The role played by the state
No individual group within a government or in the economy is entitled to lay claim to any special rights for itself. However, there is no doubt that it is particular interests which drive the individual as well as large enterprises. What role does the state have to play in this game? The state is like a referee in football matches. It is the task of the state to see to it that the rules are kept, but it does not participate. If all eleven players in a team entrenched themselves behind the goal line during a match, they would not only deserve catcalls but would also be breaking the rules of the game. The rules laid down beforehand must be observed unconditionally. Two instances of private interest can be singled out. One is the demand to protect certain job titles so that they can only be used by those who fulfil certain criteria. That is nonsense because what counts is not the job title but a person’s ability. But underlying this demand is the sheer egoism of those people who want subservience from others in order to gain special privileges for themselves. It is not a matter of protecting a profession but of making it inaccessible to others. Pandering to such desires would be subjugating free citizens again and that that is unacceptable in a social market economy.