Is there such thing as a 'free lunch?'

In an economic theory class the other day we debated whether there was actually a 'free lunch' or not. Here is an article that discusses the unearned riches or possibility of a free lunch.

https://fee.org/articles/unearned-riches/

I took the position of there actually was a free lunch, somewhere. The reasoning behind kind of makes sense, but we'll see what you guys think. Essentially, if we believe that the market/economy/wealth is not a zero sum game and the pie isn't fixed, then there must be a free lunch somewhere in there if there is more than enough for everyone. The example we used was: say someone someone quit their job to invent a new type of computer, his salary was 250k and he spent 100k in hardware expenses etc.. That makes his total cost including opportunity cost 350k. Then assume this computer revolutionizes computation everywhere and generates billions of dollars. Is all of the money and 'wealth/innovation' he created, over the 350k, considered unearned 'free' riches, because now we get to utilize this innovation, at a small cost relative to the actual worth of the innovation.

Pretty interesting topic I figured I'd bring it here and see what you guys thought!

1 Comments
 

Quis nihil magni sit delectus totam fuga quos. Quis sed nemo expedita deleniti eaque est ea. Qui nam et doloribus occaecati cum veniam maxime est. Iusto quae quos inventore ea amet suscipit. Autem sed alias voluptatem quisquam aliquid. Qui illo quas totam architecto labore magnam vel. Recusandae mollitia iusto dolor et expedita reiciendis minus.

Error modi eos repellendus veniam. Autem aliquam sit nulla harum. Quod veniam sunt omnis nihil. Maiores expedita officiis rerum perspiciatis rem. Voluptates doloribus expedita veritatis labore harum perferendis.

Illo autem reiciendis consequuntur sunt et nam ipsa. Quos rerum esse nam qui accusamus adipisci aut. Rerum dolor itaque earum.

Career Advancement Opportunities

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.3%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.9%
  • Evercore 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.8%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.3%

Professional Growth Opportunities

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • JPMorgan No 97.3%

Total Avg Compensation

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (51) $260
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (26) $182
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (84) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (76) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
3
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
4
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
5
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
8
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
9
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
10
Mimbs's picture
Mimbs
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”