A $600,000 lakefront home! Is Bernie Sanders a bourgeois hypocrite?

There's more to the story than meets the eye.

Did self-described socialist Bernie Sanders just buy a $600,000 lakefront home?

LOS ANGELES, CA (California Network) - Is Bernie Sanders a bourgeois hypocrite? According to reports, he has just purchased a $600,000 lakefront home on Lake Champlain. How does that fit with his brand?

As it turns out, it was not his money. And no need to worry, it wasn't your $27 either. The house was purchased with money that came from the sale of a house in his wife's family.

Jane O'Mera Sanders sold her family's old vacation home in Maine, which provided the money to buy the lakefront house. The house on the lake has long been a dream for the Sanders family, she explained in a written statement.

While the location seems extravagant, the house is far less expensive than those occupied by the vast majority of his peers.

The Sanders family also owns a row house in Washington D.C., a practical necessity for Sanders who is often in Washington, and their regular home in Maine.

Most of Sander's colleagues fare far better in their multiple homes which can each price into well into the millions.

But Sander's living situation is still well above that enjoyed by the average middle class family, and far above those of the urban poor.

This is how capitalism works. Sander's wife Jane, using money she earned though selling another property, simply decided to make a family dream come true.

Bernie Sanders did not buy the house or even use his money, and he did not use your $27 donation. Those donations are regulated and cannot go into the Senator's pocket anyway.

It also happens that the Sanders family is large, thus the need for a large home. Living with Bernie Sanders is his wife, four children, their spouses and seven grandchildren. That's as many as 17 people under one roof.

That makes the purchase of a four bedroom home a little more reasonable. In fact, a case can be made that the house is already too small.

Sanders has certainly earned the right to relax for a bit in a nice house.

But does this make him a hypocrite? Not if it was his wife's purchase, and not if he is sharing the residence with so many others. Yes, the lakefront is a bit of a luxury, but how many of us would do the same? Probably all of us.

So before we rush to judgement, we should acquire all the facts. And hopefully the example helps us all to appreciate the value of sharing in a capitalist society.