Do you have to be Dutch to understand socialism?
No.
But it helps to know what the word actually means, what it looks like in practice in what effect it has on people and societies.
I could write about this for hours but to put it simply:
1. Socialism is not communism, bolshevism, fascism or any other totalitarian system.
2. Socialism is quite common, even in America (Public schools, OSHA laws, food stamps, medicaid etc...)
3. Socialism is quite successful. Among the countries with best healthcare, best standards of living etc.. this is often attributed to socialist politics.
Political systems are not in absolute black and white. Socialism does not necessarily mean that all goods and means are hold in public, it just recognizes that some are or should be. For example public infrastructure and flood defenses are publicly owned and maintained for the common good by the government. Would any of you anti-socialists argue for a state where even roads are privately owned and exploited?
This is the main point why and where socialism works: It understands that the society has shared interests and that a government represents its people in these matters. A real debate on socialism is on what, where and how this representation should take place, not if it exists.
Here lies a hard fact: If you don't force the exploiters to contribute they won't. Look for example at a soup kitchen in the US: run by volunteers and payed for by charity. This is a public service to all but only some are contributing. These few carry a burden that should be everybody's. Would you try to run a road system like this?