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[kaiverschuren]

Politics

Hello and welcome to my blog, today we’ll be discussing the Netherlands' political system and what the students had to do in class.

The history of the Netherlands and what events have made us what we are today. A big part of what made the Netherlands what it is today, is that the Dutch history had some outstanding development. Such as times like The early farmers, The Roman conquest, Conversion to Christianity and The Hanseatic League. All of them had a huge impact on what the Dutch are today.

Other history of the Netherlands, that has shaped the Dutch quite a bit but not as substantial are The Republic of seven provinces, An Independent Kingdom, Women’s Rights, Two World Wars, and The Flood of 1953. The flood of 1953 was a more controversial moment in my opinion, because the Netherlands is known for its way of working with water, and this was an important moment, because the Netherlands started having more problems with water.

An introduction to Dutch Politics for dummies:

The Dutch political system, in short, has the following institutions. They’re listed from most to least important:

Constitution

Parliament

Monarchy

Cabinet

Judiciary

Council of State

Other Political Institutions

Next, I will talk about all of these in a quick, short manner.

1. Constitution: This is a set of rules that everyone in the country follows. It talks about rights and how the government works. Changes to these rules need approval from the parliament (which we'll talk about next).

2. Parliament: This is where laws are discussed and made. There are two parts: the Senate and the House of Representatives. They work together to decide on laws and watch over the government.

3. Monarchy: The king or queen is the head of the country. They have some important roles like signing laws to make them official, but they mostly stay out of day to day politics.

4. Cabinet: This is a group of people chosen by the king or queen to run the country. The Prime Minister leads this group, and they make decisions about laws and policies.

5. Judiciary: These are the courts that make sure laws are followed and settle disputes. There are different courts for different cases, like criminal cases or cases about government actions.

6. Council of State: This is a group that makes recommendations to the government on laws and policies. They're not part of the government, but their recommendations are important.

7. Other Political Institutions: This includes things like political parties, local governments, and groups that represent workers and businesses. They all have a say in how the country is run.

Now compare and contrast the United States' political system to the Netherlands’

The Netherlands operates as a parliamentary representative democracy within a constitutional monarchy, emphasizing consensus-building and broad agreement on important issues. Key institutions include the monarchy, cabinet, state general (parliament), and judiciary. It has a decentralized unitary state structure, with lower levels of government such as municipalities, water boards, and provinces.

In contrast, the United States functions as a constitutional federal republic, with a separation of powers between the executive, legislative, and judicial branches. It operates under a federal system where powers are shared between the federal government and state governments. The political landscape in the United States is dominated by two major parties (Democratic and Republican), with a more adversarial approach to governance. Additionally, while the Netherlands has a constitutional monarchy with the monarch serving as the head of state, the United States has a presidential system with an elected president serving as both head of state and head of government.

Now we’ll explain 5 Dutch political parties and what they stand for

People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (Volkspartij voor Vrijheid en Democratie - VVD)

The VVD stands for freedom and democracy. They say that their party encourages freedom for entrepreneurs, a free labor market, and making requirements for social assistance recipients.

Party for Freedom (Partij voor de Vrijheid - PVV)

The PVV is known for its strict rules against immigration, which means they “want to make the Netherlands ours again”.

Christian Democratic Appeal (Christen-Democratisch Appèl - CDA)

The Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) party believes in "Dispersed Responsibility." This means they think that everyone should share the responsibility for how society works, instead of just one group or organization having all the power.

Democrats 66 (Democraten 66 - D66) D66 stands for improving democracy and creating an open society in the Netherlands. They prioritize social responsibility, equality, and inclusivity to build a fair and thriving community.

Socialist Party (Socialistische Partij - SP)

Now the political Behavior of the Dutch (Voting behavior, interest in politics – research as well as personal experience in family, amongst friends, etc.)

In the Netherlands, voting could be influenced by many factors such as social media, and advertisements but also, and maybe the biggest factor, is what your family thinks. When you’re at a family gathering, the usual is that my dad, uncle, and grandpa are always discussing political topics. They could be discussing one single topic for more than 2 hours, without needing to switch topics.

My review of politics in The Hague

Introduction:

On Friday 15 December, we had a half-day trip to The Hague, on this day we discussed politics and were shown around The Hague and its historical/political buildings.

Overview:

In The Hague, we visited ProDemos for a brief tour and a fun quiz about politics. Our guide grouped us into threes and gave us experiments to discover our political beliefs. Afterward, we took a short, quiz-filled tour of The Hague, learning more about politics.

Detailed analysis:

The first thing we got doing in The Hague was visit one of the ProDemos buildings. We got shown around a little bit and after that, our “guide” divided the group into groups of 3. She tested our knowledge of politics with a quick quiz. Then she gave us a paper, which had quick (experiments?) on it for us to do. The main thing about the (experiments?) was to find out what our beliefs on politics were and what statements are important to us. After that, we stepped outside the building to go on a tour through a part of The Hague. The tour was fun and concise, but filled with small quiz-like questions that helped me understand politics.

Pros:

I, learned more about politics than I thought I'd learn.

The course was easy to follow along with, and it kept you intrigued to learn more about politics.

Cons:

For me, The Hague is pretty far away. (about a 2-4 hour train ride) so if I were to make it a full day trip, I would’ve been home pretty late.

For the course itself, if the day would’ve been rainy, about 50% of the activities would’ve been unable to continue through with it.

Personal experience:

My personal experience. Overall, I liked the trip, the host was welcoming, the course was well put together and as I said before, it was easy to follow along. Plus going into buildings of importance was pretty cool.

Conclusion:

The course ProDemos provided was solid. If I were to rate it on a scale out of ten, I would rate it an eight. I would recommend students to go, especially if you’re close to being able to vote soon.

Dutch culture and what one should be prepared for when visiting the Dutch.

Positives:

Tolerance and Diversity (Accepting Others): Dutch society values accepting others and having different kinds of people, especially in cities like Randstad.

Patriotism (Proud of Country): Dutch people are proud of their country and how it's involved internationally.

Monarchy (Royal Family Unity): The Dutch royal family has been important in bringing the country together and is widely supported.

Welfare System (Helping People): There's a system that helps people with healthcare and benefits.

Negatives:

Pillarization (Past Divisions): In the past, people were divided based on their religion and culture, which can still affect how much money people have.

Social Stratification (Wealth Differences): There are differences in wealth that can make it harder for some people to get help.

Privacy (Personal Space): People like having their own space, but it can make them seem distant or like they're keeping things private.

Allochtoon-Autochtoon Distinction (Group Separation): Sometimes, people are separated into groups based on where they or their families are from.

Frugality (Careful Spending): Being careful with money is seen as sensible, but it might seem like people are being too cheap or basic.

Now, my own opinion on why the Netherlands could be considered a good country to live in.

Reason number one, if you want to, you can live in a small town or even village, where you can go about your life pretty much without having disturbtions. Reason number two, on the other hand, you can choose to live in a city where you have easier access to your usual services, but, you might suffer a bit with the disturbance.

Summary

Certainly, here's the summary using the same grammar as your previous text:

In summary, we discussed the Netherlands' political system, its history, and key events shaping its identity. We explored the structure of Dutch politics, including its institutions like the Constitution, Parliament, Monarchy, Cabinet, Judiciary, Council of State, and other political entities. Comparing it with the United States' political system, we noted differences in governance, structure, and party dominance.

We got into five Dutch political parties, outlining their beliefs and stances. Additionally, we examined Dutch political behavior, emphasizing familial influence on voting decisions.

Dutch culture was discussed, highlighting both positive and negative ways like tolerance and diversity, patriotism, and a supportive welfare system, as well as challenges including historical divisions, social stratification, privacy concerns, group separation, and frugality.

Lastly, we provided reasons why the Netherlands is considered a desirable place to live, citing options for peaceful village life or lively city living.