Online vitriol could undo decades of political progress, warns Dutch deputy PM | Netherlands | The Guardian

Online vitriol could undo decades of political progress, warns Dutch deputy PM | Netherlands | The Guardian: %u201CI%20think%20it%u2019s%20quite%20sick%2C%20frankly%2C%u201D%20said%20Kaag%2C%20a%20former%20UN%20diplomat%20who%20until%20recently%20helmed%20Democrats%2066%20%28D66%29%2C%20a%20progressive%2C%20socially%20liberal%20and%20pro-European%20party%20in%20the%20Netherlands.%20%u201CThe%20tone%20and%20the%20intimidation%20and%20the%20easy%20threats%20that%20are%20issued%20via%20social%20media%20against%20a%20broad%20range%20of%20people%20serving%20in%20the%20public%20domain%20%u2026%20it%u2019s%20become%20so%20rampant%20that%20I%20really%20feel%20it%u2019s%20up%20to%20politicians%20to%20draw%20a%20line%20in%20the%20sand.%u201D%0A%0AEarlier%20this%20year%20Kaag%2C%2061%2C%20announced%20she%20had%20decided%20to%20step%20down%20rather%20than%20lead%20her%20party%20in%20the%20Netherlands%u2019%20upcoming%20general%20elections.%20At%20the%20time%20she%20pointed%20to%20the%20toll%20that%20the%20years%20of%20%u201Chate%2C%20intimidation%20and%20threats%u201D%20had%20taken%20on%20her%20husband%20and%20children.%20%u201CI%20just%20couldn%u2019t%20do%20this%20to%20them%20again%2C%u201D%20she%20said.