List of the coffeeshops wich have to close!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[matty223]

Amsterdammers tolerate caned tourists by ripping them off at every opportunity. They do well out of tourism.

I'm keen on ending this view of stoners as somehow being undesirable or second class citizens cos they smoke weed.. This is so much BS. For a start stoners are quiet and non confrontational on the whole. Much better than drunks, a lot less messy too. How many stoner fights have you ever seen?

Reading the trip reports on here I read about a lot of euros being pumped into the Dutch economy by stoners. Guess what. The people in this forum are just a drop in the ocean of stoners coming to amsterdam every year and spending large sums on weed,hotel,restaurants, museums, prostitutes, bars nightclubs, attractions, etc, etc.

London does well out of tourism too - lord knows they clog up the place. Can't say my income as ever been derived from tourist money in my 30 years working in London. I'm sure some Amsterdammers make money that way but imagine most don't. Think of all those shiny modern office buildings around the ring road - looks like a lot of people might work in those. GVB, NS, Albert Heijn, Hema employees etc wouldn't have suffered if the wietpass has come to pass. Most tourists to London never leave zone 1 and I wonder how many tourists ever get outside of the Grachtengordel.

I too have never seen stoners fight - seen em get robbed . What I have seen are tourists getting belligerent in bars, the Post Office even banks... along the line of 'WTF I can't smoke here - it's the Dam..!' But that is just my fellow Brits TBH.

Can't say I've noticed being ripped-off in 30 odd trips - the old 'you split my cocaine' scams not withstanding. I'm not saying that stoners are second class anything. I smoke but wouldn't just define myself as a stoner - I do other things too. Just making the point that as I find tourists in London irritating then perhaps stoned tourists (on bicycles even) might be more irritating. Maybe they're not - the Amsterdammers have a very different outlook to us grumpy Londoners and that's why I love the place. As locals have said to me more than once - 'London is a city, Amsterdam is a village'.

XXX is the city symbol. A few tourists seem to treat it as a motto.

most peopel dont even know what the 3 x's stand for,
wait , wait for it, now that everyone googled it they know

[Cry Tuff]

Can't find a link but think I read that the owner of Noon? said they could try to buy the school nearest them & close it if needed

For real ? So the education of children, in the eyes of some business owning fuckwit , is deemed as potentially disposable if it allows him to continue to sell soft drugs from his premises ? Imagine the uproar if any of the big chains mooted such a self serving proposal. What a huge cunt .

No, the education of "children" is not disposable. Relax...
I invite you to do some light reading as to what the Dutch Government considers a school, and I'm not talking about the obvious Kinder Garden.
Fuckwit... huge cunt...? Relax, roll up a fatty, do some light reading, maybe feel a little , then move on... most of us already have.
...

Im well aware of what the Dutch Government considers a school . So with that in mind, ill decline your continually tiresome and condescending invitation to ' do some light reading ' . I made a perfectly valid response to another poster and your nauseatingly smug response in no way negates it .

[Occasional Bowl]

All very sad, the ACD map will need to be re-drawn in 2014 - If they apply the 350 metre limit you won't need a map at all.

[gronin]

Dare I suggest this is a national issue? Yes, because it's a FEDERAL LAW - no coffee shops within 250 (2011)/350 (2014) meters of a school throughout the entire country.
C/S's already have been closed because of this law, it's just now being implemented with purpose within the city ring of Amsterdam.

Does anyone do any light reading anymore?
Come on folks, educate yourselves...
http://www.youthpolicy.nl/yp/Youth-Poli ... rug-policy
...

I'm aware it's a national initiative but no other Dutch municipalities have the sheer density of CSs that Amsterdam has; so have been far less affected. Not understanding your use of 'FEDERAL' at all - I wonder if you're mistaking Koninkrijk der Nederlanden with a federated republic such as the USA. Queen Beatrix has just announced her abdication but Prince Willem-Alexander is expected to inherit the throne - so not a republic (federal or not) just yet.

It's still not a matter for tourists or non-residents to get directly involved IMO. But I'm sure this board will continue to discuss the impact at length - and why not. Let's just not get into telling the Dutch what they should do in their own country?

Of course, if Uncle Ron is Dutch I would respectfully sit back and hope he'll tell us much more about the impact.

[gronin]

All very sad, the ACD map will need to be re-drawn in 2014 - If they apply the 350 metre limit you won't need a map at all.

I'm sure plenty of CSs will survive just fine and the soul of the city will remain intact. My local pub sadly shut and was subsequently demolished after the smoking ban in the UK. I still drink and still enjoy it. Elsewhere. (Still smoke a pack a day too.)

It could be argued that it is a more palatable reason for a CS to close than the reasons Rokerij closed? All that nonsense can't have helped...

When it was looking like the wietpass was going to kick in across NL, I knew I'd still be going to Amsterdam 3 or 4 times a year as it wouldn't suddenly become a crap city. If you love the city, you love the city.

[Uncle Ron]

Cry Tuff, "...continually tiresome and condescending invitation to ' do some light reading ' . I made a perfectly valid response to another poster and your nauseatingly smug response in no way negates it."
If my invitation, as you put it, is tiresome and condescending, move the fuck on then. Gee, not difficult at all. Next...
Valid response? To you perhaps...
Nauseatingly smug response?
Let's quickly review what is nauseating between out comments, shall we?
You: fuckwits and huge cunts.
Me: No, the education of "children" is not disposable. Relax...

Some make it too easy...
...

[gronin]

most peopel dont even know what the 3 x's stand for,
wait , wait for it, now that everyone googled it they know

The first time I went to Amsterdam many years ago, I had a smoke and drink and fell over one of those distinctly phallic bollards. Cursing this lump of iron, I did wonder why it had XXX on it - just like a whiskey barrel in a cartoon...

XXX derives from the Saint Andrew's cross which, of course, is also the flag of Scotland. It was used as the mark for Amsterdam registered ships from the 16th Century and extended to the city's Coat of Arms.

When used with the words 'Live' and 'Show' I suspect the saintly aspect is not as relevant.

[Uncle Ron]

Dare I suggest this is a national issue? Yes, because it's a FEDERAL LAW - no coffee shops within 250 (2011)/350 (2014) meters of a school throughout the entire country.
C/S's already have been closed because of this law, it's just now being implemented with purpose within the city ring of Amsterdam.
Does anyone do any light reading anymore?
Come on folks, educate yourselves...
http://www.youthpolicy.nl/yp/Youth-Poli ... rug-policy
...

I'm aware it's a national initiative but no other Dutch municipalities have the sheer density of CSs that Amsterdam has; so have been far less affected. Not understanding your use of 'FEDERAL' at all - I wonder if you're mistaking Koninkrijk der Nederlanden with a federated republic such as the USA. Queen Beatrix has just announced her abdication but Prince Willem-Alexander is expected to inherit the throne - so not a republic (federal or not) just yet.
It's still not a matter for tourists or non-residents to get directly involved IMO. But I'm sure this board will continue to discuss the impact at length - and why not. Let's just not get into telling the Dutch what they should do in their own country?
Of course, if Uncle Ron is Dutch I would respectfully sit back and hope he'll tell us much more about the impact.

If you are aware, then why did you say it was strictly a local issue? It's not, and if you meant so, could have mentioned it. Too easy...
Far less affected? A town has one or two shops and one or both are closed down, Amsterdam has nearly 200 and 30-40 shut down. Again, who is less affected? Moving on...
The use of Federal was meant as the governing entity of The Netherlands. King? Queen? How did they get into the conversation? Starting to lose focus...
Who's talking about tourists or non-residents? I commented on your comments about the application of law, mainly that it's not only affecting Amsterdam.
Of course, I would respectfully shut my mouth if you could educate me on the social and economic impact the closures will have on the entire country.
I'm all eyes and ears...
This is just me being tiresome, condescending, and nauseatingly smug. So this is how an educated person is looked upon. Huh, go figure...
...
Edit: On second thought, I will shut my mouth.
In the end, does it really fucking matter anyway? Nope, cause we all die.

[Occasional Bowl]

All very sad, the ACD map will need to be re-drawn in 2014 - If they apply the 350 metre limit you won't need a map at all.

I'm sure plenty of CSs will survive just fine and the soul of the city will remain intact.

Take a look at the map and look at what's already going. There will be no coffee shops on Leidseplein, extend the rule to 350 metres and you will catch The Dolphins, Happy Feelings & maybe Crush. Look at Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal, almost everything there is to be closed. If you look at the proximity of Utopia to Grey Area and Amnesia you will see that they will caught by an extension to 350 metres, Siberie likewise. The whole intention of the 250 metre rule and in 2015, the 350 metre rule, is to make sure that very few coffee shops survive, if any.

[gronin]

If you are aware, then why did you say it was strictly a local issue? It's not, and if you meant so, could have mentioned it. Too easy...
Far less affected? A town has one or two shops and one or both are closed down, Amsterdam has nearly 200 and 30-40 shut down. Again, who is less affected? Moving on...
The use of Federal was meant as the governing entity of The Netherlands. King? Queen? How did they get into the conversation? Starting to lose focus...
Who's talking about tourists or non-residents? I commented on your comments about the application of law, mainly that it's not only affecting Amsterdam.
Of course, I would respectfully shut my mouth if you could educate me on the social and economic impact the closures will have on the entire country.
I'm all eyes and ears...
This is just me being tiresome, condescending, and nauseatingly smug. So this is how an educated person is looked upon. Huh, go figure...
...
Edit: On second thought, I will shut my mouth.
In the end, does it really fucking matter anyway? Nope, cause we all die.

Educating I'm not. Proferring my vaguely informed opinion I am.

I can't imagine the economic impact will anything other than negligible. Some CSs will close. The Dutch GDP isn't predicated on weed sale or tax revenues from CSs. It's all a drop in the ocean compared to big Dutch earners like Shell, Philips or ING etc.. I'd guess that GVB alone brings in more money than the weed business.

The bigger economic issue for all the Northern EU states is when and if PT or GR manage to destroy the Euro or whether the north should continue to bail the whole thing out. Rumours of Deutschmarks and Guilders being re-printed imminently is a bigger deal than weed economics.

Socially, the wietpass is the bigger issue. Whether you see it as liberal or conservative, the Dutch like to keep certain adult pleasures pragmatically contained. The CS system has kept weed indoors and out of sight compared to, say, what the Zeedijk used to be like. The disaster of street dealing returning to those towns enforcing the pass is unlikely to remain unchallenged outside of, perhaps, the more catholic southern municipalities. Although Mayor v.d. Laan has expressed a wish to not enforce wietpass, there is a technical possibility of a judicial imposition albeit very unlikely.

NL has much more going on than stoners - local or foreign. Aren't they more conerned with a possible currency collapse (that really isn't their fault) and unpleasant far right groups (See the sorry Henk and Ingrid campaign and murder in the run up to the last election).

It must be great to be educated. I'm most certainly not. Not an exam pass to my name. I just read the news and try to make the most of what brains I have.

And you're quite right - we will all die. I hope I'll continue to find my pleasures until then. It's good to be existential...

(As for the monarch references, that was simply a veiled dig. Your shouty use of the word 'FEDERAL' (so loud!) made me think of Americans who insist on translating the rest of the world in their own parochial way. I'm still no clearer whether I was way off-target or not...)

But do write in - we read every letter.

[gronin]

All very sad, the ACD map will need to be re-drawn in 2014 - If they apply the 350 metre limit you won't need a map at all.

I'm sure plenty of CSs will survive just fine and the soul of the city will remain intact.

Take a look at the map and look at what's already going. There will be no coffee shops on Leidseplein, extend the rule to 350 metres and you will catch The Dolphins, Happy Feelings & maybe Crush. Look at Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal, almost everything there is to be closed. If you look at the proximity of Utopia to Grey Area and Amnesia you will see that they will caught by an extension to 350 metres, Siberie likewise. The whole intention of the 250 metre rule and in 2015, the 350 metre rule, is to make sure that very few coffee shops survive, if any.

Ah well - it'll still be my favourite city. I can get weed in my own city so life goes on. I'm starting to wonder if some people don't see Amsterdam in any other way than weed and Febos. As a Londoner - to walk down the Singel and actually hear the birds and church bells means a lot.

This thread's starting to feel a bit fraught. Smokers are chilled aren't they?

[Occasional Bowl]

Ah well - it'll still be my favourite city. I can get weed in my own city so life goes on. I'm starting to wonder if some people don't see Amsterdam in any other way than weed and Febos. As a Londoner - to walk down the Singel and actually hear the birds and church bells means a lot.

This thread's starting to feel a bit fraught. Smokers are chilled aren't they?

OK you've done your trolling now go away.

[treetop]

... ..........The whole intention of the 250 metre rule and in 2015, the 350 metre rule, is to make sure that very few coffee shops survive, if any.

Ladies and gentlemen we have a winner.

This thread's starting to feel a bit fraught. Smokers are chilled aren't they?

THEY?

A good troller drops his guard just a little bit.......

OK you've done your trolling now go away.

.......and gets busted.

Gronin I like your posts. They are knowledgeable and informative. You write well. You attend to the idea of not talking about this issue as non residents/nationals yet your contributions have stimulated debate and information exchange on this thread.

Many thanks.

Please continue.

[spidergawd]

Ah well - it'll still be my favourite city. I can get weed in my own city so life goes on. I'm starting to wonder if some people don't see Amsterdam in any other way than weed and Febos. As a Londoner - to walk down the Singel and actually hear the birds and church bells means a lot.

This thread's starting to feel a bit fraught. Smokers are chilled aren't they?

OK you've done your trolling now go away.

What are you on about, this guys posts are among the more coherent and respectful contributions, why would you accuse him of trolling? Unless your just sucking up to the resident smartarse. Neeeext!!!

[treetop]

^^^^^^^

IMHO it is possible to be both coherent, respectful and trolling all at the same time. This guy is a good example.

ps - Who is the resident smartarse?