http://www.hygienecouncil.com/us/images/high_household_hygiene_score.png My guess is that the Netherlands (which was not one of the countries included in this survey) is probably around France and Germany and perhaps a little lower.

Some people who purportedly love life in the Netherlands strangely spend a good deal of time on this site being generally disagreeable. What's that all about?

You forgot to mention the constant sneezing into the open air, sometimes in enclosed spaces or even in the lunchroom. And many servers handling food without gloves. Ill-equipped washrooms at restaurants not providing sufficient resources for the staff to wash and dry their hands. And the lunchrooms of course. Trays of bread, cold cuts and cheese spread out. Co-workers coming straight out of the washroom into the lunchroom, not being careful at all at the buffet station.

I've just been involved in another queue-jumping incident. It was the usual situation: I was waiting for at least 5 minutes and of course I was aware of my place in the queue. (Well, more a swarm than a queue.) A woman walks in, walks right up to the counter and the server asks her for her order! I'm still standing there...

 

 

 

I immediately became enraged. Chalk it up to a sense of fair play or whatever. I said something quite appropriate and not too loud.  Something in English like, 'hey, I've been waiting here for five minutes.'

 

 

 

A few seconds while the staff digest what's happening. I finally get served.

 

 

Then her response: 'it was just a mistake...you don't have to get so worked up'.

 

 

 

I'm sorry but it was not 'just a mistake'. She saw that I was there before her. The person serving must have known I was first as well, but I was invisible to her. I had been waiting for at least five minutes. So how is it 'just a mistake'?

 

 

The queue jumper shouldn't have said anything, because her muttered protest just enraged me more. I could barely contain myself from screaming at her. However, I just hissed something about 'good service' and 'waiting your turn'.

 

 

 

I suppose the problem is that I have become hyper-alert to situations of 'onbewust asociaal' behaviour. I see this as a country where people go around sh*tting all over each other and I hate it.

 

The woman said it was 'just a mistake'; I see it as a slap in the face. I see it as enraging. It's not just a social faux pas; it's a violation of one of the basic rules. It's the basis of civil society: I'll agree to wait during your inept attempts to provide service if you promise to deal with me in turn.

 

 

Plus, I was really annoyed that I had to wait so long. There are too many queues here in general.

 

 

Of course a strong reaction is called for. In this situation, I could no more come up with a quiet or witty response than I could if someone had spit in my face.

 

 

 

But obviously Dutch people just don't see queue jumping as that serious. Either that or they just see loud assertions of their rights as being inappropriate.

 

 

 

 

 

This post was edited by mikeyt at July 6, 2011 11:25:57 PM CEST

I'd like to express my ongoing annoyance and regret that the BBC's World Service to Europe has ended. For six weeks now it's been off the air and I miss it. I'm able to pick up Radio 5 but only barely. And it's not the same.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/institut...w_closure.shtml

The BBC is ceasing its 648 kHz transmissions of World Service English language radio on 27 March, 2011.

We have had to make some difficult decisions about the distribution of BBC World Service radio around the world, as a result of the Spending Review settlement that BBC World Service received at the end of 2010.

Closure of the 648 kHz service and medium wave frequencies to Russia, continues the process of withdrawing from direct broadcasts to Europe in response to a declining number of direct listeners.

However BBC World Service continues to be available in Europe by satellite, cable and online.

In the UK it is available on dedicated channels across the whole of the UK on DAB, online and on all digital TV platforms. This is in addition to overnight transmissions of BBC World Service on Radio 4 frequencies.