Forum | Arjan Dirkse | Activity https://thecarrier.net/members/arjandirkse/activity/ Activity feed for Arjan Dirkse. Wed, 13 May 2026 10:45:01 +0000 https://buddypress.org/?v= en-US 30 hourly 2 3a65ee042045a2fbc658bc3d080d09f3 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/32/#post-147551 Tue, 12 May 2026 21:25:48 +0000 Yeah for a country that is playing the defensive side in a war scenario all they have to do to win is endure.

 

Iran has a terrible human rights record and I sympathize with Iranians who want regime change, but it’s an interesting country. It’s a sort of mix of theocracy and democracy. All the candidates and laws have to be approved by a…Read more

]]> dcace16cd34c87255d5d24e80dbb9712 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Star Wars Thread: Episode II in the forum Movies, TV and other media https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/star-wars-thread-episode-ii/page/7/#post-147546 Tue, 12 May 2026 20:15:13 +0000 Am I correct that they’re going to do some kind of origin of the Jedi movie? Or am i misremebering that?

 

I would be interested in that. I’m not very enthusiastic about the other projects that are going on…

]]> f0c26afc3b6c79518ff4e1d3b3de73c3 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/32/#post-147536 Tue, 12 May 2026 19:13:41 +0000 Bob Kagan, perhaps the most prominent neocon is American academics, has written an article in the Atlantic saying the US and Israel have utterly lost the war in Iran.

]]> 971b2a752fe14528bf78a9274618a08f Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/32/#post-147505 Mon, 11 May 2026 08:50:15 +0000 Some psychos in the Netherlands came with this flag to an asylum centre.

 

]]> e9eb1d62fd2cbb057840eda08088079c Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Mind-Expanding (non-science) things in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/mind-expanding-non-science-things/page/3/#post-147494 Sun, 10 May 2026 18:09:52 +0000 I follow some mennonites on bluesky (yes there are mennonites who use the internet) and they have interesting posts sometimes. I like these more peaceful Christian traditions.

 

They also have an interesting online magazine:

 

https://anabaptistworld.org/from-hegseth-to-rfk-jr-leaders-are-using-religion-as-symbol-not-substance/

]]> 4da1d8161232661689d40158aa4080e5 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/32/#post-147466 Sat, 09 May 2026 15:58:29 +0000 They’re building a bicycle bridge in my town across a canal, that would make traffic between Alphen and villages in the vicinity faster, for some people at least. But the whole project has been terribly delayed, I think it should have been finished more than two years ago. The cost has also spiraled. They already built the pillars on which the…Read more

]]> 8526820d70f0f41882bc101c734d7763 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/32/#post-147465 Sat, 09 May 2026 15:12:28 +0000 The conservatives are mostly a spent force though. These days they’re cucks. The kids want far right.

]]> 5b9441f919743f16757f41da5189049a Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/32/#post-147460 Fri, 08 May 2026 22:06:48 +0000 I am seriously losing hope about politics in my country. Honestly I’m not letting it ruin my mood too much, because I’m doing pretty well atm. But the whole narrative is so fucked. Everything is moving to the right.

 

It all benefits Putin by the way. We could see a Europe with AfD en Front National in power. If that happens I think it’s…Read more

]]> 21a6be2951db007ca736226430425a6d Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/32/#post-147457 Fri, 08 May 2026 16:42:48 +0000 The gesundes Volksempfinden in the Netherlands is blaming the current government for the prices of petrol. Which are obviously so high because of the blockade in the Hormuz strait.

]]> fa0009ff90d79b01739654a8cd477d79 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/32/#post-147455 Fri, 08 May 2026 10:56:25 +0000 D66 party headquarters was attacked with a firebomb.

 

https://nltimes.nl/2026/05/08/politicians-outraged-attack-d66-headquarters-motive-still-unknown

]]> aa790dcd58716f941896c15f9d6dae90 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/32/#post-147442 Thu, 07 May 2026 14:27:53 +0000 This is terrible, the US is blockading Cuba and the world is not paying attention:

 

https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2026/may/07/rubbish-health-cuba-us-oil-blockade-waste-collection-fuel-crisis-havana

]]> 4534fb3d4d9fb6a4393eceee09836f9f Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/31/#post-147421 Wed, 06 May 2026 13:34:04 +0000 But it seems to fit the pattern. There have also been many reports here in the media, and not just right wing media, but all across the board, about increased violence against medical personnel.

]]> 76951f723bf6b0594910c0f29d3e808b Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/31/#post-147418 Wed, 06 May 2026 11:28:17 +0000 Just in the news here that the Albert Heijn supermarket chain is going to give personnel bodycams to help with the agression against them. Sometimes I doubt if it is real, if the rising aggression that I think I’m seeing in the country is real or something I imagine. But stuff like this seems to confirm it.

]]> d41b148c9c246a5ee3972a2d97b813c0 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Funny pictures, images and the like in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/funny-pictures-images-and-the-like/page/26/#post-147407 Tue, 05 May 2026 20:41:21 +0000

]]> 22e2944d624c5fc659969535ea98119a Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/31/#post-147406 Tue, 05 May 2026 20:05:32 +0000 Honestly in a way I think we’re in a state of war. Politics is being messed with by Russia and possibly other actors (we should also be suspicious about the Israel and the US and even China messing with Europe, with social media, fake news etc) and it is driving some people insane. I am noticing more aggressive people out there. It can be like a…Read more

]]> d3aa167f93a06432728c8f39be39fd7d Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/31/#post-147400 Tue, 05 May 2026 09:09:21 +0000 The left in the Netherlands is fucked. If you take D66 out of the equation which is more of a centrist party, the left only has about 1/5 of the vote.

 

There are different situations in different countries in the EU but left wing parties aren’t doing well. The worst is Czechia where left wing parties have zero seats in parliament. To be fair…Read more

]]> c6b06eff8f2dd253d1e04c7d72d06a05 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/31/#post-147384 Sun, 03 May 2026 22:18:18 +0000 We have about one third of the electorate right now who would vote for extremist parties. They’re beyond reason. I’m not seeing it shrinking at the moment.

]]> 06651cdea938749eab8b74d81851c435 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Funny pictures, images and the like in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/funny-pictures-images-and-the-like/page/25/#post-147379 Sun, 03 May 2026 19:35:52 +0000

]]> 0d2498aa7a5f262c7b8c49399ef691d4 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/31/#post-147364 Sun, 03 May 2026 09:11:15 +0000 These violent anti-asylum protests have really rattled me. It’s an escalation of what has happened so far with the far right here. Gangs of people roaming around, breaking things, settting things on fire and hurling the most offensive slurs about minorities, including black people and Jews…Fascism is here.

]]> a3590fba9fc7748d534e787df05301be Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic The Random Thread Of Randomosity in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/the-random-thread-of-randomosity/page/11/#post-147349 Fri, 01 May 2026 19:03:23 +0000 Yes I am looking for other places to ride my bike. Leiden is a bit further, it’s 17 km but it’s a nice city

]]> 0898b4c87fc52a23d76d8b420a556b78 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic The Random Thread Of Randomosity in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/the-random-thread-of-randomosity/page/11/#post-147345 Fri, 01 May 2026 16:00:33 +0000 I made the bike ride to the town where I was born, 12 km away, last weekend. I stopped doing that a while ago, because of physical aches and pains, so I was a bit afraid that it would be hard to do, but it went very well. The weather was perfect for a bike ride.

]]> 295496dbe6c8748eafd828efc36fde05 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/31/#post-147339 Fri, 01 May 2026 09:08:01 +0000 I just saw a poll that said the Netherlands was one of the countries most critical of Israel, in the world…this is a huge reversal from the past. We always used to be one of the most pro-Israel countries in the world. On X it looks very different, there are a lot of posters who attack everything even slightly critical of Israel. Probably not all…Read more

]]> dfb129ac62190f6a462cb2bdf084e8fd Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Funny pictures, images and the like in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/funny-pictures-images-and-the-like/page/25/#post-147338 Fri, 01 May 2026 08:07:05 +0000

]]> 4e38a02e879eb2136587868397736718 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Funny pictures, images and the like in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/funny-pictures-images-and-the-like/page/25/#post-147327 Thu, 30 Apr 2026 13:02:55 +0000 Roman mosaic depicting a lion:

 

]]> fed13be48878d1a69993164c9eef95e0 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/31/#post-147325 Thu, 30 Apr 2026 09:34:42 +0000 https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/apr/30/europe-germany-troops-trump-threat-iran-eu-france-latest-news-updates

 

Of course Trump is terrible but Merz sucks as well. He went from saying “Trump is doing our dirty work for us” to “LOL Trump is stupid, Iran won the war”. Seeimingly forgetting he himself supported the war in Iran when it…Read more

]]> 9a38397201acd4cdf9adf56df031f953 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Music news and discussion in the forum Movies, TV and other media https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/music-news-and-discussion/page/3/#post-147297 Tue, 28 Apr 2026 20:25:06 +0000 I heard the actor who played Lord Ichimonji in Ran had died recently. He played an older character in a movie in the 80s so I would have assumed he died long ago. I rewatched it and was again blown away. The soundtrack is probably the best soundtrack ever made.

 

]]> c5afa5f199724591809b99233a920aff Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Mind-Expanding (non-science) things in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/mind-expanding-non-science-things/page/3/#post-147255 Sun, 26 Apr 2026 20:12:20 +0000 https://www.thecut.com/article/false-memory-syndrome-controversy.html

 

This is a pretty interesting piece about Jennifer Freyd, who cam up with the term DARVO (Deny, Attack, Reverse Victim and Offender) to describe a tactic abusers use to shove the blame on their victims – and her parents, who she alleged abused her, and came up with the “False…Read more

]]> 80de55c25f3b8a44ce9accec172c3675 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Funny pictures, images and the like in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/funny-pictures-images-and-the-like/page/25/#post-147227 Fri, 24 Apr 2026 18:55:38 +0000

]]> 2fd3166e8c1a291e9938c8a8da9536cc Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/31/#post-147221 Fri, 24 Apr 2026 17:30:01 +0000 Honestly the left has the right answers for most things, but some stuff the left does and says is stupid and works against them. They need to become better at the game of politics and democracy.

 

The Netherlands is becoming ever more right wing. Luckily some of the right wing parties are so crazy that the centre right won’t work with them. But…Read more

]]> 7cd6e194caf3b8361713899ac8484077 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/31/#post-147219 Fri, 24 Apr 2026 15:21:12 +0000 Yeah that core is always voting right, or today far right. The others just have to bring better ideas to the table. In a democracy you will always have the risk that the middle votes for parties willing to work with the far right.

 

(That is if they don’t vote for the far right candidate, like in the US with Trump)

]]> bfccbc24ee3460f35e9669e63ce5d944 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/31/#post-147214 Fri, 24 Apr 2026 09:03:36 +0000 Another violent anti asylum protest here.

 

Part f the problem is that right wing governments have given ever less money to asylum centres. This means many asylum seekers now need to be housed in emergency locations which are often inappropriate. This again strengthens the anti asylum sentiment.

]]> b8a8cc54f9c17b048754986b52fd79f5 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic The Food and Drink Thread in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/the-food-and-drink-thread/page/11/#post-147208 Thu, 23 Apr 2026 18:11:05 +0000 I found some tasty meat substitute products in the supermarket. I want to eat this more often. I also found a vegan chocolate milk (made with oat milk) that is tasty.

 

There was a terrible story here in the media, I won’t even repeat it because I don’t want to upset you guys but it made me reinforce my commitment to eat less meat and and dairy.…Read more

]]> 412b3f08679061bd5ca20ee69481c910 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Funny pictures, images and the like in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/funny-pictures-images-and-the-like/page/25/#post-147200 Thu, 23 Apr 2026 13:23:12 +0000 It’s interesting how with the Trump presidency you’re seeing the rising animosity between protestants (calvinists mainly) and catholics. We’re going back to the 16th century.

]]> 61e286d78259c0de127b1ef24312e911 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Star Wars Thread: Episode II in the forum Movies, TV and other media https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/star-wars-thread-episode-ii/page/7/#post-147193 Thu, 23 Apr 2026 08:05:44 +0000 How the heck do you spend 3 years writing a script for a Star Wars movie?

]]> 3d885db1ca5a7a103f2b034a57bdbc9d Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic News thread in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/news-thread/page/8/#post-147185 Wed, 22 Apr 2026 16:58:11 +0000 I think it’s an endless road if you start forbidding stuff like that…it starts with certain drugs, and you can say, OK we’ll forbid recreative use of fentanyl and crazy stuff like nitazenes because that seldom ends well…but then you get into things liek cocaine and psychedelics and I think really it should be legal to use that. Never mind…Read more

]]> 4a4937f687f69f46453dfb3d9bdcc6df Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Funny pictures, images and the like in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/funny-pictures-images-and-the-like/page/25/#post-147155 Tue, 21 Apr 2026 20:31:51 +0000

]]> bf4c4bec953021ddb75fd237389989db Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Funny pictures, images and the like in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/funny-pictures-images-and-the-like/page/25/#post-147153 Tue, 21 Apr 2026 19:50:40 +0000

]]> 32011a92da5ecedcf80c37c3e8cec9f3 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic News thread in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/news-thread/page/8/#post-147152 Tue, 21 Apr 2026 19:23:04 +0000 https://www.theguardian.com/society/2026/apr/21/bill-banning-people-born-after-2008-from-buying-tobacco-clears-uk-parliament

 

 

Noooooo don’t have fun

 

Interesting how “being a burden on the NHS” is used to take away rights.

]]> 2715efb8c8344b6b0ac6c73f9c8e62c2 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/31/#post-147138 Tue, 21 Apr 2026 07:25:37 +0000 Full Decker??

]]> 6ae74b42008860283d5534474630a413 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic The Food and Drink Thread in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/the-food-and-drink-thread/page/11/#post-147132 Mon, 20 Apr 2026 18:21:40 +0000

 

Dates are fantastic but you have to get the right ones. I had dates from the supermarket that tasted like nothing. But the medjoul dates from the greengrocer are delicious.

]]> f9fb0693b09de23c8292e2cc7e3d8f46 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/31/#post-147131 Mon, 20 Apr 2026 18:00:30 +0000

Chuck Schumer : "Of course we say it's our land, the Torah says it. But [the Palestinians] don't believe in the Torah. So, that's the reason there is not peace."

The fact that this monstrous genocidal maniac is the minority leader in the senate is a disgrace and an… pic.twitter.com/EPjU5ojtvb

— It's politics (@uspolitics1111) April 17, 2026

 

Chuck Schumer is a blut und boden ethnonationalist for Israel.

]]> 2351890c857ccfd3ba1042294b99e584 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Star Wars Thread: Episode II in the forum Movies, TV and other media https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/star-wars-thread-episode-ii/page/7/#post-147126 Mon, 20 Apr 2026 14:46:57 +0000 They’re putting Pedro Pascal in everything, the way supermarkets put beansprouts in every Asian food product they sell.

]]> 7a5f94a7642e33de8e563665cd185227 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/31/#post-147124 Mon, 20 Apr 2026 10:52:18 +0000 In the Netherlands 78 % now have a negative view of Israel but this doesn’t translate into the polls. Most voters would still vote for right wing and centrist parties that want to be pals with Israel.

 

I think it’s mostly because of a few economic issues. For instance home owners could lose the tax deduction of interest they pay on their…Read more

]]> f9e4b1eff26b90b9a4d54a3e3a96295f Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/31/#post-147094 Sun, 19 Apr 2026 10:22:48 +0000 (Still I agree the economic factor is probably the most important here.)

]]> dfbb364454e04378b349417481ac68da Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/31/#post-147093 Sun, 19 Apr 2026 09:44:11 +0000

]]> 5f783add6823cf3105e380d721f8a12d Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/31/#post-147088 Sat, 18 Apr 2026 22:14:34 +0000 I wonder if there is a connection between the modern sense of hopelessness and the decline of the birth rate. We’ve all seen those articles of GenX and millenials saying “I will not have kids, because of the climate change.” Or the more general “It is not fair to bring children into such a cruel world.”

 

]]> 999099068886cafe6554aa097c72007d Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/31/#post-147083 Sat, 18 Apr 2026 13:48:14 +0000 Replacement migration is going pretty well though. The Netherlands grew from 16 to 18 million in the last two decades and that isn’t due to births.

]]> ce2abc013fbbecd04479e934b1e5b081 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/31/#post-147076 Fri, 17 Apr 2026 19:28:54 +0000 It’s a conundrum. But Gar is probably right, at its core it’s just capitalism at work probably. Babies don’t make sense economically. That’s the hard truth, and it probably accounts for most of the decline. You can say you should counter that by spreading the conservative message that childbearing is an essential part of life, but many people just…Read more

]]> 58fbfbd5d95e3ce01e8b2e8b8f3873bc Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic News thread in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/news-thread/page/8/#post-147074 Fri, 17 Apr 2026 17:27:09 +0000 There is a bit of a backlash against metoo stuff here in the Netherlands. A Dutch singer, Marco Borsato, who was on trial for sexual assault of a minor and who was acquitted was on tv again for the first time in years, trying to do a come back. Some people firmly believe he did nothing wrng, this despite certain clear established facts, like he…Read more

]]> ae39ec643fac287a4b945a9f8f0b5857 Arjan Dirkse replied to the topic Politics and Current Affairs in the forum The Loveland Arms - pub chat https://thecarrier.net/forums/topic/politics-and-current-affairs/page/31/#post-147066 Fri, 17 Apr 2026 08:33:15 +0000 I still don’t really understand why this is happening. It’s really happening everywhere except a fe African countries.

 

I think increased wealth is one factor probably, people don’t need kids anymore to look after them when they’re old, because the state takes care of that.

]]>