This map shows the fake island kingdom the Netherlands could be if its geography fully followed its politics. In the real world, top left dogs Nijmegen and Groningen are separated by 200 kilometres, as are right wing islands Kessel and Urk.

Here’s a quick legend: links = left, rechts = right, rood = red, rijk = rich, steden = cities, and midden = middle.

The two regions that in reality do exist as geographical areas are the Bible Belt and the Rode Regio, an area that used to have a lot of communists, basically the Groningen country-side.

The map is one of two made by Weetmeer.nl, the other following more classical coastlines.

I can vouch for the position of Nijmegen, having lived there for ten years. Nijmegen’s and Groningen’s progressive and left-wing attitude may at least in part have to do with a large student body, making up ten percent of the population in the case of Nijmegen. Would the Catholic church have thought that when they started their university there in the 1920s as a bulwark against socialist forces?

(Link: Geen commentaar.)

The youth of the fishing village of Urk, Flevoland, more often than not portrayed as bored and up to no good, do enjoy their beer. Basically, if we believe the hype, Urk is a religious and conservative village where the youth have nothing to do. Online media gladly portrays them as ‘white trash’. The fact that they speak an old dialect of Dutch makes them the butt of jokes as well, sadly enough.

Since the kids are bored and turn to drinking, the mayor has decided to monitor this ‘alcohol abuse’ more closely, which apparently has been extremely successful, although I cannot vouch that this picture of just one type of beer reflects reality or an indirect marketing scheme. The Urk police station has been taken over by full crates of beer and claim that they will destroy these crates.

Is it just me or is that not very environmentally friendly? Do they plan to burn the plastic crates and throw away bottles? Why can’t they sell the beer at a country fair? I have so many questions.

(Link and photo: rtl.nl)