I was going to complain about how this was extreme, but that would be redundant given his URL. The point isn't that we all can/should live off of ~$7,000/year, it's that we can cut down on the crap we don't need, or things that will be gone or obsolete in a year or less.

However, the great thing about this article is that it reminds me to find some kind of balance. The impression I got was that the author spends nearly half his time budgeting and penny pinching, with little room to enjoy life. Or, if I could be a little more presumptuous, convinces himself that he enjoys this life so that he doesn't have to go out and earn far more money.