I do check in with this thread on occasion, and it is obviously very popular. However.... am I the only one that finds some of the FU mentality a little sad? What I find sad is the desire to "stick it to the man" as a goal. I do not see it as healthy. I am not very fond of my boss, but I am under no illusions. When I leave in 4-6 years or so, I know I am replaceable. I will not be spending energy on "sticking it" to the boss. I believe that if some of the folks that have followed the FU approach could go back to their old jobs in a few days and weeks and find that life is just bobbing along nicely and that nothing has changed other than someone else is in your cubicle/job!
What you're saying is true. I'm under no illusions that telling the Man FU necessarily effects meaningful long-term changes within an organization, although it's possible.
It's human nature, though, to enjoy fantasizing about turning the tables on the normal power structure. Usually, the organization gets to make all the rules. People at higher levels of our organizations, some of whom we may never have met, make rules or issue unilateral decrees, which get handed down to workers in their cubicles, and everyone is just expected to accept and abide by them without question. As we all know, some of these rules are ridiculous and petty. FU money gives workers choices.
I've worked in jobs where we were, for example, told by management that, "our company policy is that we don't pay time and a half for hours worked over 40 per week." When I and other workers pointed out to our managers that what they were doing was in violation of federal labor laws, we were told if we didn't like it, we were always free to work someplace else. Most workers just accepted this, because they felt they had no choice. They had to pay their bills.
Because I have pretty much always had enough FU money that I could afford to, I have been able to tell my bosses what my policies are. If it's okay for company executives to unilaterally create policies, why not the workers? Companies that have been unwilling or unable to follow my policies have gotten fired by me, in other words I quit.
While you may think this is "sad," I disagree. If more people saw the connection between a high savings rate and rapidly accumulating as much FU money as possible, and the freedom that having that money allows them to have, the world would be a better place.