Stadts' Options: Science Fiction

William the Silent frowned when the stadtholders came before him with their complaints, but he saw the way that it would go. Their dikes were failing, one and all, and there was only one option before them that they saw: to buttress themselves against the world. His military advisors, chomping at the bit to actually fight a war and justify their positions, saw another option: invade the neighbors and force them to make space. The water level was rising, and there was no denying that soon the stadts would be drowned by the waters unleashed on them by the first worlds in their great industrial race. The Netherlands had contributed their share to that, of course, but it was a small share, surely not enough to justify them--

Inspiration: A history entry about William the Silent and the Netherlands' revolution. Of course, this is *not* intended to take place in that time.
Story Potential: Low.
Notes: Option 3: Waterworld!