@aeveltstra Indeed, as someone who lives in the Netherlands trying to live and act as Dutch people do I often face this from Americans on the fediverse.

@freemo Indeed. I am a Dutch immigrant in the USA, and my American spouse has lived in the Netherlands for nearly a decade.

@aeveltstra My condolences. I fled the USA and feel bad for anyone still stuck there, especially a Dutch person :)

@freemo Yeah. We're sticking it out as long as possible and hope the next elections will vote out the nazis.

@aeveltstra I actually had to leave due to the violence both witnessed and inflected on me fromt he left, not the right. Though I do agree the nazi side of the racism, which tends to be concentrated on the right, is also a problem. But the reason i fled was because the left became worse than the right in america so I felt if trump got voted out it would likely be a democrat and the violence would escalate.. Plus if trump stayed in office we would have the violence and the racism from the right so thats no better.

In the end voting for either side wouldnt solve the problem that cause me to fled. But the day I saw slef-proclaimed left antifa throwing explosives at an old couple in a MAGA hat was horrific.

@freemo You'll find extremists among the Dutch antifa as well. I should know: I've been involved in Dutch politics for decades. There's always going to be people who think that their case can be made through violence, only. And yet, there's a big difference between people seeking ethnocide, and those fighting them.

@freemo I prefer to limit violence to self-defence or defense of my loved ones. Throwing bombs at old people just because they wear a MAGA hat I find highly questionable. Unless that old couple was mr. Spencer and spouse, in which case I can appreciate it.

@aeveltstra yea i cant disagree with what you said, but in the end i have to compare what i expiernce here vs there.

In america I was the target of constant violence, verbal abuse, and a near constant stream of aggression from the left. This isnt for any support of the right, i am very vocally anti-right, but I am also vocally anti-left (the american form of left). This alone made me a target.

It was bad enough to far for my life on a daily basis.

Yes there are extremists everywhere but not to that extent. Here in the netherlands i voice the same opinions I always have, yet never once been attacked verbally or physically, the difference is stark.

So I'm really comparing a few extremists (in the netherlands) to the status quo on the left in america. At least in my eyes thats not comparable.

As I said im also anti-right, i make no excuses for the right either and understand any hate people have for them. But that doesnt excuse what I personally had to deal with either.