Now dubbed the “Lying Dutchman” by the German press Robin van Helsum could face a bill of at least for his nine-month stay at the hands of Berlin’s social services. During his time in Germany he got free bed and board, clothing, German lessons and £200 a month in pocket money.
“We will file a suit for fraudulent appropriation of youth benefits during the course of the week,” Ed Koch, spokesman for the district youth welfare office, said. “We’re going to demand this money back. Whether we ever see it again, we don’t know.”
Mr Van Helsum, 20, had lived at Berlin’s expense while he maintained the fiction that he was a 17-year-old called Ray who had spent years living in the forests. His cover was only blown when old classmates in his hometown of Hengelo recognised his picture on the news. It emerged later that he had travelled to Berlin just days before he re-cast himself as Ray.
Social services also complained since his real identity became known he has failed to apologise or even say thank you.
The link is here (offers nothing extra) and for the pointer I thank Suzy Khimm.
In effect, this boy acted like Greece: Lying, coming to Germany for help, and then failing to say thanks.
I’ll say it on behalf of all europeans then: Thanks Germany, for all the great things you have done for Europe over the years.
lol win!
I don’t believe any nation has put more resources towards the cause of European unification than Germany has.
And Charter Cities.
Robin acted like Jon Corzine, although Corzine acted on behalf of his principal –he was just raising funds for his re-election.
But who is Goldman Sachs in this story?
You mean, President Goldman Sachs?
Yeah thanks for starting massive world wars, killing millions of innocent men, women, and children, etc.
Why drag France into this?
Why are you talking about Britain all of the sudden?
Good to see that Ed Koch is keeping busy.
+1
Can somebody pls. explain the headline, so that a person who is part of the culture that is Germany can understand what it wants to convey?
German courts ban religious circumcision.
Is Europe as wacky as the headlines we get?
Why not. Nobody has the right to make such a decision for a young kid against its will. Germany is a secular country not a wannabe theocracy.
Okay, thanks.
Pardon me, but what exactly is the ceontext between your reply and my question?
Wackiness.
Because cutting off part of a baby’s penis can obviously under no circumstance be construed as wacky.
http://www.who.int/hiv/topics/malecircumcision/en/
I didn’t intend to go down this road but…
No answer from the Germans on their religious intolerance of the Jews?
The point is not that ancient Jews might have had good reason for circumcision. The point is not that circumcision is great because it prevents AIDs. The point is you didn’t know. The point is you have a court creating law. The point is there are BILLIONS of people who are circumcised and if it is really “grievous bodily injury” there wouldn’t be. I haven’t heard of a single case of a child suing his parents because of circumcision. The point is because of such widespread use of the practice with virtually zero problems that it must have nothing to do with circumcision but religious intolerance. The point is that tolerance isn’t the same as participation, and I’ve never seen a European express an understanding of the difference (see the comment above equating not making it illegal to wanting to be a theocracy).
As I always say,
Europe: They will never get it.
Hello Serious Sam, I am dismayed that you haven’t received a comprehensible answer yet. I often find Tyler Cowen’s headlines confusing too! Tyler Cowen has something like a fixation with giving titles to his posts with the form: “The X that is Y”. Often X=”culture”. Some times it is “The X that is Y in [context C].” I really have no idea why Tyler does this, but it makes him happy, and that is all I can ask.
He’s saying Germans can be funny, but they darn sure won’t chuckle at themselves…
Genau…
Tyler, I was re-reading my post and I think it was at least a little condescending, for which I am sorry. To say you have a “fixation” with certain words was a base thing for me to say. I really do appreciate your blog. Sorry again, and thanks for all your work.
Best,
Robert
It’s not a reference to letting him into the geographic Eurozone; this whole situation is like a satire of the currency union. This kid basically said “Oh sure, I’m the second coming of Romulus. You know, forests and wolves and the like” and Germany gives him a crapload of money. Germany already let Greece into the Euro after they essentially cooked their books, and now this kid has fleeced them for like ~20,000 EUR. So in the context of getting fleeced first by Southern Europe and now by this kid, it’s like “Hey Germany, try not to let Forest Boy join your monetary union!”
Basically the whole thing is hilarious. Poor Germany.
Very Serious Sam June 26, 2012 at 3:05 pm
Can somebody pls. explain the headline, so that a person who is part of the culture that is Germany can understand what it wants to convey?
“Forest Boy” (aka The Lying Dutchman) is a 20 year old from the Netherlands that made up a story he had lived in the woods for five years (presumably raised by a pack of sympathetic wolves) and initially the German authorities believed him and extended aid that amounted to $5,000 Euros a month. After nine months it was determined the whole story was a lie. Since he is lying they want the taxpayers money back. Personally I don’t think the headline makes any sense; Forest Boy is already a citizen of the Eurozone, Germany just doesn’t want to extend aid under false pretenses.
More annoying to me, the original story, and Tyler’s quote from it, has a glaring typo which makes the story unreadable “Robin van Helsum could face a bill of at least ????? for his nine-month stay at the hands of Berlin’s social services.”
I remember that kid. He should see if Joaquin Phoenix will send him a check.
If you’re moving to a new city, why bother re-casting yourself with a new identity? It’s not like anybody knew him in Berlin, and he didn’t have a criminal record or anything.
You underestimate the enormous and ultimately fatal ennui young Europeans are living under. Anything to escape from the grey.
He is twenty years old. He is an adult not a boy. I guess it´s right that he should pay for its lies.
Berlin is ususally famous for its genorisity. But it gets its money from the richer southern states of Germany. Sort like the Greece of Germany.
Why not put Forest Boy in the Berlin Zoo as a forest exhibit – I bet they would recoup the money in a year.
I had to chuckle at the horrible absurdity of the idea. I picture a German politician sternly announcing that they locked this man in a cage in a zoo “because it’s funny”. Comedy gold!
Then ask him to predict the Euro 2012 winner.
This is just another instance of Germany’s moralizing fiscal austerity. Don’t they understand that now is not the time to balance the youth benefits budget? They should be thankful for the AD contributions of all the Forest Boys who buy German products. What if Germany had pretended to live in a forest for years–wouldn’t they want the same help in such a situation? It’s basic reciprocity.
+1, I think this should go in the dictionary as the example of fecitiousness.
“They should be thankful for the AD contributions of all the Forest Boys who buy German products”
If they pay for these products with their own, earned money, not with debt piled on debt, then yes.
Unfortunately, Forrest Boy or Greece Gump are addiced to debt, and this is not sustainable, sorry.
I believe Alex A. was making a joke. A pretty good one, at that.
You are indeed “Very Serious Sam”, VSS.
Well, then this *is* getting serious!
Does anyone else get the “Slow Down, you are posting too quickly” blocker, even when they haven’t commented in a week?
Does anyone think that this is like asking “Can you hear me?”.
Sorry about that. I’m under strict doctor’s orders to increase the amount of snark in my diet. To answer your question, yes, I’ve been getting spurious “Slow Down” messages too.
yup. Bloody annoying. I reported this to the bloggers some time ago.
First Joran van der Sloot and now this guy. Who knew the Dutch had so many sociopaths? They seem like such nice people.
Yeah well check out their soccer teams’ internal turmoil and intrigue, in tournament after tournament.
My question is who was calling him Ray?
Best part of story is quote from German cop, as related by the Daily Telegraph:
The boy said he thought his birth date was 20 June 1994, which would mean he turns 18 years old next week. He is being cared for by social services at a youth housing project and is attending a school in Berlin.
“At some point he will have to be given a family name, a nationality and an official date of birth – that is the law in this country,” said Mr Neuendorf.
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