If you don't play, you are 0 times more likely to win.

Last time I bought one ticket about 5 months ago, I have 1 number right. This time, I'll probably have 2 numbers, getting there.

Well, if you do play, you make a bigger win for the winner.

someone is going to win it... worth a two dollar shot... just for conversation and a giggle.

If you don't play, you are 0 times more likely to win

A zero multiplier cannot be compared to a likelihood difference.

billy, you are late for your buzz kill meeting.

starbuck....."zero times more likely to win"?

Gave up the powerball game at $2 a ticket.. for one chance.

Doing Mega Lotto only..for $2 gets two chances..JP not high yet but goes up fast.

I'd take a shot and buy a ticket if I could, but living in Nevada...can't buy a ticket. Can't buy any lotto tickets in Nevada.

"zero times more likely to win"?

meaning you have absolutely NO chance of winning.

1 chance of winning times 0 tickets still = 0

When I win I'm gonna open up a giant sporting goods shop across the street from WilliamO. Open 24/7 !!

Set up 100 $1 million dollar trusts invested in tax-free bonds. Travel the country to find worthy people. Give $250,000 to each along with one trust that they can't touch for personal use. The payment to them is for them to manage the trust. Give all gains to charity of their choice, but balance of trust cannot go below the million and they must will the trust to another.

Charity forever, spread everywhere.

In that case, will you marry me?

No winners! The new annuity jackpot is $425MM. Cash Jackpot is $278.3MM.

No winners!

Wow, talk about a total buzzkill! The ticket in my pocket is sooo sad...;)

Oh well, there's always next week.

I promise, if I win......I will give my ex wife half.....of $1....no really, I'm not kidding....all in cash. I'll even pay her share of the taxes due!!!

Like another Newsvine writer said, Lotteries are for people that can't do fifth grade math! The balls are loaded, people! I'm still waiting for 60 Minutes to do an investigation on those so called Certified Ball Auditors, which are actually lottery officials! At $300million and several players, there should have been at least 10 winners!

Live to ride, are you saying no one ever wins? All the ppl who claim prices are fakes?

Well, ya gotta admit, people are amusing. People who otherwise wouldn't play all of a sudden get excited because they stand to be able to pocket $200 million (after reduction for present value and taxes). As if pocketing $10-50 million would be chump change. Oh well, to each their own. It's true, the odds of winning are atrocious, but I buy because it's a lot more fun and cheaper to buy a ticket and spend a couple of days dreaming and discussing plans "if we win" than it is to go see a terrible movie at the theatre.

For me, I don't play when it's a large jackpot because otherwise it's "chump change." I play because I don't even know when the drawing is normally. When the jackpot gets to record highs, the numbers are EVERYWHERE. So, if the numbers I would pick (usually a combo of my family's ages and such) were to win I wouldn't be able to avoid knowing it. I never know the numbers for regular drawings, so it doesn't matter if they were to pull those numbers because I'd stay blissfully unaware.

Like another Newsvine writer said, Lotteries are for people that can't do fifth grade math!

Yeah, LIVE TO RIDE, and those who have to spoil the fun for others are the people who have no friends. You and WilliamOfRites have no reason to think that you are superior to the rest of us in either math skills are intellect. The fact of the matter is that most people waste a few dollars each week on expensive coffee concoctions, worthless trinkets, etc., so it's their choice to spend the money on a couple of lottery tickets rather than other junk. We all know the odds of winning are incredibly low, but someone eventually beats those odds and wins.

As for "chump change", I'd be happier with even a couple million dollars to put toweard retirement than worrying about whether I have to split the prize with a couple dozen winners.

Lotteries are a tax on the stupid.

Unfortunately most of those stupid people are living off my tax dollars, which in turn makes me stupid for ever letting a state run a lottery.

nh ladybug, Is the air a little thin in New Hampshire? Duh, there are winners and the people are real! I see them on those shows after their broke in a few years. Drive 100 miles and buy a paper once an awhile! And Atticus, I'm not the one who needs friends! So quit trolling! I didn't tell people how they should spend their money. I was simply explaining why there aren't more winners!

What's wrong with a $2 dream for a few days?

live to ride, your a sad little man.

I can think of worse ways to spend your days.

Like bathing in finely ground money?

Start up a blind trust..hint from Romney.

I agree with you, ddoughtyjd. Best to direct the management of those winnings into worthy causes that facilitate constructive growth and improvements that last the tests of time. No one will remember the selfish winners but they will remember fondly the winners that helped many others.

Yeah right what a bunch of left wing loonies. i dont care if anyone remembers me except for taking care of me and mine. Take care of your own first and forget the rest. Money talks and losers walk or in your case whine.

Note to self . . . John Q gets nothing.

;-)

how about you do what the real rich do? create your own foundation and live off it while hiding behind the tax shelter that it really is. So why does a foundation send a million dollars to public broadcasting? to avoid paying three million in taxes. If you win this lotto, start a foundation, you still get to control the check book.

Winning would make me a 1%er! If I do win I hope it's before Obama makes me pay my "fair share".

Lets hope your brother doesn't win....:-)

spend it on beer and cheetos... and waste the rest...

tea billy's will not be allowed to win this draw.

Move .... now what were those two states that just made pot legal !!!!

no tea billy winners this time... sorry

LEFTWARD, How many times are you going to post the same stupid remarks about Tea Party folks. Are you just plain stupid or can't think of anything more original to say. You definately fit the mold of Obama voters.

Bonebreaker, not all of us Obama voters are like leftward bound. A lot of us just ignore the tea party folks.

Bone -

That's because leftward is so brainwashed by the liberal propaganda that he can't think for himself.

The best thing would be to donate a couple of mill to theTea Party. if for no other reason than to aleinate the left wing whiners on this website.

maybe we could just donate a short bus to the tea party so they can transport their remaining members.

Leftward is stuck on left which causes dizziness from going in circles endlessly.

That would make for some interesting taxidermy in your trophy room. : ) Real conversation starters.

My thoughts exactly. My idea is that why is everyone so greedy. Just think how it would help the economy if 425 families won a million dollars.

• In 2012, the first $13,000 of gifts to any individual are not subject to gift taxes. See 26 U.S.C. § 2503(b).

THE WHOLE GIVING THING has become a bit cliche'. I think I'd keep every penny of it. It might be hard to keep my wang to myself, though.

@Bob: What? No 'trickle down'?

I dont think so. If you win $1million and take it as cash you get around $600,000. Then the state and federal tax theft is around 50% so you wind up with right around $300,000. A reasonable year expense of $50,000 and you get 5 to 7 years counting interest earned and no major purchases. Your right, $1million could mean a good life, unfortunately the nanny state can not stand the thought of unstolen money in the hands of a citizen you greedy person you.

ALTHA. You might feel that way before you have won but you'll change your attitude if you were to win. Yeah, you might give much to charity, but not all of it except $1,000,000.00!

One Million invested at 5% only grosses $50K per year. Subtract annual taxes, up to 40% in Federal, State and Local taxes (don't forget sales taxes too and Obama care) and that leaves maybe $30K. LOL back to being near poor again! Going to have to continue working to get ahead in this economy. Keep buying Powerball tickets in hopes of winning again to correct my own stupidity.

Hope you can find that 5% interest.

This idea of altha's investment strategy is the same as so many who win lotteries lose it all withing a few years. And is why the wealthy get richer. They know how to keep and manage their money!

no they don't. the lawyers and politicians do that for them.

well, i haven't hired my housekeeper yet, so i'm off to fold laundry and load the dishwasher........sigh.....it would be so nice

NH_LADYBUG. I hope Santa brings something wonderful for your family for Christmas. Sounds like you guys need a little better luck in life. I wish you all well.

Bonebreaker, you made my day. Thank you so much. And if by some miracle I win, i will be back on here looking for you to share some of my luck with you! :)

And be able to get a good nights rest without worrying who is going to garnish for what medical bill and leave you without enough money to pay for your house or food, don't worry about every noise in the street if it is the repo man or if you are going to have to wake up to a cold dark house because a utility got turned off.

i live in NH and we don't have a state income tax either.

I live in California, and on that huge sum, would gladly pay the State tax for our citizen's coffers. I like Cali that much.

I wonder if in the states with no income tax if other taxes make up for it. I myself will keep my home state of Michigan as my main home state, gladly pay my taxes and still live well. I will try to do what I can to build some sort of business and become a "job creator". I would also create a homeless shelter that helps people get back on their feet. If someone refuses to be helped, at least they could get a hot meal and be sent on their way. I would suggest a state that has no income taxes and is warm so they won't freeze on the streets. I might even buy them a one way bus ticket to said place.

SLIMYONE. Your name sure does fit. Those were the numbers for Wednesday's drawing and you know it. You sir are a real prick, someone might just waste their money using those numbers. JERK!

Yeah, that was my winning ticket too. I turned in the 18, the 30, the 26, added a dollar and I am confident that my 8 dollar investment will bomb.

What would be more pissy is if those same numbers won again! After all they have just as much a chance as the next since each drawing uses a different set of balls.

Dennis, another jaded citizen! Cash option after taxes would be aproximately 142 million. there haven't been lots of muliple winners for powerball so even split 3 ways, i will have plenty to share and live a wonderful life. Incredible things WILL happen. Now get back to your half empty glass my friend!

thanks mr positive... geez you have buzz killed winning the lottery ... probably a tea billy

And don't forget: you can deduct the $2 off the taxes.

Save ALL your losing tickets for the deduction. With a good CPA, maybe even deduct the mileage to get to the store!

nh_ladybug

http://www.powerball.com/pb_home.asp

Before you receive the money, the lottery will take 35% for federal tax and the appropriate state tax in the state the ticket was sold and give you the remaining

State sales tax rates

http://www.usamega.com/mega-millions-jackpot.asp

Dennis, if I won, I would not take the cash payout. I'd still have to pay taxes, of course, only yearly for twenty years. The total payout would be twice as much as the cash option. The rest would be gravy. Of course, I would still invest some, just in case I outlived the twenty year payout schedule.

hell yeah, now there you go matilda...now that's some smart thinking...that's like 50,000 dollars paid to you monthly for the rest of your life...without losing a huge chunk of the jackpot...'course now i wonder what happens to the rest of the money if you die before your payout was done?

starbuck, NO state income tax here in NH. Did you even look at your link??

and the appropriate state tax in the state the ticket was sold and give you the remaining

Do you have a reading comprehension deficiency? The appropriate state tax for your state would be 0 so that is what you would pay for state tax according to the chart. I have NO idea what state you are in.

BTW, even if you live in a state that has NO state tax on lotteries, if you bought the ticket in another state where there IS a state tax, you would pay THAT state tax rate. I didn't realize NH was your state, some popple use initials for first and middle name.

so u just assumed i was in a taxable state? lol, i buy my tickets in NH, why the hell would i buy it in a taxable state?? NH, Live Free or Die! We have no sales tax either! lucky me.

starbuck, btw, i'm an accountant, so unless your a CPA, I feel I am far more qualified than you, to talk taxes as well as reading comprehension.

There are only 8 states that don't have a state tax, all the rest pay state tax.

I believe im going to win the powerball jackpot .........may the good lord bless me

good luck to all who plays and happy holidays

Joe ~~~~~ I have read several articles by financial experts. They are in agreement that taking the reduced sum and investng it COULD result in a total aggregate payout greater than the original total payout. However, they are also in agreement that almost all with little experienced, like me, and even some real experts, could not do it. So I'll settle for the whole shebang rather than 1/2 of said shebang. As for the possiblity that I will not outlive the payout. Of course, that could easily happen to any of us. No one knows at dawn if they'll see the sunset, nor at sunset, if they'll ever see another dawn. Remember the movie, "The Longest Day," about D-Day. The theme song said, in part, "...many men, will see no sunset, when it ends, ths longest day." In my case, death before the twenty year payout expires is almost certain because I'm now pushing 80. So what! It goes into my estate and ultimately will be spent (or wasted) pretty much as I would have done.

If you read some articles by finanical experts then you would know that it is in your estate and those little indians of yours would get it.

sure, rob

Only if Blago gets back in office! A real possibility in Illinois politics.

Women...you'd get more than a few takers. They are all whores when it comes down to it. Just name your price and if it's high enough, she's yours.

Bob << << << >> >> >> Come on, Bob!!! Don't you think there is a host of gigelos waiting in that line with all the frails ???

$600k ($1m after taxes) in Costa Rica will get you a LONG way. I'd be happy with it!

Jerry,

You forgot "Money isn't everything but it keeps the kids in touch"