Comments for The Tar Pit http://thetarpit.org "Now I feel like I know less about what that blog is about than I did before." Sun, 04 Oct 2026 16:10:24 +0000 http://thetarpit.org hourly 1 Comment on A couple of walks through the centre of Amsterdam by spyked http://thetarpit.org/2026/a-couple-of-walks-through-the-centre-of-amsterdam#comment-7935 spyked Sat, 03 Oct 2026 12:47:57 +0000 http://thetarpit.org/?p=597#comment-7935 > Amsterdam is in many ways the perfect globalist city It's also quite advanced in that respect, unlike, say, Bucharest, which has yet some (but not that many) years to walk along that way. Which makes sense if you think of it -- the Dutch were building a global empire like what, four centuries ago? > well-oiled systems For what it's worth, at least it's got that going for it. I saw one instance of repairs being done on one of the streets on Monday, but that site was gone by Wednesday. Compare that to Bucharest's Piața Unirii during the last few months. Just saying, after a while one does get tired of the crass incompetence permeating this part of Eastern Europe. Even Bulgarians are slowly getting ahead of Romanians in this game, and I suppose the Moldavian Soviet is soon to follow... and let's not talk about Ukraine; if anything, the war is keeping them on their toes, even with all the destruction they're facing. > a hologram that will one day vanish into thin air as the power is cut. I think there's something to be said about these museum towns, something that I've also noticed during my short stay in London, by the way. I don't know if you recall that part in the late intro of Brave New World, where the "civilized" folks go visit the so-called "Savage Reservation". While not (yet?) "savage" in the proper sense, I think that Europe's big capitals, or at least their "historical" centres can be viewed from this angle, where they're just a bunch of museums for the locals to visit, maybe with this or that local peculiarity, such as the legal prostitution or drug ring in Amsterdam. So the "system" that the town is built upon works -- and in that respect, there's a marked interest in keeping it running for a while still -- because it's purpose-built, not an actual town, but... well, something that vaguely resembles one. Something that's in a certain sense similar to the beach resorts that Ceaușescu built during the '70s. > Amsterdam is in many ways the perfect globalist city

It's also quite advanced in that respect, unlike, say, Bucharest, which has yet some (but not that many) years to walk along that way. Which makes sense if you think of it -- the Dutch were building a global empire like what, four centuries ago?

> well-oiled systems

For what it's worth, at least it's got that going for it. I saw one instance of repairs being done on one of the streets on Monday, but that site was gone by Wednesday. Compare that to Bucharest's Piața Unirii during the last few months.

Just saying, after a while one does get tired of the crass incompetence permeating this part of Eastern Europe. Even Bulgarians are slowly getting ahead of Romanians in this game, and I suppose the Moldavian Soviet is soon to follow... and let's not talk about Ukraine; if anything, the war is keeping them on their toes, even with all the destruction they're facing.

> a hologram that will one day vanish into thin air as the power is cut.

I think there's something to be said about these museum towns, something that I've also noticed during my short stay in London, by the way. I don't know if you recall that part in the late intro of Brave New World, where the "civilized" folks go visit the so-called "Savage Reservation". While not (yet?) "savage" in the proper sense, I think that Europe's big capitals, or at least their "historical" centres can be viewed from this angle, where they're just a bunch of museums for the locals to visit, maybe with this or that local peculiarity, such as the legal prostitution or drug ring in Amsterdam. So the "system" that the town is built upon works -- and in that respect, there's a marked interest in keeping it running for a while still -- because it's purpose-built, not an actual town, but... well, something that vaguely resembles one. Something that's in a certain sense similar to the beach resorts that Ceaușescu built during the '70s.

]]> Comment on A couple of walks through the centre of Amsterdam by Cel Mihanie http://thetarpit.org/2026/a-couple-of-walks-through-the-centre-of-amsterdam#comment-7933 Cel Mihanie Sat, 03 Oct 2026 07:01:01 +0000 http://thetarpit.org/?p=597#comment-7933 Having both visited and lived there for some time, I can say that Amsterdam is in many ways the perfect globalist city: good food and knick-knacks, plenty of "diversity" of "skin color" for enjoyers thereof, well-oiled systems, and a veneer of culture, and everything to delight the superficial NPC, all while in fact it's a ruin held together by lies and delusion, long deserted by its inhabitants, a hologram that will one day vanish into thin air as the power is cut. Having both visited and lived there for some time, I can say that Amsterdam is in many ways the perfect globalist city: good food and knick-knacks, plenty of "diversity" of "skin color" for enjoyers thereof, well-oiled systems, and a veneer of culture, and everything to delight the superficial NPC, all while in fact it's a ruin held together by lies and delusion, long deserted by its inhabitants, a hologram that will one day vanish into thin air as the power is cut.

]]> Comment on Bucharest, cca. 2025 by A couple of walks through the centre of Amsterdam « The Tar Pit http://thetarpit.org/2025/bucharest-cca-2025#comment-7903 A couple of walks through the centre of Amsterdam « The Tar Pit Sun, 27 Sep 2026 18:12:34 +0000 http://thetarpit.org/?p=573#comment-7903 [...] this, but by now, there's not that much of a difference between the orcs of Amsterdam and those of Bucharest; and with this, I suspect that the problem with Amsterdam's centre doesn't even lie as much in the [...] [...] this, but by now, there's not that much of a difference between the orcs of Amsterdam and those of Bucharest; and with this, I suspect that the problem with Amsterdam's centre doesn't even lie as much in the [...]

]]> Comment on The Platform by A couple of walks through the centre of Amsterdam « The Tar Pit http://thetarpit.org/2022/the-platform#comment-7902 A couple of walks through the centre of Amsterdam « The Tar Pit Sun, 27 Sep 2026 18:12:15 +0000 http://thetarpit.org/?p=459#comment-7902 [...] strange contrasts, amirite? This is, dear folks, the result of more two decades, give or take, of social engineering. I'm sorry, but whatever this is, I can't really call it "socialism" anymore than I can call a [...] [...] strange contrasts, amirite? This is, dear folks, the result of more two decades, give or take, of social engineering. I'm sorry, but whatever this is, I can't really call it "socialism" anymore than I can call a [...]

]]> Comment on Sibiu, cca. 2023 by A couple of walks through the centre of Amsterdam « The Tar Pit http://thetarpit.org/2023/sibiu-cca-2023#comment-7901 A couple of walks through the centre of Amsterdam « The Tar Pit Sun, 27 Sep 2026 18:12:00 +0000 http://thetarpit.org/?p=497#comment-7901 [...] aside, my first impression of Amsterdam, just like, say, Rome or Naples, or, why not, Brașov and Sibiu, was actually the very same as I'd previously highlighted in the Sibiu post: namely, that it's a [...] [...] aside, my first impression of Amsterdam, just like, say, Rome or Naples, or, why not, Brașov and Sibiu, was actually the very same as I'd previously highlighted in the Sibiu post: namely, that it's a [...]

]]> Comment on Brașov, yet again by A couple of walks through the centre of Amsterdam « The Tar Pit http://thetarpit.org/2022/brasov-yet-again#comment-7900 A couple of walks through the centre of Amsterdam « The Tar Pit Sun, 27 Sep 2026 18:11:31 +0000 http://thetarpit.org/?p=468#comment-7900 [...] aside, my first impression of Amsterdam, just like, say, Rome or Naples, or, why not, Brașov and Sibiu, was actually the very same as I'd previously highlighted in the Sibiu post: namely, that [...] [...] aside, my first impression of Amsterdam, just like, say, Rome or Naples, or, why not, Brașov and Sibiu, was actually the very same as I'd previously highlighted in the Sibiu post: namely, that [...]

]]> Comment on Los Angeles, a land of even stranger contrasts by A couple of walks through the centre of Amsterdam « The Tar Pit http://thetarpit.org/2025/los-angeles-a-land-of-even-stranger-contrasts#comment-7899 A couple of walks through the centre of Amsterdam « The Tar Pit Sun, 27 Sep 2026 18:11:13 +0000 http://thetarpit.org/?p=559#comment-7899 [...] by now I suppose I should say: The Netherlands, a land of strange contrasts, amirite? This is, dear folks, the result of more two decades, give or take, of social engineering. [...] [...] by now I suppose I should say: The Netherlands, a land of strange contrasts, amirite? This is, dear folks, the result of more two decades, give or take, of social engineering. [...]

]]> Comment on Ion Ghica, Letters to Vasile Alecsandri: From the time of Caragea [i] by A couple of walks through the centre of Amsterdam « The Tar Pit http://thetarpit.org/2021/ion-ghica-letters-to-vasile-alecsandri-from-the-time-of-caragea-i#comment-7898 A couple of walks through the centre of Amsterdam « The Tar Pit Sun, 27 Sep 2026 18:10:58 +0000 http://thetarpit.org/?p=432#comment-7898 [...] into its infrastructure for the last two decades, and the country in question is so mind-bogglingly ungovernable that everyone else is just about to give up. As an admittedly biased stupid Romanian kid, I think [...] [...] into its infrastructure for the last two decades, and the country in question is so mind-bogglingly ungovernable that everyone else is just about to give up. As an admittedly biased stupid Romanian kid, I think [...]

]]> Comment on The SF Bay Area, a land of strange contrasts by A couple of walks through the centre of Amsterdam « The Tar Pit http://thetarpit.org/2025/the-sf-bay-area-a-land-of-strange-contrasts#comment-7897 A couple of walks through the centre of Amsterdam « The Tar Pit Sun, 27 Sep 2026 18:10:43 +0000 http://thetarpit.org/?p=558#comment-7897 [...] by now I suppose I should say: The Netherlands, a land of strange contrasts, amirite? This is, dear folks, the result of more two decades, give or take, of social [...] [...] by now I suppose I should say: The Netherlands, a land of strange contrasts, amirite? This is, dear folks, the result of more two decades, give or take, of social [...]

]]> Comment on Romanians, forever pendulating between East and West by A couple of walks through the centre of Amsterdam « The Tar Pit http://thetarpit.org/2026/romanians-forever-pendulating-between-east-and-west#comment-7896 A couple of walks through the centre of Amsterdam « The Tar Pit Sun, 27 Sep 2026 18:10:28 +0000 http://thetarpit.org/?p=596#comment-7896 [...] no actual interest to do that, since it's too remote and the Russians would rather deal with all the trouble; or maybe Western Europe has been trying hard to integrate Romania into its infrastructure for the [...] [...] no actual interest to do that, since it's too remote and the Russians would rather deal with all the trouble; or maybe Western Europe has been trying hard to integrate Romania into its infrastructure for the [...]

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