Earlier quoted context omitted.
Population size doesn't matter for taxes, yet having many different types of rules (perhaps at state level?) could indeed be a complicating factor. If that's the case, I'll take your word for it. But do hear me out once more. The dutch tax system is anything but simple. It has an extremely complex rule set. And because it is so complex, leaving the understanding of it to citizens has led to an enormous burden of proc…
I'm not talking about taxes in particular, I'm just talking about government in general. The US federal government is 20x larger than that of the Netherlands. The US is also more economically, socially, and ethnically diverse than the Netherlands. Larger systems are harder to manage.
Then stop doing that, and talk about the situation at hand, using the evidence in front of you.
Even if "free market good, government bad" were a good rule of thumb (which it isn't), it clearly isn't working in this situation, so it's irrelevant.