Whoo.. that was quite a read. Interesting article, Picard. Good to see you're posting heavy stuff again :P
It seems a bit written from a libertarian point of view. Laissez-fair as the ultimate way of governing a state. The golden age, was not golden for everyone. There were many paupers in the city who lived a wretched life. Economically and intellectually the Netherlands might have prospered, but the general standard of living was way lower then it is today. Off course it was this way in every European country... Today it's a different story. Though we're not the Honk-Kong of the 21st century, the SOL is quite high. Off course this means red tape and regulations, but nonetheless, poverty is quite low (allthough it has been increasing during the last 10 years... funnily ehough).
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