On the one hand, I agree with most everything MMM says. On the other hand, a life of consumerism is its own reward -- and who is to say it is not earned?
I am nomadic. I have no dependents, and a severe case of wanderlust. My impression, after many conversations on the matter, is that this is a mild form of insanity. I think that I have my lifestyle more or less sorted out at the moment, but I have in the past been more or less willing to trade stability and an income above the poverty line for the freedom to search for a place that perhaps I want to live. I'm from Alaska originally, and don't particularly enjoy or identify with the rest of the US, so hopefully this is at least somewhat understandable.
I digress. I know exactly the kind of perspective from which $25k per annum is considered wealth. I also know the freedom that comes from not being owned by possessions -- and I hope that MMM does as well. You can still practice accumulation on a budget, but it's hard to see that as a healthy motivation. Being rich is not dying with the most toys. Although I don't believe the majority the HN community would agree with that sentiment.
To be a nomad, you are forced to make a very deliberate choice about every possession. Each one adds a burden that must be carried to each new place -- quite literally carried, in my income bracket. There is the temptation to transform this practicality into a moral virtue, but there are many other reasons besides.
On the other hand, there are many virtues in accumulation. Besides the advantages conveyed by a visible display of wealth, owning many things serves as a buffer against misfortune. Consumer goods provide pleasure, and capital assets can be themselves a source of profit.
I feel like I should be the most fervent disciple of MMM, and yet I would say instead: neglect not your comforts, nor your consumerism. The trades you may make in pursuit of a purer life, are at the least uncomfortable, and at worst dangerous. Poverty may be virtuous, and while you may yet find that virtue, seek it not for its own sake. If your charity compels you to be poor, accept that with good heart, and do not be miserly no matter how much you own. If, alternately, you are not compelled towards sainthood, at the least enjoy your comforts in the knowledge that you are living a blessed life, which may like as not never come again.
You described everything very well what I am like and what I think of the subject. It is nice to know that I am not alone.
I am also nomadic, although yet a university student, still making it eventually possible working in an industry capable of earning over $100k per annum. Nothing would change if it was not as prosper.
I am nomadic. I have no dependents, and a severe case of wanderlust. My impression, after many conversations on the matter, is that this is a mild form of insanity. I think that I have my lifestyle more or less sorted out at the moment, but I have in the past been more or less willing to trade stability and an income above the poverty line for the freedom to search for a place that perhaps I want to live. I'm from Alaska originally, and don't particularly enjoy or identify with the rest of the US, so hopefully this is at least somewhat understandable.
I digress. I know exactly the kind of perspective from which $25k per annum is considered wealth. I also know the freedom that comes from not being owned by possessions -- and I hope that MMM does as well. You can still practice accumulation on a budget, but it's hard to see that as a healthy motivation. Being rich is not dying with the most toys. Although I don't believe the majority the HN community would agree with that sentiment.
To be a nomad, you are forced to make a very deliberate choice about every possession. Each one adds a burden that must be carried to each new place -- quite literally carried, in my income bracket. There is the temptation to transform this practicality into a moral virtue, but there are many other reasons besides.
On the other hand, there are many virtues in accumulation. Besides the advantages conveyed by a visible display of wealth, owning many things serves as a buffer against misfortune. Consumer goods provide pleasure, and capital assets can be themselves a source of profit.
I feel like I should be the most fervent disciple of MMM, and yet I would say instead: neglect not your comforts, nor your consumerism. The trades you may make in pursuit of a purer life, are at the least uncomfortable, and at worst dangerous. Poverty may be virtuous, and while you may yet find that virtue, seek it not for its own sake. If your charity compels you to be poor, accept that with good heart, and do not be miserly no matter how much you own. If, alternately, you are not compelled towards sainthood, at the least enjoy your comforts in the knowledge that you are living a blessed life, which may like as not never come again.