NationStates Jolt Archive

Many people will tell you, there is no such thing as a free lunch. my theory is that these are people who are never in the right place at the right time, either because they never knew about it in the first place or because they got told too late and missed it.

i live off free lunches. my lunch and dinner were both free today, as they are most days. so is the bottle of Jacquart Champagne i'm currently drinking. i wish you could taste it, it's fucking sublime.

so what sort of thing have any of you people got for free recently? or are you subscribers to the head-in-the-sand doctrine that propagandises (does that work as a vaerb?) the TNSTAAFL mantra?

so what sort of thing have any of you people got for free recently?

NationStates General.

Many people will tell you, there is no such thing as a free lunch. my theory is that these are people who are never in the right place at the right time, either because they never knew about it in the first place or because they got told too late and missed it.

i live off free lunches. my lunch and dinner were both free today, as they are most days. so is the bottle of Jacquart Champagne i'm currently drinking. i wish you could taste it, it's fucking sublime.

so what sort of thing have any of you people got for free recently? or are you subscribers to the head-in-the-sand doctrine that propagandises (does that work as a vaerb?) the TNSTAAFL mantra?

Doing my internship at the local paper, I got free lunches often when doing the weekly food "review". Usually steak.

Out of curiosity, where are you getting all your free food?

NationStates General.

You win the thread:D

Doing my internship at the local paper, I got free lunches often when doing the weekly food "review". Usually steak.

Out of curiosity, where are you getting all your free food?

i work at a funtion centre. we do regular weddings and corporate functions and the like. if there's anything that can be guarateed at functions it's left-overs. on days that i don't work i eat just toast or cereal.

Had someone give me 13 games for the XBox 360 just the other week. Apparently his kid was tired of them so he gave them to my son. He was excited and apparently it is over $500 worth of games. Who says you can't get anything for free. ;)

I got free dinner in the name of multiculturalism today, which was a good thing.

Many people will tell you, there is no such thing as a free lunch. my theory is that these are people who are never in the right place at the right time, either because they never knew about it in the first place or because they got told too late and missed it.
<3

I got free dinner in the name of multiculturalism today, which was a good thing.

If a group sponsered it, that means they paid for it.

If a group sponsered it, that means they paid for it.

it was free for him though, and that's what count here. none of your economics killjoyism here! *kicks*

Tanstaafl (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TANSTAAFL) anyone?

I got a free pair of bootstraps. I'm just waiting now for someone to pull me up with them.

Tanstaafl (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TANSTAAFL) anyone?

LIES!! double negative makes me right anyway.

so what sort of thing have any of you people got for free recently?


Oddly enough, last week, a free lunch. A new On the Border was opening, and we saw cars in the lot, so we stopped by. Turned out it was not officially open, but they were running a training session. Since not all the invitees had come when they were supposed to, the dude at the door told us to go in and have lunch on them, alcoholic drinks had to be paid for.

My fiance and I had a large, delicious lunch including dessert and the whole thing cost $5.50 -- the cost of the strawberry daiquiri I ordered.

<3

:D

Oddly enough, last week, a free lunch. A new On the Border was opening, and we saw cars in the lot, so we stopped by. Turned out it was not officially open, but they were running a training session. Since not all the invitees had come when they were supposed to, the dude at the door told us to go in and have lunch on them, alcoholic drinks had to be paid for.

My fiance and I had a large, delicious lunch including dessert and the whole thing cost $5.50 -- the cost of the strawberry daiquiri I ordered.

horray! that's awesome! was it good food? i don't have a clue what On The Border do.

Of course, that article briefly mentions the single greatest refutation of the TANSTAAFL concept yet (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_software). See, the issue isn't whether one gets for free ("free" as in beer (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gratis_versus_Libre)), but rather whether one gives freely ("free" as in libre (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gratis_versus_Libre)).

If one gives freely, then it is entirely possible for the recipient to get for free. And in this situation of voluntary exchange, TANSTAAFL becomes entirely irrelevant.

Libertarians like Heinlein need to do less hyperventilating over beer and more hyperventilating over libre.

i like beer and libre. does this mean i must explode?

Tanstaafl (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TANSTAAFL) anyone?

Of course, that article briefly mentions the single greatest refutation of the TANSTAAFL concept yet (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_software). See, the issue isn't whether one gets for free ("free" as in beer (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gratis_versus_Libre)), but rather whether one gives freely ("free" as in freedom (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gratis_versus_Libre)).

If a person gives freely (through exercising his or her freedom), then it is entirely possible for the recipient to get for free. And in this situation of voluntary exchange, TANSTAAFL becomes entirely irrelevant.

Libertarians like Heinlein need to do less hyperventilating over beer and concentrate more on freedom. Once they do so, they may find new ways to exercise their freedom they had never thought of before.

Well about three minutes ago a herd of deer walked into the yard, so I now have several hundred pounds of free lunch just waiting to be cut up and put in the freezer. All it takes is me to clean them and BAM!

Well about three minutes ago a herd of deer walked into the yard, so I now have several hundred pounds of free lunch just waiting to be cut up and put in the freezer. All it takes is me to clean them and BAM!

but that cost you the price of shot and the work to skin and cut em. no good, sorry, you no qualify :P :D

i like beer and libre. does this mean i must explode?

On the contrary, beer and libre are quite complementary. Its the exclusive focus on the one or the other that be the problem of our time.

Of course, that article briefly mentions the single greatest refutation of the TANSTAAFL concept yet (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_software). See, the issue isn't whether one gets for free ("free" as in beer (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gratis_versus_Libre)), but rather whether one gives freely ("free" as in freedom (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gratis_versus_Libre)).

If a person gives freely (through exercising his or her freedom), then it is entirely possible for the recipient to get for free. And in this situation of voluntary exchange, TANSTAAFL becomes entirely irrelevant.

Libertarians like Heinlein need to do less hyperventilating over beer and concentrate more on freedom. Once they do so, they may find new ways to exercise their freedom they had never thought of before.

beer is freedom *nod*

edit: or a fascist teetotaler or an alcoholic fascist for that matter. strangley though, alcoholic anarchists are the bees knees.

and the dogs bollocks.

...never trust a teetotal anarchist, that's what i say.


<.<

>.>

Whenever I work my lunches are free. And since I'm the lowest monkey on the chain I'm the one who has to go get it sometimes, so sometimes my lunch has a little extras...sometimes it's good to be on the bottom...so to speak

edit: or a fascist teetotaler or an alcoholic fascist for that matter. strangley though, alcoholic anarchists are the bees knees.

and the dogs bollocks.



it's the alliteration that makes us cool :D

<.<

>.>

*lynches*

The reason a free lunch isn't is because someone has to pay somewhere along the line of production for your free lunch. The cook or owner or the farmer or the grocer or someone involved with he production of your lunch will have to close the gap somehow, usually with an increase in prices to offset the loss and maintain profits which are not that big in the food industry until you get into the really expensive food and even then sometimes the high cost is due to a high cost of production rather than gouging.

Someone always pays the piper. There ain't no such thing as a free lunch. Every silver lining has a dark cloud. For every up there is a down. Everything that can go wrong will at the worst possible time. It could always be worse.

3 rules everyone follows:
1. Their survival and well-being will be more important than your survival and needs. If it comes down to choosing between you and them they will always choose themselves. It is difficult to imagine a contrary case; people don't survive by being self-sacrificing.

2. Wimps don't become top dogs.
No one makes it to the top by being passive. Anyone in charge of anything significant will be highly intelligent, alert, aggressive, and ruthless when necessary.

3. They will assume the first 2 rules apply to you.

Everything carries an opportunity cost. As a result, TANSTAAFL still holds even for things like free software and gift giving. You might get it for free, but somewhere along the line opportunity costs are being incurred.

The reason a free lunch isn't is because someone has to pay somewhere along the line of production for your free lunch. The cook or owner or the farmer or the grocer or someone involved with he production of your lunch will have to close the gap somehow, usually with an increase in prices to offset the loss and maintain profits which are not that big in the food industry until you get into the really expensive food and even then sometimes the high cost is due to a high cost of production rather than gouging.

Someone always pays the piper. There ain't no such thing as a free lunch. Every silver lining has a dark cloud. For every up there is a down. Everything that can go wrong will at the worst possible time. It could always be worse.

3 rules everyone follows:
1. Their survival and well-being will be more important than your survival and needs. If it comes down to choosing between you and them they will always choose themselves. It is difficult to imagine a contrary case; people don't survive by being self-sacrificing.

2. Wimps don't become top dogs.
No one makes it to the top by being passive. Anyone in charge of anything significant will be highly intelligent, alert, aggressive, and ruthless when necessary.

3. They will assume the first 2 rules apply to you.
what did i say about economics? ... *taps foot*


besides, your libertarian money grubbing bollocks has already been disproved in this thread and my life continuously.

*lynches*

Was it a free lynch?

Everything carries an opportunity cost. As a result, TANSTAAFL still holds even for things like free software and gift giving. You might get it for free, but somewhere along the line opportunity costs are being incurred.

it doesn't cost anything if the rich are footing the bill. fundamental rule of economics that.

Was it a free lynch?

yup, i didn't even have to bribe the mob with beer. bunch of teetotal statists they were. fools! ha!

Everything carries an opportunity cost. As a result, TANSTAAFL still holds even for things like free software and gift giving. You might get it for free, but somewhere along the line opportunity costs are being incurred.

As long as those opportunity costs are accepted voluntarily ("Free" as in freedom), they really have no bearing on whether the activity in question (free software, gift giving, etc) should or should not be undertaken.

So yes, in the most technical sense TANSTAAFL is correct and true. But it doesn't really bring up any issue that needs to be worried about. It is perfectly OK for a lunch to be gratis as long as it is also free (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_%28philosophy%29).

it doesn't cost anything if the rich are footing the bill.

Ah, but how are the "rich" footing the bill? It is possible for the lunch to be gratis without being free (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_%28philosophy%29).

Ah, but how are the "rich" footing the bill? It is possible for the lunch to be gratis without being free (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_%28philosophy%29).

if they are so rich they don't notice, then yes absolutely.

if they are so rich they don't notice, then yes absolutely.

I will notice.

I will notice.

then you are not rich enough to play :P

then you are not rich enough to play :P

My concern is less for the rich, and more for the fact that un-free has this habit of biting the hand that makes it.

My concern is less for the rich, and more for the fact that un-free has this habit of biting the hand that makes it.

yes, anything that must be paid for has it's disenters. or did you word that ambiguously and i misuderstood?

As long as those opportunity costs are accepted voluntarily ("Free" as in freedom), they really have no bearing on whether the activity in question (free software, gift giving, etc) should or should not be undertaken.

So yes, in the most technical sense TANSTAAFL is correct and true. But it doesn't really bring up any issue that needs to be worried about. It is perfectly OK for a lunch to be gratis as long as it is also free (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_%28philosophy%29).

Well, yeah. The TANSTAAFL concept doesn't really mean that much other than to show there's always some kind of tradeoff.

yes, anything that must be paid for has it's disenters. or did you word that ambiguously and i misuderstood?

I suppose it depends on what is the "anything" and how it is to be "paid for."

You seem to have completely missed the point of TANSTAAFL. If someone, even a rich man, foots the bill then there is a cost. Just because you don't feel the squeeze doesn't mean that it doesn't exist. Either that or you knew all along that you were wrong and were just trying incite something.

I AM ALWAYS RIGHT! (And by that I mean correct.)

More conflicts throughout history have been solved with naked force than by any other factor. The contrary belief that violence never solves anything is wishful thinking at its worst.

Stabbing a man in the back is safest. Lying is a skill like any other, if you wish to be any good you have to practice constantly. The truth is usually just an excuse for a lack of imagination. A good con artist uses a little truth and a lot of lies to pull the wool over the eyes of the ignorant. Crack is the most glamorous kind of cocaine and using crack could make you really cool.

You seem to have completely missed the point of TANSTAAFL. If someone, even a rich man, foots the bill then there is a cost. Just because you don't feel the squeeze doesn't mean that it doesn't exist.


The point that has been missed is that the sentence "Things with a cost have a cost" is a tautology. The far more important issue, which "TANSTAAFL" doesn't seem to adequately address, is whether or not that cost is accepted voluntarily. "TANSTAAFL" is a tautology exactly because it seems only to consider "free as in beer" and not "free as in freedom."

I get free weed. The shit grows itself, so my dealer never charges.

PROTIP: Have friends that grow weed.

Well, actually, there is an opportunity cost. You could grow mushrooms instead, or produce LSD instead of growing and selling weed.

I get free weed. The shit grows itself, so my dealer never charges.

PROTIP: Have friends that grow weed.

The TANSTAAFL concept doesn't really mean that much other than to show there's always some kind of tradeoff.

And this is something a reasonable person ("left," "right" and everything in between) already knows, whether or not he's studied economics or read Heinlein.

And this is something a reasonable person ("left," "right" and everything in between) already knows, whether or not he's studied economics or read Heinlein.

People who read in to economic principles and try to apply them as philosophy run in to problems...

You seem to have completely missed the point of TANSTAAFL. If someone, even a rich man, foots the bill then there is a cost. Just because you don't feel the squeeze doesn't mean that it doesn't exist. Either that or you knew all along that you were wrong and were just trying incite something.

I AM ALWAYS RIGHT! (And by that I mean correct.)

More conflicts throughout history have been solved with naked force than by any other factor. The contrary belief that violence never solves anything is wishful thinking at its worst.

Stabbing a man in the back is safest. Lying is a skill like any other, if you wish to be any good you have to practice constantly. The truth is usually just an excuse for a lack of imagination. A good con artist uses a little truth and a lot of lies to pull the wool over the eyes of the ignorant. Crack is the most glamorous kind of cocaine and using crack could make you really cool.Excellent con artists use very little lies. They use the truth and still get what they want. It is actually allot easier than it sounds, once you get a grip of how it works.

You seem to have completely missed the point of TANSTAAFL. If someone, even a rich man, foots the bill then there is a cost. Just because you don't feel the squeeze doesn't mean that it doesn't exist. Either that or you knew all along that you were wrong and were just trying incite something.

I AM ALWAYS RIGHT! (And by that I mean correct.)

More conflicts throughout history have been solved with naked force than by any other factor. The contrary belief that violence never solves anything is wishful thinking at its worst.

Stabbing a man in the back is safest. Lying is a skill like any other, if you wish to be any good you have to practice constantly. The truth is usually just an excuse for a lack of imagination. A good con artist uses a little truth and a lot of lies to pull the wool over the eyes of the ignorant. Crack is the most glamorous kind of cocaine and using crack could make you really cool.

... i may be drunk but that was.. disjointed at the very least. my personal philosphy justifies free lunches for the likes of myself in the following way. you don't get as wealthy as my boss/bosses without fleecing a good number of decent producers for the wool off their backs. i get payed just above minimum wage and i don't get guarateed tips like you do in amerigo therefore i take what i can, free lunches are the least of what i take. rich people deserve to get leeced. i don't know where you were goint with the whole force thing. but yes i would fight my boss if it came to it.

People who read in to economic principles and try to apply them as philosophy run in to problems...

Indeed.

Excellent con artists use very little lies. They use the truth and still get what they want. It is actually allot easier than it sounds, once you get a grip of how it works.

too true. all you need is a winning smile. my tight-arse boss is melted butter in my hands after i've smiled and charmed her. the AM requires a different tactic though, usually appealing to fellow alcoholism works.

Well, actually, there is an opportunity cost. You could grow mushrooms instead, or produce LSD instead of growing and selling weed.But LSD or mushrooms would require effort on his part. Besides, when you are high economics go away.

But LSD or mushrooms would require effort on his part. Besides, when you are high economics go away.

pish, 'shrooms are easy to grow. and they're natural in the garden anyway. and there's instructions on how to make acid all over teh interwebbs. it are not hard.

i get payed just above minimum wage and i don't get guarateed tips like you do in amerigo
Tips? I have never had a job where I got tips. My first job was for less than $8 an hour. I still stand by every word I said. Everything, EVERYTHING has a cost associated with it. Whether that cost is paid off by one man as an act of charity or dispersed among many doesn't change the fact that it is still there. TANSTAAFL even applies to science. It rules the physical world in which we exist. TANSTAAFL cannot be escaped. TANSTAAFL is just a way of explaining a universal law that has yet to be observed being broken. TANSTAAFL does not forgive, TANSTAAFL does not forget. TANSTAAFL is like Anonymous. It is the embodiement of humanity with no remorse and no compassion. TANSTAAFL is...a tax collector. *shudder* Taxes...

TANSTAAFL is vastly overrated. also, when the cost is footed by private enterprise... watch me give a fuck.

Tips? I have never had a job where I got tips. My first job was for less than $8 an hour. I still stand by every word I said. Everything, EVERYTHING has a cost associated with it. Whether that cost is paid off by one man as an act of charity or dispersed among many doesn't change the fact that it is still there. TANSTAAFL even applies to science. It rules the physical world in which we exist. TANSTAAFL cannot be escaped. TANSTAAFL is just a way of explaining a universal law that has yet to be observed being broken. TANSTAAFL does not forgive, TANSTAAFL does not forget. TANSTAAFL is like Anonymous. It is the embodiement of humanity with no remorse and no compassion. TANSTAAFL is...a tax collector. *shudder* Taxes...This is not /b/. Anonymous does not exist here.

i don't get it. what's the reference to /b/ about. surely they don't know about politics there?

i don't get it. what's the reference to /b/ about. surely they don't know about politics there?TANSTAAFL is like Anonymous. It is the embodiement of humanity with no remorse and no compassion.
On /b/, people do not have their own logins, post counts, etc like most forums. Every post is made anonymously. So everyone is considered to be the only poster, Anonymous. Do to the inherent anonymousness, people are much crueler than norm as you can never be singled out for it and it will never affect your future actions.

/b/ does not have much interest in politics. There are the dumbest debates ever about religion, and plenty of mathematical proofs thrown around. Math nerds are very cruel people indeed.

Many people will tell you, there is no such thing as a free lunch. my theory is that these are people who are never in the right place at the right time, either because they never knew about it in the first place or because they got told too late and missed it.

i live off free lunches. my lunch and dinner were both free today, as they are most days. so is the bottle of Jacquart Champagne i'm currently drinking. i wish you could taste it, it's fucking sublime.

so what sort of thing have any of you people got for free recently? or are you subscribers to the head-in-the-sand doctrine that propagandises (does that work as a vaerb?) the TNSTAAFL mantra?

How is it free? Someone is paying for it. It may not be you, but someone is shelling out the money to feed you your free lunch.

wow...well i got 3 free beers, turkey leg. and 2 hamburgers (tailgating my college Homecoming). Before that I received a FREE semester of college (after I was hit by a school vehicle).

The reason a free lunch isn't is because someone has to pay somewhere along the line of production for your free lunch. The cook or owner or the farmer or the grocer or someone involved with he production of your lunch will have to close the gap somehow, usually with an increase in prices to offset the loss and maintain profits which are not that big in the food industry until you get into the really expensive food and even then sometimes the high cost is due to a high cost of production rather than gouging.

Someone always pays the piper. There ain't no such thing as a free lunch. Every silver lining has a dark cloud. For every up there is a down. Everything that can go wrong will at the worst possible time. It could always be worse.

3 rules everyone follows:
1. Their survival and well-being will be more important than your survival and needs. If it comes down to choosing between you and them they will always choose themselves. It is difficult to imagine a contrary case; people don't survive by being self-sacrificing.

2. Wimps don't become top dogs.
No one makes it to the top by being passive. Anyone in charge of anything significant will be highly intelligent, alert, aggressive, and ruthless when necessary.

3. They will assume the first 2 rules apply to you.That's got absolutely nothing to do with the saying "there's no such thing as a free lunch" in any way, shape or form. At all.

What they saying means is that no one will give you something for free without expecting something in return. So when people are giving you something for free they are normally trying to butter you up to accept a sub par deal.

In your literal example then the cafe is giving away the free lunch in the hope that you will enjoy the food and come back to buy lunch at the cafe in future.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_lunch

There ain't no such thing as a free lunch has a multi-fold meaning. But it is, in essence very simple, there is always a cost. Whether it is a demand made of the recipient at a later time that he/she offer a quid pro quo or a more subtle cost. We. for example, take things like timber or water from the environment - the cost is degradation to the environment and in turn a diminution of our quality of life. If we don't take them there is another cost to our quality of life. Ultimately there is always a cost either long or short term.

The ultimate question is not whether there is a cost but how much you're willing to pay.