Two Cows

My wife and I revised the analogy of the two cows:

SOCIALISM
You have two cows, and your neighbor has none. The government takes both, hires you to milk them, and sells you the milk.

COMMUNISM
You have two cows. The state takes both and gives you some milk for the rest of your life.

FASCISM
You have two cows. The state takes both, sells you some milk, and tells you what to think about your cows.

FEUDALISM
Your liege-lord owns you and two cows. You milk them and he graciously lets you keep some of the milk.

CAPITALISM FOR THE ENTREPRENEUR
You have two cows. You sell one and buy a bull. Your herd multiplies, and the economy grows. If all goes well, you sell the herd and retire.

CAPITALISM FOR ABLE-BODIED POOR
You have no cows, so you spend your life milking the entrepreneur's cows for a living. If he pays well, you save up and buy one cow.

CAPITALISM FOR THE LESS FORTUNATE
You have no cows and are unable to get/do paid work, but you are told you are lazy for not milking your cows.

CRONY CAPITALISM
You have two cows, and you sell the milk at a profit. The government gives you ten bulls because you seem promising. Your herd multiplies, and the economy grows. You sell all your cows for a bull-only business model, and your business fails.

CRONY CAPITALISM, PART II
You have two cows. You sell one and buy a bull. Your herd multiplies, and the economy grows. They get sick and die, and the government gives you a new herd.

WELFARE CAPITALISM
As capitalism, but the community votes for the entrepreneur to give some free milk to the less fortunate.

WELFARE STATE
The community votes for the entrepreneur to give free milk to the able-bodied poor.

Debt

So, as we watch the economy go up and down, the worst thing we can possibly do is get into unnecessary or excessive debt. Why? Because if we lose our jobs, we may be unable to pay back the debts. Then we can lose our cars, our homes, and so forth.

I remember watching The Grapes of Wrath in high school. The story is about some farmers who are unable to pay their debts and lose their farms--something that happened to many, many farmers at the beginning of the Great Depression. I'm not saying that all their debts were excessive, only that no person who has any debt is truly financially self-sufficient. The moment they can't pay, they are at the mercy of their creditors.

So, my personal ideal is to have a moderate-sized house bought and paid for after, say, ten years of marriage. We'll see if that's feasible with my family size and my career, but that's my goal for now. Let's all follow the modern prophets' counsel and get out of debt.