Column | We want to hit back, it must look a lot, but of course it shouldn’t really hurt

The EU hits back. And how! In rice, corn, soybeans, jewelry, luxury yachts, orange juice, poultry, meat and tobacco, among other things, a levy comes in response to their levy. She will learn that! Fortunately not yet on butter, the Irish are like the death that the Americans then put something else on their bread as a counter -measure, totally dependent on the delivery of dairy products on a few thousand kilometers away. In silence, the thoughts go to our government. Are they getting hard enough for the cheeses from Gouda and Edam in Brussels? And for the tulip bulbs? Leave American cheeses and plants alone!

I missed the jeans on the list, it probably spoke about that, but then you really make them very angry, even more angry than they are on us. And moreover the signal is really clear: Europe does not let it run over it!

The Americans will find our countermeasures a lot, but not really very much! We want to hit back, it must look a lot, but of course it shouldn’t really hurt. As far as we are concerned, this is not a real war, but a row between two former friends in the schoolyard. We are not really angry: we can fool with us! Just put us on the mouth, but then please call for a conversation.

And now we hope that he, President Trump, responds reasonably well to the friendly countermeasures. Something he has never done so far. And with the next fist? Then we will turn the other cheek, and we will try to keep that up for as long as possible, perhaps that we – a pity but unfortunately for the Irish – still come up with a sandwich tax, but otherwise we will unfortunately have no tooth in our mouths.

And then we admit, because we are the reasonable party, after all, we are always talking to us. Internally it will give some hassle: if we had admitted immediately, we would have had a teeth. It doesn’t look when you look in the mirror, but what can you care? Our best friend – far away, but in mind still close – says you don’t see it.

Marcel van Roosmalen Writes a column on Monday and Thursday.

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