4 ms·

As a dutch citizen the idea that you would rank the states above and beyond our nation is offensive and idiotic. What on earth would make you qualify the situa

by ralfn 14y ago

As a dutch citizen the idea that you would rank the states above and beyond our nation is offensive and idiotic. What on earth would make you qualify the situation like that?

rdl 14y ago
The Netherlands, while a nice place to live, is a small country and not a world power (it was maybe during the time of the VOC, but not before or since). It's also a very difficult place to start a successful high-growth technology business, for a variety of reasons -- a culture of consensus and the "dutch disease" (natural resources curse) being primary.
- ralfn 14y ago
  Whats the natural resources curse? -- all right, ive read it I think the final paragraph gets it right: gov pending was at an all time high in that decade. And it sounds like, most of the supposed risks no longer apply, because of the Euro. But you are correct in that Holland isnt the best place for a startup.
  - rdl 14y ago
    One specific example: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_disease http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_disease Basically, once you discover natural resources (in the case of NL, natural gas), it crowds out all other activity. You can earn a great return from exploiting the resource, so the best people, best capital, etc. goes into that. With floating exchange rates, you get currency inflation, but you can have the same problems even with fixed exchange rates or common currency. A bigger problem is the general "resource curse". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resource_curse http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resource_curse I remember talking to people who said "at least we (Afghans) don't have oil, then we'd really be screwed."
    - ralfn 14y ago
      But thats not the biggest reason Holland is a bad place for a startup. Its our mentality. Americans are in favour of a person being extraordinary, the dutch are not. We cherish "acting normal". One of the most used expressions is "act normal, and you'll already be weird enough" Generally speaking, this is not a bad thing. The amount of attention whores and drama queens is much lower than the states. But for truly remarkable people, this does not make their perfect habitat. Theyll need thick skins.

by ralfn 14y ago

As a dutch citizen the idea that you would rank the states above and beyond our nation is offensive and idiotic. What on earth would make you qualify the situation like that?

rdl 14y ago

The Netherlands, while a nice place to live, is a small country and not a world power (it was maybe during the time of the VOC, but not before or since). It's also a very difficult place to start a successful high-growth technology business, for a variety of reasons -- a culture of consensus and the "dutch disease" (natural resources curse) being primary.

ralfn 14y ago
Whats the natural resources curse? -- all right, ive read it I think the final paragraph gets it right: gov pending was at an all time high in that decade. And it sounds like, most of the supposed risks no longer apply, because of the Euro. But you are correct in that Holland isnt the best place for a startup.
- rdl 14y ago
  One specific example: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_disease http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_disease Basically, once you discover natural resources (in the case of NL, natural gas), it crowds out all other activity. You can earn a great return from exploiting the resource, so the best people, best capital, etc. goes into that. With floating exchange rates, you get currency inflation, but you can have the same problems even with fixed exchange rates or common currency. A bigger problem is the general "resource curse". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resource_curse http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resource_curse I remember talking to people who said "at least we (Afghans) don't have oil, then we'd really be screwed."
  - ralfn 14y ago
    But thats not the biggest reason Holland is a bad place for a startup. Its our mentality. Americans are in favour of a person being extraordinary, the dutch are not. We cherish "acting normal". One of the most used expressions is "act normal, and you'll already be weird enough" Generally speaking, this is not a bad thing. The amount of attention whores and drama queens is much lower than the states. But for truly remarkable people, this does not make their perfect habitat. Theyll need thick skins.