Startups are easier in a country with welfare.
Discuss.
On the other hand, I often hear the meme "you gotta be in the valley" to get anywhere with funding and meeting people and being in a stimulating environment. Do those stimulating factors outweigh the benefits of the safety net?
I feel like there's a funny mix of risk vs. reward at work here.
i agree with the premise that if there's a social safety net, it would encourage entrepreneurism a lot more. in theory. in practice, it seems like people lose perspective on the "how bad can it get?" scale.
they just avoid the bottom level like the plague, more out of social stigma, i guess, than anything else. they avoid "the bottom" more than they're avoiding specifically being "homeless" or "on welfare".
1. Health Care
2. Lower Cost for employees via subsidies
3. Cheaper rent due to various rent control mechanisms and general mixed economy
There is plenty of funding up here, maybe not the mega bucks from the valley, but certainly enough to build something interesting. We work out of Station-C, www.station-c.com - a great co-working space, so that also saves us money.
All in all, I think you can start a company anywhere, but having a health care system (for you and your employees) and cheap rent makes a big difference.
Most start ups fails because the passion for the company fades because of the work involved. If you have the "safety net" of welfare then you might not be willing to put in that extra 3 hours to keep your company afloat every night.