So, I was going over how to do some financial calculations with one of my professors today, and they referenced to keep in mind that companies are often working with borrowed money. I scoffed under my breath about how that was a stupid plan, but with no intentions to interupt the flow of the conversation, since it was not the time or the place to talk business strategy. The professor did comment though, suggesting that there was nothing wrong with it. I commented something that implied that I disagreed, but would be willing to have that conversation at another time. The reply back was to the effect of "I know what Ramsey says, but I know how business works too." The statement really rubbed me the wrong way because I took it as being riddled with arrogance. Perhaps, if it had been a professor that I didn't respect in the first place I would have just brushed it off and not given it any more thought but in this case it really bothered me. Perhaps it was that while I admit my own ignorance in how business works, I certainly think that Dave Ramsey DOES know how business works. His Lampo Group, Inc. is obviously doing well. It seems like I remember reading somewhere that other major businesses like Walmart, Walgreens and Microsoft are also debt-free companies (as a side note, I wonder how GM would be doing right now if they had ran their company debt free?). When I got home I tried to google a verification of this for my own personal gratification, but have so far been unsuccessful. I did, however, find this link that I thought was rather interesting. This mayor from Canada says that she runs her city like a business, and to her this means to keep the city debt free, implying that she belives a business should be ran debt free. This wasn't what I set out to find online, but it did make me feel better after I found the article. I also couldn't help but see the irony between her being an old woman and Dave Ramsey's comment that he often gives advice that your grandmother would give - have a rainy day fund and stay out of debt.

11/1/06