I'm from Belgium and the same sentiment applies. The "safety net" here refers to protections encoded in both the law and how social and communal structures and

I'm from Belgium and the same sentiment applies. The "safety net" here refers to protections encoded in both the law and how social and communal structures and services are designed to work. While you can always reach to your family (if you have one...), you probably don't have to or great deal of "bad things" need to happen for a prolonged period of time before you will need to consider this as an option. Simply put, when it comes to your work environment, healthcare, housing, ability to put food on the table and access essential services like water, electricity, internet etc. - there are systems in place to reduce risk and "surprises", ensure your survival and equip you with the ability to tackle general "stuff of life". That's (in part) also why we pay very high taxes.