Eating with Fred: the flat and primitive Dutch television offer – ThePostOnline

Sat of the week in a Zeeland beach tent for lunch with Fred, a Dutch friend from Australia. He is for a month on from Sydney, his current residence. Twenty years ago he left the country because of work Down Under . He is – after a distinguished career with a giant of an American trade company – never left.

Fred is a normal, healthy man remained holds despite acquired stature not arrogant or elitist ideas after. After several weeks Netherlands he had noticed how, after his emigration, the supply on the Dutch television had changed. Flat and primitive, called Fred’s. Especially on “those commercial networks” , he added.

Mirror of civilization

I suppressed a yawn stylish. I always get tired of drivel. Petulant, I replied: “Just like the Aborigines are a paragon of fijnbesnaardheid”
But, I thought, it would be the sliding scale on which I find myself unconsciously. loutish ‘behavior indeed everywhere here, you get used to it. No, the reason of my ignorance was that I did not watch so much television. (Although Mrs. Stevens tells you otherwise)

Fred was now no longer hold:. “When the media mirror of civilization was the money then was a demonstration of two decades patriotic progress? The new intermediate position of the Dutch sociological evolution? “

vulgar Paul de Leeuw

I took that afternoon the acid test, bought a TV guide, and indeed was scared shitless at the sight of alone program titles: the previous evening had Fred My dirty, greasy, dirty fiance , then Sun, boozing, hospital and finally Piet weather got to stow. A previous evening appeared to have been successively poor Fred gassed I’ve never done it, it will be me could not care less, Ranking the Stars (Fred: “With those scurrilous Paul Lion”) Syringes and swallowing, Herman den Blijker, Roy Donders stylist of the southern n and Bonje with neighbors .

Fred, already softened, was finally treated Utopia , which includes diffuse fumbling to genitals as a cliffhanger. With open mouth he had watched beaten everything, not even in a position to switch to something else. Fred was in the ropes. Could not resist.

The day after lunch, I called him. New appointment? That was no more. He was already packing. Fred had decided to shorten his stay and undertook the flight a week earlier than planned. And I? I’m going to live with Fred.

This column was previously published in Het Parool. Television Maker Jack Spijkerman sent in response this angry op-ed article.