Mr. Money Mustache vs. Mrs. Montgomery County Union Jackson

What a contrast in personal financial management – and in life in general. Last week, the Gazette reported that Montgomery County employees Sedearia Wilson-Jackson and her husband Sean Jackson have been going through tough times because their taxpayer-funded income of $110,019 (plus overtime pay) has not gone up for a few years. Mrs. Wilson-Jackson is a police services assistant (whatever that is) and Mr. Jackson is a bus driver. Mrs. Wilson-Jackson is also a Montgomery County employees’ union boss and the Jacksons receive a county employee benefits package worth at least $25,000 per year, details not mentioned in the Gazette article.

A couple of days after the aforementioned Gazette article appeared, the Washington Post told the story of “Mr. Money Mustache”, a widely-read blogger whose real name is Pete. He and his wife and young son are living a comfortable and happy life in Colorado. At age 30, Pete and his wife retired after saving and investing enough money to afford to live comfortably for the foreseeable future. 

Mrs. Wilson-Jackson is dismayed that her family hasn’t been able to afford a trip to the Bahamas. Other sacrifices include sending their son to Montgomery College instead of an out-of-state, four-year college. According to the Gazette article, their son “was unable to attend his four-year college of choice in Florida but rather spent two-and-a-half years at Montgomery College.”

Meanwhile, Mr. Money Mustache, who lives on $25,000 per year of investment income, takes his family on “Great American road trips”, sometimes camping and sometimes staying at hotels in “a nice spot.”

So what’s all this have to do with education and accountability? Read Mr. Money Mustache’s perspective on that topic at Avoiding Ivy League Preschool Syndrome.

Enjoy!