Advantages of being financially responsible in a debt-ridden world

I'm assuming everyone has heard the old adage, "In the kingdom of the blind, the one-eyed man is king." I have had the off-and-on thought about this as it relates to personal finance. Say that the blind men are those who are filing for bankruptcy in staggering numbers, as commented on at Frugal For Life. Well, then, the one-eyed man (or woman, for that matter), or perhaps we could call him "the fully-sighted man," would be that increasingly rare breed of person who is responsible with and for his personal finances. What advantages does the fully-sighted man have in the world of fools who spend themselves blind?

The first advantage is the most obvious: Freedom
I was raised to believe that debt is a form of slavery. Like the indentured servants who helped populate this country centuries ago, those who go into debt sell their future to pay for their present(s). I enjoyed that play on words, but it rings true. They aren't buying assets that appreciate in value. Instead, they're buying some frivolous lifestyle that they have themselves convinced that they can't live without. Their sense of entitlement knows no bounds, and they are immature enough to think that tomorrow will never come, so they sell themselves to pay for things.

The fully-sighted man is also a far-sighted man. He sees the long-term consequences of his actions, and adjusts his actions accordingly. In addition to a well-developed ability to delay gratification, this trait buys him freedom. He is free to spend his next dollar however he chooses, because he has not already promised it to somebody else. This is not to say that there are not strategic uses of debt, only that the fully-sighted man recognizes the costs and benefits of that debt and makes an intelligent decision.

The second advantage is less obvious: Opportunity
Opportunity knocks but once, right? Somehow, though, it knocks when you're least prepared to take advantage of it. For example, a million-dollar business idea comes along just as you're going into bankruptcy. Not if you're the fully-sighted man. He's got a huge stash of money, unblemished credit, and the trust of his banker. He can jump on that opportunity when it knocks.

If you're the fully-sighted man, you can take advantage of all the deals that arise when those poor blind fools lose their cars, their jewelry, or even their houses to bankruptcy or foreclosure. If you're not fully-sighted already, maybe it's time you took off those shackles of debt and removed your blinders. Open your eyes, and be a king.