, blackface elves. They're short and they're in blackface and they're helping a fat guy in red. It's so perfect I want to cry. The elves' job is to help Santa onto the horse and do other laborious tasks, while looking freaky and short on sleep. No reindeer, no bag of gifts, just a bunch of weird, trippy shit and strong liquor. And there's a guy named Black Pete, but not really sure what he does. Maybe he controls the blackface situation.

Dutch racism is so completely blatant and in your face, it blows me away that nobody seems to have a problem with it. I know a black guy in Amsterdam and he probably has a party to celebrate just how fucking hilarious and wrong the concept is. Motherfucker just rolls with it. My Dad has the same idea, making Jew jokes left and right. So, who are these people we read about that object to Christmas Trees in schools and other displays of ethnicity and where the fuck do they come from? Why object when you can embrace the chaos?

Was watching a positive news story on Denmark the other day and felt a strange, "twank". Perhaps it was pride, but I doubt it. Later, I felt twisted inside - can you be nationalistic to more than one country? Obviously, I could give fuck all about Denmark, but there's something inside of us that wants to feel like our home is a special place. It's as bizarre as it is fundamental. You can have pride in your city, your school, your district, your province, your country... where does it end? Better yet, where does it begin?