Yes, you read it right. Cartoon character is very much better than any investment GURU. Old Uncle Scrooge had a lot of investing wisdom. The reasons are many.
We saw him in our childhood. Possibly, he is the iconic image for many. But what I found is very interesting.
The story of this duck is very significant. There are many things which we need to learn from him. I think he is the first teacher for us who teaches the subject’ Financial Literacy’. Scrooge is a wealthy Scottish business magnate and tycoon, and within the context of the fictional Disney universe, he is the world’s richest person. He is the maternal uncle of Donald Duck, the granduncle of Huey, Dewey, and Louie, and a usual financial backer of Gyro Gearloose ( Venture Capitalist?)
A Financial Fable, first published in March 1951, had Scrooge teaching Donald some lessons in productivity as the source of wealth and the laws of supply and demand. Perhaps more importantly, it was also the first story where Scrooge observes how diligent and industrious Huey, Louie, and Dewey are, making them more similar to himself than to Donald. In the end, I have something about this story that will blow your mind. Scrooge had worked his way up the financial ladder from humble immigrant roots. Firstly, he took up a job polishing and shining boots and was enraged when a ditch digger paid him an 1875 US dime, which was useless as currency in 19th century Glasgow. However, the coin inspired him to take a position as a cabin boy on a Clyde cattle ship to the United States to make his fortune at 13. (Don’t lose hope, use your imagination, isn’t it similar to RICH DAD, POOR Dad?)
He keeps a portion of his wealth, money he has personally earned himself, in a massive Money Bin overlooking the city of Duckburg. In the short Scrooge McDuck and Money, he remarks to his nephews that this money is “just petty cash.” ( If you find it non-attractive, then read this statement of warren buffet “Cash never makes us happy, but it’s better to have the money burning a hole in Berkshire’s pocket than resting comfortably in someone else’s.” It also teaches us the importance of investment.)
He regularly forces Donald and his nephews to polish the coins one by one to pay off Donald’s debts. (Don’t you remember Warren buffet on Leverage here?) Scrooge never completed formal education, as he left school at an early age. However, he has a sharp mind and is always ready to learn new skills. ( Importance of entrepreneurship?) Scrooge is a firm believer in the saying, “knowledge is power. ( Many Business persons believe it. Not a shocking thing). Both as a businessman and as a treasure hunter, Scrooge is noted for his drive to set new goals and face new challenges. ( Perfect Businessperson never stops on one success.) In “Much Ado About Scrooge” (1987), Uncle Scrooge discovers a treasure map leading to a lost play by the famous poet William Draakespeare and sets off on a quest to find it. When asked why he has undertaken this crazy journey, Uncle Scrooge effectively says the Drakespeare brand will make anything by the playwright a valuable commodity. In the end, Uncle Scrooge opens a Drakespeare theme park to capitalize on his find. Uncle Scrooge and Warren Buffett agree concerning a solid brand. Like Buffett’s rationale for a stake in Coca-Cola, Scrooge McDuck reasons the public will pay a premium for a taste of the authentic Drakespeare, well above the low cost of creating the product. Here he was teaching us about branding!
I will end this story of a great visionary Investor and businessman with an account similar to Milton Friedman. In an early comic book featuring Uncle Scrooge (“A Financial Fable” from 1951), the plutocratic duck runs a farm with the help of his great-nephews Huey, Dewey, and Louie and keeps all his hard-earned cash in a corn silo. When a tornado hits the silo, it sucks up Uncle Scrooge’s money, then drops it all over the county. Scrooge is not upset, however, knowing that if he and his young nephews keep working, they will get the money back soon enough. Meanwhile, Gladstone Goose, the luckiest goose in the county, holds out his hat and asks for money from heaven. A giant pile of Uncle Scrooge’s dollars falls right in it. When Gladstone and his traveling companion Donald want to spend the money, they discover the tornado has distributed extra riches equally to everyone in the county. Everyone is now a millionaire! When the newly rich villagers come to Uncle Scrooge for farm-fresh food, he informs them that the prices have gone up: eggs, bacon, and milk all cost millions of dollars. Eventually, Uncle Scrooge gets his money back, and everything returns to normal. This story demonstrates economist Milton Friedman’s monetarist theory of inflation. (Did Friedman read Donald Duck comics? “A Financial Fable” is almost precisely the premise of Friedman’s helicopter drop hypothesis.) Ultimately, tangible assets and value-enhancing labor will make money, and profits from get-rich-quick schemes will be illusory.
