Disgruntled voter puts Belgium on eBay
by Paul Ames
Associated Press
September 18, 2007
Brussels “” Hidden among the porcelain fox hounds and Burberry tablecloths on sale at eBay.be this week was an unusual item: “For Sale: Belgium, a Kingdom in three parts … free premium: the king and his court (costs not included).”
The odd ad was posted by one disgruntled Belgian in protest at his country’s political crisis, which reached a 100-day landmark on Tuesday with no end in sight to the squabbling between Flemish and Walloon politicians.
“I wanted to attract attention,” said Gerrit Six, the teacher and former journalist who posted the ad. “You almost have to throw a rock through a window to get attention for Belgium.”
Six placed the advertisement on Saturday, offering free delivery, but pointing out that the country was coming secondhand and that potential buyers would have to take on over $300 billion in national debt.
…However, the company decided to pull the ad Tuesday after receiving a bid of $14 million. [Said a company spokesperson,] “We decided to take it down, just to avoid confusion.” Read the rest of the story here.
Photo: Aawaara Sajde