Yeah, I missed last month's "fiery, head-on collision" between "Dutch and American values" (???). I apologize.

Jeff Bezos wanted the city of Rotterdam to temporarily dismantle a portion of an historic bridge so that he could sail his new $417,000,000 yacht down the channel the bridge crossed and out to sea.

The whole process would have taken a day or two and Oceanco [the yacht's manufacturer] would have covered the costs.

Also worth noting: The bridge, [called locally the "Hef"] a lattice of moss-green steel in the shape of a hulking “H,” is not actually used by anyone. 😂 It served as a railroad bridge for decades until it was replaced by a tunnel and decommissioned in the early 1990s. It’s been idle ever since.

In sum, the operation would have been fast, free and disrupted nothing. So why the fuss?
...
The first problem was the astounding wealth of Mr. Bezos.
...
“There’s a principle at stake,” said [Stephan Lewis, former city councilman], a tall, bearded 37-year-old who was leaning against his bike and toggling during an interview between wry humor and indignation. He then framed the principle with a series of questions. “What can you buy if you have unlimited cash? Can you bend every rule? Can you take apart monuments?”

Ah jeez, once you get to "principle", you're fucked.

It was an opportunity to see Dutch and American values in a fiery, head-on collision. The more you know about the Netherlands — with its preference for modesty over extravagance, for the community over the individual, for fitting in rather than standing out — the more it seems as though this kerfuffle was scripted by someone whose goal was to drive people here out of their minds. 😂

I am down with Netherlandish principles, foursquare ag'in the "pursuit of happiness."

In late June, the city’s vice mayor reported that Oceanco had withdrawn its request to dismantle the Hef, a retreat that was portrayed as a victory of the masses over a billionaire...

God damn, Rotterdam, you did it! Ich bin ein Rotterdammer.