The power of positive thinking can make miracles, according to some. A Dutch court disagreed, at least when it concerns turning back the hands of time.
Emile Ratelband—frequently referred to as “positivity trainer,” although he calls himself an “entrepreneur in personal development—filed suit last month to change his birthday, according to the BBC. The 69-year-old said that he felt age discrimination and that it affected his ability to work and get dates on Tinder.
“When I’m 69, I am limited. If I’m 49, then I can buy a new house, drive a different car. I can take up more work,” he told the BBC. “When I’m on Tinder and it says I’m 69, I don’t get an answer. When I’m 49, with the face I have, I will be in a luxurious position.”
Although Ratelband argued that at a time when people can change their names or even their genders, opting for a different age should be allowed.
The court wrote, ” Mr. Ratelband is at liberty to feel 20 years younger than his real age and to act accordingly. But amending his date of birth would cause 20 years of records to vanish from the register of births, deaths, marriages and registered partnerships.”
That must be a Dutch legal translation of swipe left.