When you think about freedom the first country that will pop up in your head will most probably be the US. But in many cases the Netherlands can be given as a much better example of a society that enjoys many freedoms in a very tolerant, democratic and socially fair society.

Dutch morality and way of thinking are based on a few concepts. Tolerance and personal freedom are considered obligatory. Personal choice and personal privacy are sacred. These morals take an interesting form in modern Dutch society.

Marijuana

In the Netherlands you are allowed to use light drugs freely almost anywhere. On almost every corner of the main streets you can find the so called koffie shops. It is a café where you can choose from a wide variety of marijuana types. You can buy rolled cigarettes mixed with special tobaccos, you can buy your own weed in quantity to roll yourself, or you can sit down and smoke in a bong or some other device.

Compared to local living standards, cost of regular cigarettes and alcohol this kind of recreational method is actually very practical. You can see middle-aged, respectable men stopping on their way back home to buy a joint. You can go to a party or a club, light one and nobody would find it strange.

The so called space cakes are also quite popular. Recently, “mushrooms” were forbidden after a few cases of tourists overusing them and two suicides as a result.

Prostitution

Let’s face it- prostitution is the oldest profession in the world and no matter how traditional or strict one society is it will always exist. In Holland they have taken a much more practical approach to this problem. There it is legalized, controlled and taxed. There are special streets- the red light districts, where such establishments and related to them businesses are located. It is a series of window doors with a small room in the back where you can look, choose and bargain whatever you desire. There seems to be no embarrassment about walking down such a street, no awkward looks to people who might know you. If you choose to use the services of one of those ladies you can be sure that it will be safe and you will get what you have paid for.
The biggest cities such as Amsterdam, Den Hague, and Rotterdam offer a wide variety of services that will satisfy almost any client. The variety is complete- any gender, size, appearance, weight, size, height, color, fetishes that you might be interested in.

Gay Marriages

The Netherlands was the second country in the world (after Denmark) to recognize gay marriages in 2001. Whether two persons from the same sex want to get married and spend their lives together is considered a personal choice and is kept out any political or religious discussions. In such matters the Dutch-ness about personal freedom is more important that what is considered by others as proper or normal.

Euthanasia

Voluntary euthanasia is the practice of ending a person’s life in a painless manner with his consent. It has been legal for some years now in Holland. In order for a doctor to perform such a procedure the patient has to be terminally ill and there has to have the consent of one more doctor before it can be carried out.

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