Stephen Snelders Livres

By rebelling against hierarchical society and living under the Jolly Roger, pirates created an upside-down world of anarchist organization and festival, with violence and death ever-present. This creation was not a purely whimsical process. In The Devil's Anarchy, Stephen Snelders examines rare seventeenth century Dutch pirate histories to show the continuity of a shared pirate culture, embodied in its modes of organization, methods of distributing booty and resolving disputes, and tendencies for high living. Focusing on the careers of Claes Compaen, a cunning, charismatic renegado who claimed to have stolen more than 350 vessels, and Jan Erasmus Reyning, who hit the seas at age twelve and became a buccaneer in the pirate jungles of Santo Domingo, Snelders paints a salty picture of the excesses, contradictions, and liberatory joys of pirate life. Now in its second edition, featuring a new introduction!

Focusing on the historical and cultural evolution of the Netherlands, the book explores how it became a pivotal center for the global illegal drug trade in the 20th century. It introduces the concept of 'criminal anarchy,' illustrating how this phenomenon is deeply rooted in Dutch society. By analyzing the shortcomings of regulatory policies and law enforcement, the narrative reveals the complex interplay between societal norms and the drug trade's persistence.

Focusing on the historical interplay between leprosy and colonialism in Suriname, the book delves into the impact of Dutch colonial power and racial conflicts on the stigmatization of individuals affected by the disease. It traces the evolution of societal attitudes from the plantation era through to modern colonial governance, highlighting how these attitudes are rooted in the legacy of slavery. By examining both colonial perspectives and the experiences of marginalized communities, it sheds light on the neglected Caribbean origins of contemporary approaches to leprosy management and understanding.

Why did the international drug regulatory regime of the twentieth century fail to stop an explosive increase in trade and consumption of illegal drugs? This book investigates the histories of smugglers and criminal entrepreneurs in the Netherlands who succeeded in turning the country into the so-called ‘Colombia of Europe’.Increasing state regulations and interventions led to the proliferation of a ‘hydra’ of small, anarchic groups and networks ideally suited to circumvent the enforcement of regulation. Smugglers and suppliers of heroin, cocaine, cannabis, and other drugs created a thriving underground industry of illegal synthetic drug labs and indoor cannabis cultivation in the Netherlands itself, made possible because of the embedded criminal anarchy in Dutch society.Using examples from the rich history of drug smuggling, Drug smuggler nation investigates the hidden grounds of the illegal drug trade, and its effects on our drug policies.