Like the rest of the world, today's Dutch dailies look to Egypt and wonder "what's next?" But they also uncover a defence ministry scandal, look at what a former PM did next and mourn a man run over in his own living room.

Egypt reaches uncertain boiling point
The prospect of revolution in Egypt not only dominates today's Dutch headlines but fuels page upon page of reports, analysis and comment. The headlines first: NRC Handelsblad goes with "Revolt against Mubarak continues", while AD echoes the words of the people: "Step down Mubarak, step down!" Trouw leads with "Egyptian opposition unites" and de Volkskrant highlights the army's promise not to use force against the protestors.

De Telegraaf's headline "Situation in Egypt reaches boiling point" is accompanied by a photo of Egyptian film star Omar Sharif pointing to a massive crowd of demonstrators from a very safe distance. He tells the paper "They want the president to step down but that's only the beginning. They've no idea what should happen next." It's a sentiment shared by commentators in NRC Handelsblad who ask "Should we just be happy about the revolution? Or is there also fear of what is to come?" One warns that "without a leader, a revolution amounts to nothing". Cartoonist Hajo sums up the uncertainty by depicting a massive dice rising out of the Egyptian sand instead of a pyramid.

Egypt: the West as champion of democracy?
Support for the popular uprising is not as universal as it might seem. NRC Handelsblad notes that "Israel is keeping its fingers crossed for its friend Mubarak" and points out that "if Mubarak falls, Israel will lose its most important ally in the region". De Telegraaf also reports that the Israeli media sees US calls for an "orderly transition" of power as "a bullet in the back from Uncle Sam" and a symptom of "naive, blinkered and small-minded diplomacy".

The Israeli press may see the US as pro-revolutionary, but Egypt's revolutionaries themselves think the opposite. Trouw quotes one angry protestor who cries "What is the West waiting for? ... I thought the West stood for democracy and freedom of speech. But they are supporting this dictator, this thief, this son of a bitch Mubarak". The paper sketches the US situation as "a dreadful dilemma ... how can you support sorely needed social and political change without clearing the way for hostile regimes?" The paper goes on to report that EU foreign ministers are also hesitant to desert Mubarak, a stance some diplomats have decried as "feeble".

Such caution is linked to fear of an Islamic state rising from the ashes of Mubarak's authoritarian regime. In AD, columnist Vincent Bijlo does some soul searching about Western support for authoritarian regimes in the interests of stability and wonders if we are to blame: "If we had invested more in democracy in these countries ... we wouldn't have to be scared of Muslim fundamentalism. It's our fault to some extent, since our love of these regimes means the people who had to live under them often hate us."

Drug dealing and profiteering common practice at barracks
Closer to home, de Volkskrant uncovers a scandal within the Dutch Defence Ministry. The paper reveals that "theft and trading in drugs is the norm" at the ministry's equipment and supplies department. "At the Frederik barracks in The Hague, there's a roaring trade in illegal cigarettes, GHB, anabolic steroids, amphetamines and Viagra. Senior military officers and civilian staff cover for each other." The paper has been given access to internal documents which reveal "a culture in which abuse of power, drug dealing, theft and the use and selling off of defence equipment for your own profit are common practice".

Reports of such abuses surfaced briefly in 2010 but were dismissed by then defence mMinister Hans Hillen as nothing more than an "incident", with assurances that appropriate action had been taken. But de Volkskrant reports that "this is not the case" and that "one of the few concrete measures taken by the ministry was to transfer one of the whistleblowers". But now that a confidential letter from the ministry's own expert on military ethics has been leaked to the media, and there is talk of "an organisation in which there is a structural lack of supervision, an atmosphere of distrust and where members of staff can run their own little kingdoms", it will be interesting to see if the minister can shrug off the matter so easily second time around.

What Harry Potter did next
Okay, so he was mainly known abroad for being a Harry Potter lookalike. But let's not forget that Jan Peter Balkenende was at the political helm in the Netherlands for over eight years as prime minister of four successive governments, before bowing out of politics after his Christian Democrats took a tumble at the last general election. So what's next for our political heavyweight? NRC.next pokes fun at him on its front page today with the headline "The multinationals didn't want him" and a cartoon mock-up of Mr Balkenende's business card with the possible jobs "PM in a fifth successive government; European President; commissioner at a multinational; senior NATO position" all crossed out, with only "Advisor to a firm of accountants" left at the bottom of the list.

That's not any old firm of accountants mind you, but Ernst & Young "one of the big four - employing 144,000 people worldwide". So what did they see in the former PM that the rest of the world didn't? The paper observes cynically that Mr Balkenende's appointment "is all about his address book". But it also quotes a former political colleague who reckons this is a smart move for Ernst & Young: "Balkenende is a strong brand, national and international ... We're talking about the same Balkenende who sat in on the G20 talks. That's a boost to your status and can help drum up more business." But there's also a warning from a former consultant who has seen plenty of ex-politicians come and go. "It seems so easy but ... our world is often tough for them. One of the main problems is that they have trouble selling themselves ... They're either too tame and modest, or they shoot their mouths off."

There's no need to feel too sorry for old JPB, however. NRC.next also calculates that he's likely to be earning at least four times his prime-ministerial salary of €188,000. Nice work if you can get it ...

Man killed by car crash in his own home
Both AD and de Volkskrant report on the sad fate of 78-year-old Jan Nulkes, killed by a car crash while watching TV in his own home. A car with a Polish licence plate flew off the road in the sharp bend where Mr Nulkes house stands and careered through the wall into his living room. His wife was seriously injured in the crash. Grief-stricken neighbours tell the paper "This is so cruel and sudden. Both Jan and Helena were in the best of health." The occupants of the car fled the scene but the paper reveals that "the 'whole' town shares the same suspicion: the driver was a Pole who'd had too much to drink".

De Volkskrant links the tragedy to police statements that "the number of road accidents in the Netherlands is on the decrease, but the number of Polish nationals involved in accidents is on the rise." A police spokesman reckons that the level of alcohol intake is a major factor. "It's not that there are large numbers of Poles drunk behind the wheel. But those who are have often drunk excessively, up to four times the legal limit. You or I would be incapable of holding a normal telephone conversation, never mind driving a car."