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Updated 4:03 p.m. ET -- Who are the lucky three? That was a common question on the minds of all the rest of us Mega Millions losers on Saturday after lottery officials announced that three lottery tickets sold in Kansas, Illinois and Maryland hit the world record-breaking $640 million jackpot.
The morning after the drawing, most Americans were left with dashed fantasies of what they would have done with more than half a billion dollars. In New York City, Sean Flaherty hoped to trade in some of his 12-hour days working as a video game tester to spend more time with his wife and daughter.
"I knew that when I bought the ticket, that I wouldn't win," Flaherty said Saturday. "But I did it anyhow. Because, I don't know, it would be like Christmas."
Each winning ticket was expected to be worth more than $213 million before taxes. The winners, for now, remain unidentified and no one has publicly come forward yet to claim the prize.Illinois' winning ticket was sold in the small town of Red Bud, near St. Louis. Mike Lang, spokesman for the Illinois Lottery, said the winner used a quick pick to select the numbers.
Dennis Metzger, the manager at the Motomart in Red Bud that sold the winning ticket, said she has no idea who the lucky person is.
"Everyone is wanting to know who it is," said Metzger. "All day yesterday I was selling tickets and I was hoping someone from Red Bud would win. Never in my wildest dreams did I think this. I'm just tickled pink."
Paramedic Dan Parrott walked away from the store with only $5 in winnings after checking his $40 worth of tickets, not enough for that new house, new car and the new ambulances he'd decided would help him spend the jackpot.
"I'd love to have all that money, but with all of that money comes responsibility," he said outside the store. "But it'd still be awesome."
NBC's Luke Russert reports from outside the Maryland store where a winning ticket to Friday's Mega Millions jackpot was sold.
In Maryland, the winning ticket was sold at a 7-Eleven store in Milford Mill, near Baltimore. The harried manager could only repeatedly say "No interviews" to the reporters pressing for details.
Maryland does not require lottery winners to be publicly identified; the Mega Millions winner can claim the prize anonymously.
The winning Maryland ticket was a single quick-pick ticket, in which numbers are automatically selected, and was sold at about 7:15 p.m. on Friday. The owners of the 7-Eleven, Ethiopian immigrants Abera and Mimi Tessem, will get a $100,000 seller's bonus, said Carole Everett, spokeswoman for the Maryland Lottery.
Nyeri Murphy, holding two scratch-off tickets, said she normally plays Powerball but drove to neighboring Harford County to buy $70 worth of Mega Millions tickets this week. "I should have bought them here," she said.
The Kansas ticket was sold in the northeastern part of the state. No other information would be released by the Kansas Lottery until the winner comes forward, spokeswoman Cara S. Sloan-Ramos said. Kansas law also allows lottery winners to remain anonymous.
Personal finance expert Suze Orman weighs in on the Mega Millions craze.
The winning numbers in Friday night's drawing were 02-04-23-38-46, and the Mega Ball 23. Winners could receive either a one-time payment of their share or take it in 26 annual installment payments.
What is the first thing you'd do with the Mega Millions lottery winnings?
Even though just three tickets matched all the winning numbers, the jackpot made a millionaire of at least three other winners and gave a smaller windfall to more than 100 others. Three ticket-holders won $1 million each, and 158 won $250,000 for matching the first five numbers drawn, said Chuck Strutt, executive director of the Multi-State Lottery Association in Urbandale, Iowa.
The estimated jackpot dwarfs the previous $390 million record, which was split in 2007 by two winners who bought tickets in Georgia and New Jersey.
Americans spent nearly $1.5 billion for a chance to hit the jackpot, which amounts to a $462 million lump sum and around $347 million after federal tax withholding. With the jackpot odds at 1 in 176 million, it would cost $176 million to buy up every combination. Under that scenario, the strategy would win $171 million less if your state also withholds taxes.
No matter who wins the jackpot, one certain winner is the Internal Revenue Service. The tax-collecting agency subjects lottery winnings of more than $5,000 to a 25-percent federal withholding tax.
From coast to coast, people stood in line at retail stores Friday for one last chance at striking it rich.
Maribeth Ptak, 31, of Milwaukee, said she only buys Mega Millions tickets when the jackpot is really big and she bought one Friday at a Milwaukee grocery store. She said she'd use the money to pay off bills, including school loans, and then she'd donate a good portion to charity.
"I know the odds are really not in my favor, but why not," she said.
Sawnya Castro, 31, of Dallas, bought $50 worth of tickets at a 7-Eleven. She figured she'd use the money to create a rescue society for Great Danes, fix up her grandmother's house, and perhaps even buy a bigger one for herself.
"Not too big -- I don't want that. Too much house to keep with," she said.
Willie Richards, who works for the U.S. Marshals Service at a federal courthouse in Atlanta, figured if there ever was a time to confront astronomical odds, it was when $640 million was at stake. He bought five tickets.
"When it gets as big as it is now, you'd be nuts not to play," he said. "You have to take a chance on Lady Luck."
The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this story.
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Guess I shouldn't have quit my job Friday. I was soooo certain ...
When I saw Illinois I got all excited - just my ticket and 100 Million others. C'est la vie. :-(
Dick Cheney hit the ticket in Maryland... that guy is so lucky!
LMAO
thought i had winner
What a ripoff!!! Thoses voices in my head lied to me again!!
why are they calling it the worlds largest lottery...
have they never heard of the lottery in Spain called Le Gordo... it was 3 billion dollars or 2.52 billion euros and was won dec 22 2011
that is a lottery ...
But I'm very happy a few get to share this Mega Millions jackpot
Darrel B,
Funny stuff.
One of the real winners is the state of Georgia, where close to 50% of the money spent on lottery tickets go to the Hope Scholarship fund. Thank you very much for your donation.
IDidNotWin- This is a lottery also. $600,000,000 is nothing to sneeze at.
LMAO! I told everyone yesterday, that I wasn't coming in Monday and prepare to hear to waves in the background when I call off lol
Uh, so what were the winning numbers? That might have been helpful (I know, many more places to find them. This could have been one of them - just sayin'.)
Those three people must really be disappointed at having to share the winnings with each other! What a bummer for them.
Wow! Three people won and how many millions of them lost! And these people talk about the Greed of the bankers, when they're their own worst enemies.
My wife and I have never played the lottery! Investing in the stock market is a whole lot safer over the long haul with a diversified portfolio. During the 2008 market downturn, our retirement funds never got into the principle of what we'd invested and by staying invested and continuing to invest during the downturn our retirement funds are in place for a comfortable retirement. Currently over half the funds in my 401K are from dividends / fund growth! Now just think how many of those playing the lotto would be in the same boat as my wife and I are if you'd also invested in funds with good long term growth records (not some flash in the pan stock that's the lastest craze).
Playing the lotto guarantees you'll continue to be a loser!
thurman,
"The winning numbers in Friday night's drawing were 02-04-23-38-46, and the Mega Ball 23."
it was clearly stated in the article, maybe you should read the whole thing.....just sayin'
The El Gordo lottery that was mentioned is divided into many series of numbers with winners in each series. The 2011 drawing had 99,000 different numbers in 180 series that then divide the overall jackpot.
This Mega Millions jackpot is a world record. No one in the El Gordo lottery could come anywhere close to what this jackpot paid out because the El Gordo lottery is not designed to make anyone rich. That is why that lottery is called the Christmas Lottery, it spreads the wealth into many little Christmas presents.
Nice try at making something out of nothing.
I don't know why anyone on the West Coast or west of the Mississippi River even plays these multi state Power Ball or Mega Millions. Usually, when it is crazy big money there are only east coast winners. Kansas was the exception. However, look at the last 6-8 big, monster winners.. all east of the mississippi River winners.
The Odds of winning in a Lottery are Zero, if one does not buy a ticket.
The Odds of buying Lottery Tickets and winning are Zero.
Congrats to the 3 winners-
Let everyone have a dream, and a goal. Maybe it will get some to get motivated to earn money, or have an epiphany of what they really want to do in Life.
The Odds of winning a lottery, are nil, but getting struck by Lightening would be twice, in a mega pool with high numbers of people such as this one.
"Someone has to win".
OH MY GOD
I JUST CHCKED MY TICKET
I WON I WON! I WON
WOWOOWOOWOWOWWOWOWO
Yipeeeeeeee
ON another note...I have a bridge to sell...
JustOlJoe- I'm happy for ya that you and your wife have done so well.
That said, why don't you give me the name of one of these investment companys that will work so hard for my ONE DOLLAR that I bought a MM ticket with? Or allow me to open an account with one or two hundred dollars? Yeah, didn't think so.
I may have been as smug as you once, in my youth, before catastrophic illness hit our family.
May unforseen circumstances never come your way.
Hey, me256... - it was not in the original story. the updated version had it in there.
JustOlJoe:
You and your wife are going in the right direction: regarding Finances and Retirement funds. One cannot take huge risks at this age--in the Stock Market---Mutual Funds are the way to go---
KM:Catastrophic illness hits each and every family---one can have both.
Most retirees have NO money to live on---Government dependency. Medicaid, State Run Nursing Homes, and just living off the few dollars of Society Security.
Smug? No--Smart planning--yes.
Our office pool was 200 tickets. We won 11 bucks.
To: JustOlJoe: Well, OK!! we will put a GoldStar on Your forehead and Oooohhhh Sooo good are you!! meanwhile a few bucks for a lottery IS Good fer' ya!!!
Starderup - Well, $11 will buy a pound of good quality coffee to share with the others in the office. That's better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick.
JustOlJoe- Buying a lottery ticket is entertainment. Like donating a dollar to a slot machine. By the way, I have seen a lot of people have BIG troubles with their intended retirement nest egg. Their "diversified portfolios" never amounted to much; and, they were lucky to recover their investment dollars. However, some ended up losing money. So, investing is not completely safe. Plus, many people die before they can enjoy retirement. Case in point - How many people do you know, who died before they could collect Social Security? !!
One thing for sure, if you do not buy a lottery ticket, you cannot win.
I almost won...only off by 5 numbers...dang
I think ALL states should let winners remain anonymous if they wish...having the media show your name and maybe other info makes matters worst..there are a lot of crazies out there and having a big win will attract them to you.
Stupid state laws..its the mega millions if it goes to some states you can remain anonymous..it should go to all. The only ones to know is the lottery main office so you can be taxed correctly and get the money of course.
I realize some people like to know who it was since they did gamble on it..but to me its no ones business who it was..does it make a difference to anything if you knew...don't think so.
Don't you love folks like JustOlJoe? Most like him have lifeless lives....but lots of money. Sometimes life happens and despite the moronic comment by Hawaii2. Maybe if you're a Wall Street scam artist and can pile up fat cash you can avoid being ripped off by our medical machine. But members of the vanishing middle class get hammered by the fees the insurance folks renege on. Must be nice to live in Joe/Hawaii land and not have to face reality.
well on face book i have identified the guy in maryland baltimore who's won he's generiously shareing his prize money with the people whom like his photo here's a link even i myself have liked his post
Geno65 - Jealousy, resentment, envy - whatever you want to call it - is not a becoming trait. I don't know any people who have money and lifeless lives. LOL. Money brings peace of mind and security and just makes life a lot more fun. JustOtlJoe and Hawaii were merely stating what most of you picking on their posts need to hear. They weren't being smug, nor am I, but they are 100% correct, and trying to enlighten those of you who think the playing the lottery is the only way to achieve financial security. I would also bet these they have purchased both life and disability insurance to cover themselves and their families if the worst happens. And if you spend time educating yourself, you will not get ripped off by fees or any one person or company. When my portfolio was in the toilet after the latest crash, did I panic and sell and make my paper losses real? Of course not. And I continued to dump as much $ into investments as I could scrape together all along. It's called dollar cost averaging, and if you bothered to learn about it, you'd realize how great it works. My spouse and I started out with $7 in our pockets in 1989. You have to start somewhere, even if it's nothing more than a mutual fund at Vanguard. If your work 401K sucks and has too high of fees, open a Roth or IRA on your own, esp if you get no matching dollars from your employer. Personally, I think a lot of 401K programs stink because unfortunately, HR people pick them out who know zilch.
I won't tell you our net worth now, for you'd just scream smug. It takes time and much discipline to educate oneself (are you one who is too lazy), but it pays off sweetly. And to Whistle and others like you who say, why bother saving, spend all you earnings, you could die before you retire. Well I just laugh at you types. So what's your plan if you don't die so quickly. Wait for the government to take care of you? Good luck with that. And yes, I'm middle class and just another 99%er.
If you buy ZERO tickets, you have ZERO chance of winning.
If you buy ONE ticket, you have a chance. If you buy 50 tickets or 100, your odds are still only 50 or 100 to 175,000! That is why I only buy ONE ticket.
The stock market is just as much risk as a lottery, you pay+you play=you pay. I myself dont think I can afford the stock market, but I can afford a chance at a lottery. However, that being said I am losing faith in lotteries. Or the states that hold them. Im starting to think they are scams held by your state. Im probably skeptical, but arent the numbers drawn electronically? ie.~computer, and isnt a computer programmable?
Anyway you slice it, it's a great fantasy for a buck.
I live right by Red Bud IL, Guess I bought at the wrong store or wrong time.................soooooooooo close
Trying to think if I've been to Red Bud this past week.....
Havent seen any redbud for years.....
mmmmm,redbud..........
Green Bud will have to do, I guess!
I was thinking the same thing. It's been a long time.
Actually it was both: Wrong Place at the Wrong Time!! :=} Good Luck in Future. Wish you best.
I Miss the Purple Bud. I am getting the munches already.
The red bud trees are blooming in Texas... does that count?
Wait, are we talking about the same lottery? I don't think it matters where you buy the ticket because you play numbers that you choose yourself or have the computer spontaneously choose for you. That's why three people from different places won: they had chosen the same numbers. I think you're thinking of a scratch card or something.
Berecca,
You are tight, it doesn't matter where you play it. These people didn't actually choose their tickets, though. The Illinois and Maryland winners each bought "quick pick" tickets, which means they let the computer choose a set of "random" numbers for them.
No you bought the wrong numbers!!
SingBiker, I'm tight? Have we met? Are you that guy from two weeks ago?
I'm glad to hear that more than one person won.
Yes, now instead of one more, there are three more despised one percenters.
I bet you bought a ticket though.....
Ironic isn't it....
Hey Mitt the Flip makes $56,000 a day. He's still worth more than any of these winners. Plus he keeps his money in off shore banks and will pay a far lower tax rate than any of these plebs. We're all suckers to this guy.
Blue - i hear being jealous of people is the in thing these days
hs321, would 200 million, minus taxes even put a person in the 1%? I'm not sure but I'd almost think it wouldn't. Millionaires don't even make Forbes rich people list anyone, only billionaires.
trudat-I hear that some people, maybe with poor educations, don't know the difference between jealousy and envy.
any and every millionaire is in the one percent. You don't have to be a billionaire to be in the one percent, that would be like being in the one eighth percentile.
So Romney has money, so what? Sick of hearing about that.. The Obamas are poor with their Harvard, Columbia, and Princeton Educations? Then again that may have been free education and affirmative action programs that we paid for. All of the recent presidents have been wealthy, it's just the way it is "in this country, you gotta make the money first. Then when you get the money, you get the power. Then when you get the power, then you get the women." Tony Montana in Scarface...
I thought the same thing, but that's my saltiness that I didn't win lol..
I just want to congratulate the winners. I hope they are happy and do some good with their good fortune.
I hope it helps them have a great life and possibly help others. I want to be able to drop in at St. Jude's unannounced and ask if they could use a million.
Lucky SOB's!!! Congrats!!
Dude in Md posted the winning ticket to FB already!!
Anyone that naive will not have that money for long...
What's his fb name so I can stalk him lmao jk
What a fool. I don't play the lottery, so I did not buy a ticket. One cannot choose to remain anonymous in the state where I live. Those that have won big $ here have their lives changed in too many ways for the worst by all the leeches and crazies that come out of the woodwork. Most move to another state.
For all you suckers out there ... you got nothing. Suckers.
So what? There's something to be said for having a chance to dream, and also for taking part in making someone else's dream come true. I don't regret the $5 I spent on that.
You do realize that people still could win some of their money back by having some of the numbers, correct?
Rick, you are right. Statistically, one is more likely to get killed on the way to the gas station than winning the Mega Millions. So you risked your life for a tank of gas while many others risked their lives for a tank of gas and a shot at a few hundred million dollars.
Absolutely! Get 5 numbers but not the mega ball and you can win half a million. Get 4 numbers and the mega ball is also big money. Three numbers and the mega ball will still make you happy. For five or ten bucks, what the hell, it's worth the ride. ( Of course I didn't win a penny. )
Actually, five numbers but no Megaball gets you a quarter of a million...still sweet! If you can and do play the Megaplier for one extra dollar, second prize gets one million.
Crap! I thought the drawing was on Saturday so I just bought my ticket this morning. The story of my life - a day late and a dollar short!
I might not have gotten anything. But I only spent a few bucks on tickets. I'm okay with that.
It's cheap entertainment. It was worth five bucks to me!
yeah to me the excitement & dreamin is worth the 5 bucks. :)
Congrats to the winners, the lucky bastards! Glad it will be split up.
This has a Charlie and the Chocolate Factory vibe to it.
Red Bud, Funny Farm, Chevy Chase
Joe, I agree. Hopefully the ticket/tickets are held by group of players, like an office pool or the like.
Why would you post it to FB is beyond me
Yep, now you got LOTS of friends. Every one of them expects money from you. Some may extort you, plan to kidnap you or your family, rob or steal from you, or just generally be too jealous to remain friends. "Money has changed you, man. You used to be cool."
I'm just waiting for the story in five years where one of these winners is broke and their life is ruined in some way. Pathetic idiots who can't handle money.
Some people are just ignorant, That face book crap is their life.
Outstanding post Bob! Could not have said it better. These lottos often dump fortunes into the hands of classless people who blow the whole thing in a couple of years!
They won't go broke if they choose the SMART thing to do and do the yearly payment. That way they don't have all their money at once and blow it. that's the best thing to do in cases like these. I never understand the people that choose the lump sum. So you can have your taxes already taken out? If a person is responsible, they'll pay the taxes on the the annual payments each year. You're good for life! Wish it was me, but I didn't really expect anyone in California to win, unfortunately.
Oh Tish, taking the annuity option is NEVER a wise choice IF YOU'RE SMART. Look it up.....it has to do with the time value of money, inflation, etc. Also, if you choose the annuity and you die a year later, that's it. The prize is not transferable to your heir(s).
I'd rather get hit by lightning then sue God for a couple of hundred million. Odds are better of collecting on that than winning one of these. Living lives with the hope of becoming a millionaire someday is no way to live your life and no way to vote (listen up Republicans and stop voting against your best interests). Hope is one thing, but false hope is an entirely different animal.
your a MORON
First @!$%# to bring up politics.....figures it's a liberal.
Jim BRILLO, I'm a moron but you don't know the difference between "your" and "you're"? I see... and vinny, the first person to bring up politics was the person above who mentioned Cheney, not me.
You must have had an extra helping of stupid for breakfast this morning, that's the liberal mindset, spend thier welfare check on lottery tickets.
Since you went there - lets take it a step futher - lets talk about "hope and change"....talk about false hope....all those people lining up in Detroit for all that free "Obama money" that they didn't get and then almost started a riot. Guess that hope (and vote) didn't work for them either. Or any of the other people that buy into that liberal BS that everything will be handed to them on a silver platter all they need to do is sit back and wait!
Funny you retardicans keep talking about liberals when it is the red states like Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, South Carolins, Georgia and the rest that take the most in welfare and government handouts. That's why they call you Retardicans!
Oh, please. A dollar does not even buy a quart of gasoline anymore. I remember the days when a dollar would buy over three gallons. Ooh, aah. I "blew" two whopping dollars on last night's Mega Millions jackpot. That represented a 100% increase in my usual expenditure for the Friday night drawing, for I spend precisely two dollars a week on both the Tuesday and Friday Mega Millions drawings, and that is it -- a buck a drawing, and it's Quick Picked at that.
Considering the price of participation in relation to a payoff potential, and my discipline in controlling my investment level ... I don't think it's wasted money at all. Maybe it's not the "American Dream" anymore; maybe it's an American Fantasy ...
But let me you in on something about "the American Dream" ... the greedmongers and the fleece artists have totally bolluxed that up, too. "You just keep wuikin' hard and you'll make something of yo'seff" has been replaced with, "You've proved that you can wuik hard, so guess what? We've just made yo' wuik harder ... so good luck keepin' up -- and by the way, thanks for all your hard wuik in the past."
So I can see why "hard-wuikin'" people have no problem dropping a horrifically deflated dollar on a chance to see a fantasy come true.
incredulous......what you are saying then is..do not dream of having a whole lot of $$$$$ to make life easier, to have the chance to do some good for others that are down and out, to maybe start a foundation for sick kids or to do good anywhere you could with that amount of $$$.
i guess you don't play a friendly card game, go to a casino or the track or even play bingo. then again you would need friends for that and i am guessing, you don't have any.
even being unemployed my life, judging by your post, is better than yours.
what do the repubs have to do with it anyway?
Incredulous....thanks for being the Newsvine Grammar Police today...and what Jim said....
As his/her name implies:
Skeptical, disbelieving, or unable to believe
Obviously, "Icredulous" should have been just that when the Liberals were (and still are) spreading their agenda to destroy our great country. Where was his/her skepticism when his great leader couldn't talk to a sixth grade class without a teleprompter and said he had visited 57 states? Now that we are on the Brink of Disaster, there are still those out there who refuse to accept what this idiot has done to our country and will have free reign to continue his destructive agenda if re-elected. Has Incredulous even noticed that his/her great leader has set race relations back 150 years? It is my guess that Incredulous is a follower, has always worked for someone else (if working at all) and has never had an original thought. I wonder if Incredulous has ever had to meet a payroll, or served in our military, or gave financial assistance to someone in need or done anything other than have his/her hand out, palm up? The stupidity of the American voter is unbelieveable. It is people like Incredulous whom we can thank for bringing about our demise.
You may have forgotten a few. Il, CA and NY, far out pace those you listed. What color is the sky in your world???
Offwiththeirheads - Name calling does not make you superior. It just sinks your credibility and validity. But since you brought up red states and welfare, how about a breakdown of voters and races on who uses welfare the most in red states? Democrat vs. Republican voter statistics would be really interesting, and I'll bet you wouldn't like the answer. Same with white vs. minority statistics on usage.
Now moving the discussion forward for the adults who don't always breathe hostile partisan politics, I truly hope at least one of these winning tickets went to an office pool or a pool of blue collar workers. All too often we hear about someone who already has money hitting the Big One. There are a lot of disheartened and underemployed workers out there just trying to get by in this horrid economy.
But like another poster said, I'd love to see a report/interview five years from now on these winners and see how much money they have left and what their lives have become. All too often many winners wind up broke within a few years because they continued to make bad economic decisions that kept them where they were socioeconomically to begin with.
Incredulous -- WTH?? It's a freaking GAME! For cryin' out loud -- lighten up. You don't have to play the damned game. It's not a political thing. OMG -- It's mental midgets like yourself that keep stirring the pots -- keep the anger going - and you are a POS Democrat too. Well, gotta laugh I guess, otherwise I might puke. Why don't you go lick a picture of Obama and stay the hell off the internet.
missed out again
Hope and false hope, not sure what the difference is. Anyone can win the lotto or have any other kind of a miracle happen. I'm not sure what false hope is.
offtheirheads, look it up 8 out of 10 who gets the most gov. handout is in the north only 2 from the south.
Here's a visual of the odds on winning this: one in 175 million. A playing card is 3.5" long. If you line up 175 million playing cards end to end, it would stretch 9,667 miles end to end (3.5" is .291667 of a foot, a mile is 5280 feet - multiply 175 million by .291667 then divide by 5280 to get your miles). If those cards were laid out in America from New York to LA, it would be three round trips plus half way back to the other coast again. You would have to walk that entire nearly 10,000 miles and pick out the one winning card. That's your odds of winning. Did you have better things to do with your lost money? I sure hope so.
Reality, multiple entries on each ticket and 1.5 billion dollar bills come into play, Figure-in it out. Re-do your Math. Bad anal-o-gee.
Let's hope they use the $640 million to help others. With 20 million Americans unemployed, there are lots of opportunities to help those in need.
I totally agree with you Robert in Omaha because I'm one of those! I didn't buy a ticket cause I honestly didn't have the $1.00 to spend on something I just knew I wouldn't win. I need "every" scent I get this day and time to help me on bills, gas in my car or whatever just to survive. I was just telling my father yesterday that's it's a pure shame the Lottery people couldn't have just given $640 million people through out the U.S. (who are unemployed and really don't have a good financial stable background) a million each (to each family/individual)! Now there's a GOOD cause. Not only are you helping the unemployed get back on their feet by being able to pay off debts and bills but they would put back into the economy as well. I'll honestly NEVER understand the Lottery system! Just so beyond unreal and unfair. To add: I am truly happy for those three who won and PRAY they all make GOOD USE of it, not be broke in a few years and will pass it around to those in NEED. God Bless to all!
Outstanding post EmpressRSD! I agree 100%! In short it's a shame these lottery people don't follow gospel principles of helping the unfortuneate in this country.
Where do you think the lottery gets all this money? Nobody would have spent the 1.2 billion on tickets if it was just going to be handed out to the unemployed. Like that would be fair to the people that are still working anyways. Think about things before you whine about not having any money. And I was recently laidoff but I dont complain because other people spend their money on a ticket and Im not getting anything for free. Thats what wrong with this country is too many people expecting something for doing nothing. And its cent not scent.
I'm with all who want distribution of "such" Moneys to our poor, rebuild schools, etc. They would still have many Millions for their wants/and needs.
Hoping these folks don't turn to "idiots" as my friend did (less than a Mil.) She started to put so many people down..and put them "in their place," to include myself, after 50+ years of friendship. Was she ever a friend??
To our well to do..please stay human?
All stay safe
robert in omaha - why should they use their money to help others? It is THEIR MONEY - not anyone elses. They will contribute half of their winnings to taxes. That should be considered a gift to the feds and state governments in itself. Again, it is their money to spend, use or blow however they wish.
I also wonder about that.it is there money to do what they wish.I myself would help people in need and to charities and to other orginizations.
But why do people always tell the ones who win the lottery to help everybody.With all the billionaires and millionaires in this country we need to be asking them to help the people in need.
They will not be able to spend all the money they have in there lifetime.And instead of leaving it to some other country it needs to be left to charities in the united states to help people here who are homeless or whatever problems they have.
After taxes they will get around $120M a piece then the state will want their tax money. It could be well less. I am glad more than one ticket hit this jackpot.
I guess the states get some of that revenue, they seem pretty excited about it. I betcha, ha, this is leading up to a solution to paying off our national debt.
Illinois will find a way to squander the money.
I bet if Obama want to have a National lottery the Republicanpukes would say that Unconstitutional. That would be one way to pay off the debt...
Yo Maze1992, I vote YOUR idea to contribute to cutting down the National Debt is brilliant.Open it up to all 50 states,American Samoa,Porto Rica,Washington DC. People who don't agree simply don't play. Those who do play reap the potential of a windfall. One number generated per state per drawing.The overall gross amount gets split by all states plus mentioned territories. The other option is all 50 states are involved and one number pulled is winning number takes all of the pot.If its multiple tickets with same winning number then it gets split.
Ha. Obama would have the prize money spent before the drawing happened.
good luck guys be safe
Yea, Good Luck. All the communities in America should break down into small groups including 5 -10 needy Families. Then put together a plan how the other 100 or so Families can get together to help ease their pain.
'a dollar and a dream' doesn't cut the mustard.
I knew I could not read past page one without somebody bring politics into this. Way to go incredulous. Youare such a downer
Just a comment on the millions of people who threw away grocery money they needed on lottery tickets, but who also vote Republican, the party who consistently tries destroy the poor. If you don't like it, too bad. It is a valid, topical comment. ;-) Have a nice day!
And by the way, the person who brought up Cheney above was the first person to bring up politics, so I wasn't the first. That he got a new heart when someone much younger deserved it first is the real downer.
incredulous, who are you to tell people how to spend their hard earned money? Pretty soon you will say it is a good idea to force an unconstitutional health care plan on the American citizens.
It was a good idea to require automobile insurance, why not healthcare insurance? It is a good idea, considering the unfair treatment insurance companies were placing on patients, dropping them or not providing them coverage if they had pre-existing conditions. Sorry, but you're in the minority here, and the rest of us are standing behind our President on this one. Unconstitutional, my bum. If this is unconstitutional, so is auto insurance.
seriously...I am so sick of the auto insurance argument. It is NOT the same thing. When the government requires every citizen to purchase auto insurance whether they own a car or not --then we can talk about that. I am NOT required to purchase car insurance except by the finance company that actually owns my car. In my state - I can pay $500 for tags and drive uninsured if I want to. Sorry, but you are in the minority and supreme court will show you that soon :-)
KPW - If the finance company owns your car and requires you to purchase auto insurance you can't drive around uninsured. If you do not show proof of insurance, the finance company will insure the car, not you personally, and charge you for it. Hope you are never involved in an accident where you suffer serious injuries because an auto policy covers the cost of these injuries. People who drive around without insurance are selfish idiots.
incredulous, why so worried about the Republicans? You claim that they "consistently tries destroy the poor", yet the number of people living in poverty, according to the government, continues to rise. So, either these Republican's are inept or are too few in number to actually, literally destroy the poor. In either case, it doesn't sound like something to get so worked up over, your side is winning, the poor haven't been destroyed.
@ incredulous, you are wrong. The majority of people who waste money on lottery tickets do not vote Republican.
OMG I thought the lottery was for pick3 I spent $20 no wonder I didn't win ..............Doh
All you needed was ONE ticket. One Dollar. Buying just ONE increased your odds of winning dramatically. In this case the only fools around were the ones who didn't play.
Now, those people who spent half or more of their income check on the lottery - those are the ones with REAL false hope.
My point exactly.
Sucker...As Barum & Bill says their a sucker born every second.
Or was it Bailey who said,'let the baby have their bottle', and another one popped out.
It's is good that more than one person won this. Hope yall spend it well. Congrats!!!
I need to go ask for my job back!!! Sh*t!
And also tell my wife that I was just kinding about trading her in...F%*k!
"kinding" ... its just like kidding but without the spellcheck.
Darn, if I'd just hopped a plane out of state yesterday evening. Texas here.
so each winner after taxes might get 80-100 million....not as glamorous as 640. so all the hype about 640 really wasn't....esp with 3 winners. If it was one winner that would of been impressive. So in the end the big winners are the states taxing them.
There are three angry people this morning thinking they will have to split 600 million dollars, hehe.
Seriously-how 'MAD" could you actually BE with a hundred mil . AFTER TAXES?! IMHO, NOT VERY.
I'd be "mad" all the way to the South of France, myself.
PO'd while throwing money bags on board my Gulfstream:
Irritated that the bags were SO HEAVY while taking them out of the trunk of my new Lamborghini;
and only mildly upset once room service arrived ,bringing two bottles of Moet Chandon and a thousand shares of LVMH preferred stock--(hey , you've got to start somewhere.)