The rule of thumb in electronics used to be one month's rent is a tenth of the purchase price, but once interest rates went to zero it went to 1/20 to 1/15 of the purchase price. If high interest rates return, I wonder if the psychology of renting will change.

"fault" is an ugly and unnecessary word/concept. There are lots of factors to keep in mind when buying anything. A thoughtful buyer will consider such things as the fragility of the electric grid. In the book One second after, the hero happens to own an Edsel that runs after the EMP attack because it was built with 1950's technology -- good thing to have after infrastructure failure (but an expensive insurance policy). Edison promoted D.C. household current. The infrastructure was untenable in the long term (in that case a few short years). Computers used to occupy large rooms and require near-sterile conditions and serious air conditioning, now that much capability is in my pocket (and who knows how long this iteration will last). As a service model works better for some things than others. I own a number of hammers and saws, etc. -- I don't own a backhoe or crane, though occasionally I purchase the service of each. Most private pilots don't own an airplane, they rent when they want to fly. The ones who do probably own a plane they use for their everyday needs; then maybe once a year they rent a 6 seater to go on vacation with the family. Same thing for many people with RV's

Thanks Jim. A very Rand-like saying/concept.

Yep, there is a fine line between "will i use it again" vs cost of buying. A lot of rental places are really expensive now (I rented a ditch witch for 120.00 for 3 hours, 240.00 for 24, so I went with 24, I wasn't buying one...).

Harbor Freight= China. Not a bad thing, but their quality is suspect. I do also buy certain things there, there are some good items, if you are careful and look closely. I have some nailers, grinders, drills etc, but I do not use them heavily.

I think the trend depicted is a good summation of the overall movement, and it has several factors:
1. Less cost in production, in that digital material is way cheaper than hard copy.
2. For transportation, it dovetails into the incessant push to crowd people into smaller areas, so as to minimize cost of services associated, less power transmission, less movement needed to go to work, school, etc.
3. It imposes a more easily controlled framework of support on people, and hence, control of people themselves. It may be a conspiracy theory, but it has appeared that the political monster of both sides has always been pushing for a greater control over the masses. If they do not do what is desired, then services get cut (oops, power failure), or restrictions put in place ( nope, no cars for you).

It is the antithesis of freedom and personal responsibility, in that all your needs are met by the "system", and so you are dependent on the system and whoever is running it.

Nope, I will buy my DVDs, and not need Netflix. I record any books or music, I try to limit my exposure to "the system" as much as possible, and depend on my own resources. My responsibility is to know my needs, not have someone else tell me what they are (or what they say they are).

There are plenty of homeowners who do not respect other people, and plenty of renters who do. A person's morality and attitude toward others has little or nothing to do with whether he or she is a homeowner or a renter.

I would like to disagree with you, just for the fun of it - but I can't.

Sounds like you are using your resources well, out east here, things are usually a bit closer except the airports. We usually get someone else to drive us there and pick us up...better than leaving your car for the parking staff to have a good time with, Had a friend, leave his company 4WD there and they crashed it trying to navigate some rough terrain...no one told them they are not to have fun with customer cars. These are the sort that think everything is theirs to do as they please.

Thanks!
Name is, Jim Erlach. I don't mind being known.

I don't see it the same way, some in Silicon Valley think this is the wave of the future, but only because in their bubble of small houses on even smaller lots with non-functional garages and awful on-street parking - it completely makes sense.

I frequently drive to the office in downtown Sacramento, park in the company's over-subscribed parking lot, but then take an Uber around downtown if I need to go somewhere because I don't want to give up my parking spot.

At home in the hills, I rarely use it, only too or from the airport and the trip is longer than the cost to park there, or it can be handy to get some lunch if I'm waiting for the truck to get an oil change or something. And I want to say that I'm pretty much the only one in my social group that has even used Uber.

That certainly would be a wrath upon nature, Herb.
Good to hear from you buddy.

Think of the world of John Lennon as he portrays it in his song, "Imagine." It's a great melody, and that doodle oodle dum on the piano is hypnotic, but what it says economics-wise is the philosophy of ignorance. That will result in exactly what the title of this post is. And Nature's wrath? Hell, make that some computer whiz sitting in mom's basemen on a convertible sofa in a pair of pizza stained skivvies.

Not more stuff the better, simply if one owns something of value...like a house, car or business you'll take care of it, appreciate it and have a sense of accomplishment that will guide you in regards to other endeavors and the treatment of someone else's property as well...to include their person. Not to mention, becoming self reliant and better apt to help others too. Also, having a sense of community comes to mind.

Re: "ownership is the rudder of morality". Does this mean that the more stuff people own, the better? Am I less moral if I decide to lease my house and car, and "stream" my movies and music rather than buying CDs and DVDs, preferring to "own" an intangible such as my investment portfolio? Physical ownership is not a necessary prerequisite for living rationally, productively or morally.

I am talking about the action of governments, (Feds, cities and states) to move the poor folks from the south ,Appalachia and the rural areas into the northern cities. This ended up trapping these folks in low income or welfare housing. Then we saw an increase of theft and violence soon after. I remember seeing this trend each year traveling through Providence Rode Island, on the way to Cape Cod...then soon enough, we saw the same thing happen to our bigger cities in Connecticut. I lived in a small town next to Waterbury, once know as the Brass City...it all went to hell and our parents forebode us from going into that city for any reason, not even to the Movies. This was in the early 60's

And that's your choice, which was kind of my point. As technology continues to improve, many people will validly choose to forego physical ownership of certain goods (such as cars), while others will validly choose to continue owning them. The only alternative is for government to forbid people from exercising their right to choose. And that would truly be "collectivist in nature," as the OP put it.

Who are the "they" that "moved the poorer masses into the cities"? Your post seems to imply that renters, especially poor ones, are helpless victims of their environment. Renting does not make one "dependent" and "disempowered" any more than homeowning makes one independent and empowered.

I would like to add it to my vast collection of quotations and would like to credit you by name. If you don't want Gulchers to know who Solver 2 is please email me your name to walkabout97@Yahoo.com. If you don't want to be known, I will just have to list you as anonymous. A great saying!!

Then you did...take a bow...

I was speaking about those that have access to their mind, access mind you, not that they use it all the time...the other 1/2 seems lost, at a very low meme and likely won't wake up in time.

According to Google, nobody said it first.

Give us little hints from time to time, pre-building a profit making readership...I'd by that book...a physical one so that when everything goes dark, It will still be here to warn others in the future.

That was a mistake I made with my first book...didn't include a physical copy but even still...I sold 130,000 down loads, a lot more than I expected.

great comment. Who said it first?

Lots to think about...something the collective global left cabal is not very good at.

We do have to consider what is most probable in the near future when dealing with anything electronic. We will be most vulnerable over the next 30 to 70 years and it's not your fault but it Is the fault of those that make this stuff for not looking into the future and preparing for the worst.