Hyperrealism

Yep.

And it doesn't even have to be something they find particularly interesting. People are social animals. The socialising is less important than the subject of discussion.

Hell, people will watch/do stuff they find boring, just so they can have something to chat about with colleagues or friends on a monday. A bit like that IT Crowd episode, where they pretend to care about football/soccer.

In this case, the guy picked something he guessed they probably both played as children and had some nostalgia for, resulting in a low stakes conversation while they figure out if they're attracted to each other.

It's actually a good flirting/bonding tip. Talk about something you both enjoyed as children, so the first interaction has positive associations and is relatively low stakes. Having differing opinions on some aspect of roblox isn't ever going to be a deal breaker, is it?

IT RUBS THE DECONTAMINATION GEL ON ITS SKIN OR IT GETS THE HOSE AGAIN!

Bit of tangent, but IRC the thing with depictions of Jesus, is that the bible doesn't really describe what he looks like. In early Christianity, depicting Jesus was still considered idolatry. When depictions do become more common, they're often not meant to be an accurate representation of what he looked like.

So when they did started depicting him, they were likely inspired by Greek/Roman gods like Orpheus, Hermes and Apollo. Often with a Zeus beard tacked on and wearing the robes of a Roman emperor.

I'm Dutch. The article mentions this, but I think it's important to reiterate that the idea the Netherlands is especially progressive has always been a bit of a myth. It arose partly because people mistake tolerance for acceptance. The Netherlands has long been a tolerant country. That doesn't necessarily mean it's an accepting country.

For example, the Nazis were able to murder 75% of the Dutch-Jewish population in the Holocaust. Statistically, you were arguably safer being a Jew in Nazi Germany. My countrymen tolerated their Jewish neighbours. But they didn't care enough about them, to not look the other way or prioritize their career when the Nazis came along. The Dutch are often in denial about this, a bit like how the country still hasn't fully come to terms with its colonial past.

Anyway, it's not a huge surprise that right wing populists and Russia have had such success in the Netherlands. They're exploiting a nasty seam that has always been there.

There's an interesting thing I've noticed here in Europe:

Plenty of places, partly due to corona or whatever, you no longer need to pop a coin in. Or you simply ask for a worthless plastic token that you can use instead of a coin.

But because we're all so used to returning the trolley to get our coin back, we've all been trained into returing the trolley, even if there's no reward for doing so.

A lot of it is the language barrier. Your idiots speak English. Ours often don't or not well enough for you to understand their stupid comments. The idea that everyone in Europe speaks good english is a myth. Our idiots can often barely speak one language let alone two.

However, racism and bigotry in Europe is often different to US racism, so you can end up looking like a fool if you wade in to the discussion without knowing the details. There's no point arguing with pigeons anyway, you may win the argument, but you'll still end up with shit in your hair.

Also: even if you did have a phD in European bigotry, as an American you're not going to win hearts and minds lecturing non-Americans on racism, democracy or free speech. Especially now when the boil of American predjudice has been popped and poured into a seat behind the Resolute desk.

A problem with those discussions is a lack of nuance and knowledge.

You'll get Americans, who'd hear some western Europeans complain about 'gypsies', assume they're racist against the Roma, not realising they're often talking about Irish travellers who aren't Roma at all. Not sure if the latter is racism, in the strictest sense. Invariably still bigotry though.

You'll get Eastern Europeans complaining about Roma like they're all the criminals, who are entirely oblivious to the fact that they themselves interact with Roma on regular basis without any issue. If you spend a bit of time in Eastern Europe, you'll soon realise that a lot of Roma pass as non-Roma. They often aren't considered Roma or don't openly call themselves Roma, so much so that some will even vote for a virulent racist like Orban.

Then there's the Western Europeans, who may have had bad experiences with a Roma gang (which unfortunately is a thing), who become incredibly defensive when you point out they shouldn't stereotype all Roma and end up pretending anti-Romani racism isn't a huge problem. Anti-Romani racism like when a member of Orban's Fidesz party comes out with statements calling Roma animals and describing them as a problem that needs to be solved by any means (I'm quoting almost literally).

In my experience, European racism and bigotry really is far more complex, due to the lack of a melting pot, especially outside larger cities. Far more intersectionality and added classism, nationalism, regionalism, etc. Sometimes people will hate you if you're from the wrong side of the river, and I'm only half joking.

I'm so tired of it, that once my parents die, I'll be moving to a large cosmopolitan city. Things are better there. Suppose that's not so different in the US.

Sorry for the long comment.