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The economic
wisdom of Joe Millionaire
by
Bill Winter
Libertarian Writers' Bureau Syndicate
Monday, October 27, 2003
According to critics, there are a million
reasons to despise Joe Millionaire.
The show, now in its second season, debuted on
the Fox network on October 20 to a ferocious
drubbing.
Newsday said it catered to "lies, deceit,
greed, and stupidity." The Fort Worth Star
Telegram called it a "trash wallow." The
Chicago Sun-Times dubbed it a "xenophobic
rerun."
They're wrong. Joe Millionaire is, in fact, a
profound morality tale and a no-nonsense
economics lesson.
In case you've been living under a rock, the
premise of this reality show is clever (but
insidious): An ordinary guy is plunked down in
a luxurious mansion and outfitted with fancy
duds, an English butler, and a cover story.
A bevy of beautiful women are told he's a
millionaire. They get to compete for his
affections -- and for his bags of (fictitious)
money. The scheming sirens do so, with gusto.
As with all great fairy tales, there's a
surprise ending. In the final show, the winning
beauty is told that Joe Millionaire is, in
fact, Joe Thousandaire. (In the first season,
he was Evan Marriott, a heavy-equipment
operator who earned $19,000 a year.)
She's given a choice: If it's true love, she
can stick with this ordinary Joe. If not, it's
farewell to this flimflam fellow and his faux
fortune.
In the first season finale, winner Zora Andrich
surprised 40 million viewers by standing by her
man. Each was then unexpectedly rewarded with a
$500,000 check from Fox, which knows how to
stage a happy ending.
Fast forward to Season Two. The show is now set
in Europe, where a fresh crop of covetous
cuties are waiting to be fooled by a pauper
masquerading as a prince. This year he's David
Smith, a rodeo rider who earned $11,000 last
year. The 14 Euro-vixens are told he's worth
$80 million. Let the scheming begin.
We're supposed to be appalled by the show. It's
deceitful. It's vacuous. It celebrates greed.
It ignores "love me tender" in favor of "love
my legal tender."
Nonsense. Joe Millionaire could be a case study
from an Economics 101 textbook. It's Chapter
One: How Not To Get Rich. It should be required
viewing for all business school graduates --
and for any would-be treasure-seeking
temptress.
Here's what we learn from Joe Millionaire:
* There's no such thing as a free lunch.
Repeat after me: If it sounds too good to be
true, it probably is. He's a millionaire? He's
handsome? He lives in a mansion? And he might
marry you?
Right. And that nice politician really does
care about you. And that 50-million-to-one
state lottery ticket is a winner. And Social
Security will be around for your children.
Want to avoid getting scammed like Joe
Millionaire's upwardly mobile maidens?
Remember: In life, "free" stuff is frequently
the most expensive. Which leads us to lesson
number two...
* The best way to get a million dollars is by
working hard.
In their book, The Millionaire Next Door,
authors Thomas J. Stanley and William D. Danko
studied how Americans get rich.
Their research punctured one myth: Generally,
you won't become rich in America by being born
into a wealthy family. Over 80 percent of
millionaires earned their own money; only 20
percent inherited it.
Instead, here's how to get rich: Be self-
employed (two-thirds of millionaires work for
themselves). Get a good education (four of five
have a college degree). Be industrious (most
work 45 to 55 hours a week). And be frugal
(most live in modest homes, save their money,
and drive inexpensive cars).
The Millionaire Next Door reminds us why
capitalism is so great. It rewards hard work.
It rewards thrift. It rewards initiative. Best
of all, it creates new wealth, and new products
and services, that benefit everyone.
Joe Millionaire, by contrast, is like
socialism; it dangles a phony something-for-
nothing prize before the gullible. It doesn't
reward work; it rewards deviousness. It's a
sum-zero game; one person wins, and everyone
else loses.
There's an honest way to become rich. And
there's a dishonest way. Joe Millionaire
illustrates the difference.
So where will I be next Monday night? I'll be
studying economics. I'll be learning about
building wealth. I'll be contemplating
morality.
I'll be watching Joe Millionaire.
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Bill Winter is editor of the Libertarian
Party's official newspaper, the Libertarian
Party News
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