Haha, he's a pretty impressive example of independence, although I don't think either the million dollars or the parrots are truly necessary!

RMS is not independent. He is interdependent. He relies heavily on the community for housing when he travels.

... Which he has paid for many times over, IMHO. He's always got a place to stay in my town, anyways.

Who is RMS? First results on Google are "root main square" and "Risk Management Solutions".

Fourth result and first person (at least for me) on Google is Richard M Stallman.

Of course the parrots are necessary. They're key to everything!