Will Amsterdam coffee shops all be shut down by 2010?
I’ve seen this article before and others like it already for several years (with a shifting date of closure) Personally I don’t see it happening and it has nothing to do with tourism or loss of revenue, but more to do with the simple pragmatic reasoning for the policy of toleration behind the policies (health and dealing with issues rather than sweeping it under the carpet by calling it illegal) If you read the article you will see it focuses in a large part on the issues raised by drug tourism in the bordering cities and towns with Germany & Belgium. There is an influx of German, Belgian and French tourists to small communities with coffeeshops and the nusiances caused. I have spent a lot of time working in Bergen op Zoom and Roosendaal which are two of the places which have had this, and the local perception is one of infuriation with litter, nusiance and a small increase in disordaly conduct. Basically people there feel that their small communuities are being invaded with people int
