It is amazing to me how some people will put frugality before family.  While there are many examples of this the most blatant I’ve been reading about recently is the endless debate between having a used car prone to mechanical problems and simply replacing it with another car, preferably a new(er) car with better safety features.

During my high school and college days I drove nothing but used cars that were prone to mechanical failure and I was in a car crash that almost killed me during my last college year:  Old car, no air bag, crappy safety features.   I was also left stranded on numerous occasions on the most dangerous freeways and over passes with cars zipping by at 70 mph.     I have been left stranded in rainy weather getting soaking wet trying to figure out why a car won’t turn over.   I’ve been left stranded in the freezing cold when my battery & alternator died unexpectedly.

All those life lessons were an important factor in deciding that when I got married and had kids, I would have nothing but new vehicles to drive and I would be sure to keep them regularly maintained.    My biggest problem with buying a used car is not knowing how well (or poorly) maintained a previous owner(s) kept the vehicle.   Sure, a mechanic can check out a car before you buy it but then you’re relying on the expertise of the mechanic to guide you.

So is not having a safe reliable vehicle for your family worth more to you than your retirement fund?   Are your kids expendable when it comes to your emergency fund?  What’s the point of that college fund if your wife and kids get stranded on a freezing overpass while cars zip by potentially crashing into that stalled vehicle and wiping them out?

When you spend your life focusing on frugality, it becomes paramount to almost anything else, including the safety of your family and that’s why I upgraded my frugal ways to capitalist ways so that I’d never put frugality before family.

Life is short, enjoy it.