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[[Eindhoven]] is the location of the giant electronics corporation, Philips (full name: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V.), with annual revenue equivalent to about $40 billion. (The U.S. corporation [[General Electric]] has revenues of about $150 billion, but much of it is from non-electronics businesses).

[[Eindhoven]] is the location of the giant electronics corporation, Philips (full name: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V.), with annual revenue equivalent to about $40 billion. (The U.S. corporation [[General Electric]] has revenues of about $150 billion, but much of it is from non-electronics businesses).

The Netherlands has long been famous for its production of flowers, and also for a related economic event, the "tulip mania" of 1636-1637. A classic example of a "bubble," [[tulip]]s were traded on stock exchanges, and bid up to fantastic prices by people who understood that the prices were crazy but hoped to sell at a profit to even crazier investors. As with all bubbles, when bidding began to lag, people tried to sell and the bubble burst.

The Netherlands has long been famous for its production of flowers, and also for a related economic event, the "tulip mania" of 1636-1637. A classic example of a "bubble," [[tulip]]s were traded on stock exchanges, and bid up to fantastic prices by people who understood that the prices were crazy but hoped to sell at a profit to even crazier investors. Many people mortgaged their homes for a single tulip bulb and in one case an entire brewery was exchanged for few bulbs. As with all bubbles, when bidding began to lag people tried to sell and the bubble burst with disastrous consequences.  Since then the Dutch have been renowned for their carefulness with money and have established a significant presence in the banking and financial sectors.

The Netherlands is also famous for its low-crime rate and [[liberal]] legislation. Examples are organized prostitution in designated areas of major cities, such as Amsterdam's Red Light District, the legal [[soft drugs]] sold in the country's many coffee shops, wide [[abortion]] rights, [[same-sex marriage]]s and [[euthanasia]]. Drug abuse is not a major problem in Netherlands, since people are not made to feel so guilty about using cannabis. The only problem is that many people come from abroad, who don't understand the liberal idea but only want to get high. Many also think hard drugs were legal, which is not true. It's all a matter of defining where the border between good and bad drugs goes. One should remember that every day many people are given opiates and heroin-replacements as medical treatment of various diseases of old age.

The Netherlands is also famous for its low-crime rate and [[liberal]] legislation. Examples are organized prostitution in designated areas of major cities, such as Amsterdam's Red Light District, the legal [[soft drugs]] sold in the country's many coffee shops, wide [[abortion]] rights, [[same-sex marriage]]s and [[euthanasia]]. Drug abuse is not a major problem in Netherlands, since people are not made to feel so guilty about using cannabis. The only problem is that many people come from abroad, who don't understand the liberal idea but only want to get high. Many also think hard drugs were legal, which is not true. It's all a matter of defining where the border between good and bad drugs goes. One should remember that every day many people are given opiates and heroin-replacements as medical treatment of various diseases of old age.