In the past, I’ve proffered my theory of the digital vagabond — an individual who only owns what he can maintain in digital form on an iPad type device. This fellow, travels the world freely with no need for a house or excess goods.

As the spiraling housing market continues to destroy America’s fortunes, I return to this theory. Why is the house with a white picket fence the epitome of the American ideal? Is slaving away to earn yourself a measurable amount of square feet the best use of your time? Libertarian writer Will Wilkinson is often contemplating such questions, usually in an effort to decry housing subsidies. Here’s an example:

…American culture really does relentlessly assault Americans with the American idea that owning an American house is an essential American part of the best and most authentic American way of American living.

So then, how would the digital vagabond live? Well, we’ve all heard of these Japanese hotel cubicles. If you take a look here, you see they’re not that bad. I would compare them to the berths available on your standard sailboat. Plenty of room to move around, and even equipped with a television.

I’m not saying this sort of lifestyle would be for everyone. I understand there’s a lot of sniveling wretches who demand their own poolroom and garage workshop. And, if they’re fine sacrificing 40 years of their life to get that*, more power to the idiots. But I think it is quite conceivable that someone could live a life without a house, and still be quite comfortable and happy. And I think we should look at how we live now — in apartments or houses that keep us generally routed to one area — and reconsider our reasons for doing so.

* Of course, the real reason your average guy decides that buying a house is important is because he realizes he needs to prove his ability to provide for whatever woman he’s hooked up with and the children they have sired. This offers still more evidence for my theory that women are the root of all the world’s problems.