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Going Dutch
May. 6th, 2009 05:38 pmThis very good article describes an American ex-pat's experiences with the Dutch social system. A few points resonated with me in particular, since I live in a socialist system as well:
1) More social safety net does not translate to more laziness or less work for the vast, vast majority of people. On the contrary, it makes people more secure, which means they're able to pursue work they might not be able to afford if they were tied to a health insurance provider (for example.)
2) The roots of socialism in Canada, as in the Netherlands, are deeply religious. They grew out of the Reform Protestant movement to find the most efficient ways to help widows and orphans and anyone else who needed it. The difference is primarily in who we expect will pick up the tab. When times get tough, it gets harder to rely on voluntary charity, because people who lose their jobs tend to stop giving out of necessity. The government has much better resources at its disposal for tiding itself over the lean times. The other difference, of course, is that the non-religious or non-organized religious can buy into a social welfare system where they may not be willing to buy into an overtly religious one.
3) There's a sense of community in Canada, a feeling that if everyone is pulling along fairly well, we're all better for it. The individualism in the States puts a high value on charity being voluntary, theoretically as opposed to the forced charity of taxes. But voluntary charity is charity that can't be counted on to be there when you need it.
It's a good article, especially if your worldview leans towards a strict division between left and right politically.
1) More social safety net does not translate to more laziness or less work for the vast, vast majority of people. On the contrary, it makes people more secure, which means they're able to pursue work they might not be able to afford if they were tied to a health insurance provider (for example.)
2) The roots of socialism in Canada, as in the Netherlands, are deeply religious. They grew out of the Reform Protestant movement to find the most efficient ways to help widows and orphans and anyone else who needed it. The difference is primarily in who we expect will pick up the tab. When times get tough, it gets harder to rely on voluntary charity, because people who lose their jobs tend to stop giving out of necessity. The government has much better resources at its disposal for tiding itself over the lean times. The other difference, of course, is that the non-religious or non-organized religious can buy into a social welfare system where they may not be willing to buy into an overtly religious one.
3) There's a sense of community in Canada, a feeling that if everyone is pulling along fairly well, we're all better for it. The individualism in the States puts a high value on charity being voluntary, theoretically as opposed to the forced charity of taxes. But voluntary charity is charity that can't be counted on to be there when you need it.
It's a good article, especially if your worldview leans towards a strict division between left and right politically.