if offered the choice between a million — free and clear — or $200 a day for the rest of my life... I'd take the $200 every time!

That statement kind of goes against the whole idea of this post, as I understand it. If you could get $1M free and clear right now, then if you can just invest it at a 7.3% annual return you could generate $200 / day AND still have the $1M in assets.