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I do wonder why the UK scene doesn't seem quite so vibrant

You just go through a list of state-required benefits or drains on individual risk taking and then you wonder at why the startup scene isn't quite so vibrant?

Risk taking requires the ability to... uh... take risks.

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AFAIK Israel has more startups per capita than any other country in the world, but the legally mandated benefits are very similar to those in the UK (with slightly less vacation time).

Actually, I think some form of social safety net is supportive of very entrepreneurs. From personal experience, the only people I know who quit their job to work full time on a startup had significant savings from previous jobs. Also it's quite common in Israel to start working on your startup while getting unemployment benefits.

The difference between the UK startup scene & SF has nothing to do with benefits & everything to do with investor culture IMO.

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