The best approximation of "gedogen" in English is "tolerate." Tolerance is passive, though. Gedogen is active. Gedogen is an open-eyed tolerance, and a matter of governmental policy.

If there is a social matter that will not allow a concrete solution, the Dutch will "gedoog" it; they will allow a flexibility in enforcement — not by ignoring the behavior, but by accommodating it.

The examples of official tolerance that foreigners will typically recognize are those concerning prostitution* and "soft drugs."

The Dutch acknowledge, officially and with intensive debate, that sometimes eradication of a problem is impractical — and for that reason may be an inappropriate objective.

Indeed, the concept of "problem" is a matter subject to interpretation. Predisposed morality colors the debate about the supposed "problems" of paid sex and socially-benign drugs. Predisposed morality is a factor. There are many others — and the act of "gedogen" acknowledges this.

A Dutch girlfriend gave me the best definition of "gedogen" that I've heard: "not legal, but not illegal."

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