More on the question of language in Holland

A good test of a speaker's diction is to ask a non-native speaker of that person's language for an assessment. It is ironic that for a non-native (conservative) speaker of Dutch like me, two of the best speakers in Dutch public life are Femke Halsema and Wouter Bos, the latter being the leader of the Dutch Labor Party (PvDa). They are to be congratulated both for the refinement and economy of their expression and the clarity of speaking voice.

There are some well-known figures in Holland whose language is so coarse and broad and their speaking voice so garbled, sloppy and nasal that I can often only guess at what they're saying. That may be all right for someone digging holes in the road, but not for a public figure.

It's a pity this is not noted in Holland (I have never heard it mentioned) because Halsema and Bos set an example for many in public life who seem to take delight in the crudity and coarseness of their speech. As I have said many times, two things impress me about the Dutch media: first the unabashed anti-Catholic bigotry; and second, the unbelievable crudity of language, in Dutch and English, the English sometimes used in the most inappropriate circumstances.