Saturday, 9 April 2016

LIFT Vlog Episode 66: A tribute to Brussels

Hi guys, I will be releasing four videos from my recent trip to Belgium. It wouldn't feel right to do a travel-type vlog to begin with, especially when Brussels is still a city in shock after the terrible terrorist attacks on the 22 March 2016. So the first of these four videos will be a tribute to the pain that the people of Brussels are feeling right now. Having lived and worked in Belgium, I share the pain of the Belgian people. I always feel so at home in Belgium, especially in the French speaking cities since French is my second language. I have also included a link to one of my favourite songs by a Belgian artiste Kate Ryan - well, it is actually her cover of a classic French song Désenchantée. If you understand French, then the lyrics are very apt for this current situation. Thanks for watching, merci beaucoup, dank je wel.

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3 comments:

  1. Anonymous11 April 2016 at 11:48

    Hi limpeh,

    Since we are on the topic of terrorism, do you feel the European authorities are too lax on when it comes to deterring terrorism. For example, if terrorist like Salah Abdeslam were Singaporeans, I can assure you our over kiasu authorities will detain them under the ISA long ago.

    It sometimes amaze me that EU authorities can let go of people with clear terrorist links roam throughout or not arrest them for fear of being called a racist.

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    Replies
    1. Limpeh Foreign Talent11 April 2016 at 18:37

      Hi there, I don't have all the answers but for what it is worth, let me attempt to give you my perspective on the situation.

      We have a large, sizable Muslim population in Europe who are poorly integrated. Now that's not to suggest that they are up to anything criminal - but they exist in a world of their own, they do not assimilate, they have different values, for example, despite European countries having very liberal laws on homosexuality, they still believe that being gay is wrong and should be illegal.

      This creates an ideal situation for Muslims in Europe to become radicalized, when they are poorly assimilated to begin with. However, out of 100 poorly assimilated Muslims in Europe, how many do you think end up radicalized and becoming terrorists? Very very few. Less than 1 out of 100.

      Trying to identify those with real criminal intent from those Muslims who are very poorly assimilated but have little or no intention to break the law may be harder than you think - for example, yes there are Muslims who believe in Sharia law, they believe that women should be veiled, they believe that gays should be executed etc - but how many of them will go out there and act upon these beliefs and do something like blow up an airport (that's what happened in Brussels).

      Well, if they go too far and arrest/interrogate all Muslims who have extreme views (but have yet to cross the line into committing criminal acts), then it would only create a situation where more Muslims would be radicalized, if the state is perceived to be anti-Islam - it's not so much a question of fearing to be called a racist, but there is a very fine line between someone who is a true criminal and someone who has ideas you do not like (but has no real intent to commit any acts of terrorism).

      Does that answer your question?

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  2. Limpeh Foreign Talent12 April 2016 at 18:52

    I was contacted today by a TV production company in Germany:

    I’m working for ECO Media - a German TV production company based in Hamburg.

    We’re currently working on a documentary about the attacks in Brussels. It will contain amateur footage from the day of the attacks and interviews with eye-witnesses in Brussels.



    ECO Media produces high standard and award winning documentaries in the fields of Politics, Culture and Science (www.ecomediatv.de/en.html). The documentary is a project for our online platform www.dbate.de .



    During my research I found your video “A Tribute to Brussels” and was deeply moved by your recordings.

    We would like to use your recordings non-exclusively and solely to illustrate the experiences of the witnesses we’re currently interviewing.

    Of course, you stay the copyright owner and of course we will credit you and your websites (if you wish).

    Thank you so much for your help. If you have any questions concerning us or the project, I would be more than happy to answer them. I look forward to hearing from you soon.



    Best wishes,

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