a) The article didn't say anything about the poor, nor did I say that it did. I simply made a correlation about how the poor are unable to take advantage of sig

a) The article didn't say anything about the poor, nor did I say that it did. I simply made a correlation about how the poor are unable to take advantage of significant discounts due to capital constraints. And the example I was using didn't use the phony discount but the true discount offered by volume. Pay attention... :p I understand the differential between the two pricing strategies perfectly well. b) I also never said nor implied that saving $200/month would make someone rich. But to dispute that there would be no improvement in a family with an extra $2400/year is silly. If you believe that to be the case, please send me a check in that sum. ;p And further, you can't use the present market to determine long term returns. Today's market is quite lucrative if you pick the correct investments. If you just follow the Dow or NASDAQ up and down, day trade, or let management fees eat up your seed corn, you're at the whim of the market.