Perceived Reality

Ever hear the story about the bum in New York City clapping his hands? When asked why he was doing it , he says, "To keep the elephants away." The listener replies, "There aren't any elephants in NYC!" The bum quips, "See, it works!"

In this case, the level of absurdity sets off warning signs and that casts doubt into your mind. But lets get to the not so obvious.
"Why rent and make the landlords house payment?"
"Owning a house is better than renting."
"Investing in Real Estate is the way to wealth."

What people don't realize is that the value and the validity of the statements change over time. It was pure truth in 1964, it is not so certain in the world of 2006. The human mind has a rough time with changes in perspective. We get stuck in a rut.

Go into your closet and make a mental note, "Tomorrow I am going to wear something I bought 20 years ago." Try it on. Does it fit? Would you feel embarrassed wearing it? Will it make you feel young again? Do you still like it? Did this exercise change your perspective about time a little bit?

A lot of our mental values fall into the same boat. We need to have the ability to realize that our perspective needs to change as we get older. Values that seem to be constant need to be re-examined.

Remember this, if something is repeated again and again as fact, then it must be true and and society will accept it as such. For 2,000 years people though the common house fly had 8 legs until someone decided to count them.

So how does this tie into The Great Depression of 2006? I am trying to point out, that you could get caught up in the coming mess, if your values don't change to accommodate the times, as they are-a-changing.