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[scriver]

So about that electricity huh

[martinuzz]

Article 1 of the Dutch Constitution has been changed. After already having passed parliament twice, and senate once, the senate voted again today, and the change to Constitution was ratified with 52 in favour and 15 against. (A change to our Constitution requires that two consecutive parliaments and two consecutive senates vote in favour with at least 2/3ds majority).

It used to be

Any person staying in the Netherlands will be treated equally in equal circumstances. Discrimination on a basis of religion, philosophy of life, political affiliation, race, gender, or whatever other basis, is not allowed.

It will be

Any person staying in the Netherlands will be treated equally in equal circumstances. Discrimination on a basis of religion, philosophy of life, political affiliation, race, gender, handicap, sexual orientation, or whatever other basis, is not allowed.

With this, the rights of LGBTQ+ and people with disability are more firmly confirmed.

[da_nang]

How does "whatever other basis" work?

If the law grants privileges or imposes burdens on only a select few as determined by law, isn't that discrimination? Wouldn't high-income earners then be taxed the same as low income earners? "Equally in equal circumstances" will only ensure that you won't treated differently from others that are placed in the same box as you (same race, same sex, same income, etc.). The discrimination clause in Article 1 is necessary to prevent the government from creating these boxes, and "whatever other basis" includes any box created by statute. Only boxes created by the constitution, unless implicitly repealed by amendment, would survive an Article 1 challenge.

A functional government would therefore probably need judicial magic, as I doubt the Dutch constitution is extensive enough to cover every basis. Even a catch-all "necessity" clause would still be ripe for judicial magic abuse, as there probably isn't a metric to measure the "necessity".

[martinuzz]

Well, there's the 'Algemene Wet Gelijke Behandeling'  (common law for equal treatment), which further specifies the 'whatever other basis', and our criminal law, article 137 contains guidelines on how to penalize discrimination.
It is mostly a catch all for unfair grounds of discimination not specifically mentioned.

The equal in equal cases means that, for example, you cannot pay a different wage to men or women who do the same, or very similar work.
It does not disallow justified discrimination, like only hiring someone to be a doctor who has actually gone to med school (thereby discriminating people who did not go to med school).

Must be noted that the Dutch laws cannot be directly tested to the Constitution once they have been passed. Our Constitution is a guideline for judges and politicians, to use as a basis for passing judgement and making new laws.
It is one of the Senate's tasks to look at new legislation and see if it is in accordance with the Constitution.
And then it is a judge's task to look at the laws and see if jurisprudence is needed in cases where in practical application, new laws have friction with the Constitution.

You cannot go to court saying 'Somebody broke art. 1 of the constitution, I will sue'.
Instead you file discrimination charges, and a judge will look at the appropriate articles in the corresponding field of law (criminal law, administrative law, civil law) to pass judgement.

[Loud Whispers]

How does "whatever other basis" work?

Gingers, short, tall, people with eating disorders?

[hector13]

How does "whatever other basis" work?

Gingers, short, tall, people with eating disorders?

Those all fall under disability hohohoho.

[Loud Whispers]

Those all fall under disability hohohoho.

You've made an enemy of Scotsmen! Just like the Scots and the English, or the Scots and the Welsh, or Scots and the Japanese, or Scots and other Scots!

[Great Order]

You Scots sure are a contentious people.

[hector13]

What’s wrong with having a wee moan that gets out of hand every so often?

[TD1]

How does "whatever other basis" work?

Gingers, short, tall, people with eating disorders?

You could have all of those traits (bar one) in a single person.

[Loud Whispers]

You could have all of those traits (bar one) in a single person.

One short leg, one tall leg, prone to over-eating and starving yourself, and ginger who's also partially balding

What’s wrong with having a wee moan that gets out of hand every so often?

Moaning in public is like shaking at a urinal, a few times is acceptable, occasionally necessary, but past a certain threshold it becomes taboooooooooooo

[JoshuaFH]

You could have all of those traits (bar one) in a single person.

One short leg, one tall leg, prone to over-eating and starving yourself, and ginger who's also partially balding

What’s wrong with having a wee moan that gets out of hand every so often?

Moaning in public is like shaking at a urinal, a few times is acceptable, occasionally necessary, but past a certain threshold it becomes taboooooooooooo

OoooaaaaoooooooooOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOoooooOoooooooOOOOOOOOOOOOOOH makes sense.

[martinuzz]

Moaning in public is like shaking at a urinal, a few times is acceptable, occasionally necessary, but past a certain threshold it becomes taboooooooooooo

I have hit a hiatus in my knowledge of the english language.
What does 'shaking at a urinal' mean?

Does this mean you hit the physcial urinal building until it's chemical contents spill over the street, or does this mean you are shaking your dick in such a way that your dick rain hits your urinal neihgbors?

[Grim Portent]

I have hit a hiatus in my knowledge of the english language.
What does 'shaking at a urinal' mean?

Does this mean you hit the physcial urinal building until it's chemical contents spill over the street, or does this mean you are shaking your dick in such a way that your dick rain hits your urinal neihgbors?

Urinal etiquette in the American and somewhat in the British communities is that after you finish urinating you shake your dick (vertically usually) to get the last drops off to avoid any marks on your clothes, but no more than twice. Three or more times is considered to be impolite as it's considered borderline masturbation.

[martinuzz]

I pity those societies that are so afraid of taboo that they actually keep track of the number of dick wiggles at a urinal.

O tempora o mores