Welfare State - Prologue

„Young man“, asked the seasoned manager the Doctor of Business Administration on his first day of his first job, „did they teach you the definition of TINSTAAFL at university?“ The ‘young man’ became nervous. He had been a brilliant student, indeed, but the term TINSTAAFL had never come up anywhere. If TINSTAAFL was an important theory, how could he possibly not have heard of it? The seasoned manager waited a few seconds while keeping a stern expression on his face, then he blurted out: „It means: There Is No Such Thing As A Free Lunch, and you better remember that!“ The ‘young man’ felt sure that he had lost his first job before he had even started it. But then the seasoned manager put on a grin, reached out his hand and said: „Welcome to the real world, young man!“