Readings from Geert Mak's Amsterdam

Out of the reading from Geert Mak’s book, Amsterdam, I was struck with the Dutch’s inconsistency between being culturally tolerant and being the chief deporters of Jews during WWII from Amsterdam. It is clear that the Germans did take advantage of the Dutch ability to effectively strategize and organize themselves and their city. Thus, by gradually directing them towards their goal of deporting Jews, they would leave the Dutch to manage the raids and train stations by themselves. This is similar to a concept I learned in psychology where people could be gradually groomed to perform a specific task they would originally object. For example, a person being trained to be a prison torturer could start out as guarding the door to the torture chamber so he would be partly desensitized before being allowed to commit torture himself. My first question is – if the Dutch were fully aware of the consequences of their actions, would they still have gone along with it?

Another aspect of the Dutch the book mentioned about was their avarice. This was portrayed in the most sadistic way during the deportations in WWII where fellow Dutch would literally hand over Jews who could no longer “bribe” their hosts to hide them from the raids. My second question is – how did their “legendary avarice” come about and how was it promoted in their culture?

Lastly, chapter 10 focused mainly on how Amsterdam developed after the Germans left and the internal turmoil the Dutch faced as they adapted modernity. Thus, my last question is - with all their rich history and new developments, how were they able to maintain and promote the peaceful habitation of their citizens?