Powerball lottery jackpot hits $200 million

Looks like nobody won the jackpot and now it's about $230 million.

I think you have to take into consideration that those wanting the maximum that is possible are thniking beyond yesterday?  They might be thinking about a life of Luxury for generations to come? They might be thinking that there is more to life then sitting in the backyard and polishing their new extended-bed pickup truck. They might be thinking that with a hundred million dollars, they don't have to "retire", but can go on to become some one great, some one who can create company's, thus creating jobs for Americans who need employment. Some one who can employ parants, so their children can play around on the internet. Some one who might be thinking, gee, I could contribute a couple of million to the Make A Wish foundation, and bring joy to some one besides myself. It might be some one who wants to pay for multi-million dollar cancer care for their grannys and/or grandpa. Some one might be wanting more then $4M or $5M (after taxes) to buy more then a refrigarator or trackor with brakes. It is just possible, for those without limited imaginations, a hundred million, after taxes, would be a without limits!

In the real world, it is NOT even close to $230 million.  That is an imaginary number, dreamed up by accountants on some future interest rate 30 years from now.  Also, that is a number that does not take into consideration any taxes or other burdens. It is a pie in the sky, a flash of light that brings the fish to the lure.  The more light, the more fish.

Reality is almost every one, even the pig farmers who has no goals higher then a new pig pen for his piglets, will choose the cash value. BEFORE taxes that is $113.600M. Again, since those tickets have not been bought, there is no real cash. Then come the tax man, right after the kiss on the cheek and the at on the shoulder, you are down to around $80M. Remember, give to to the tax man, or give it to charity, you don't have it; some one else does. Then there is the imfamous tax advisers that will circle faster then sharks.  They tell you to get tax advise. Once because you don't know what you are doing. Two, they want their percentage. They WILL get their percentage. This is not a playground for joe down the street, this is the field for the big guns. Big guns, mean big expenses.

So, no it is NOT $230, at best, it will 25% of that.  That is closer to the real world.

I wasn't accounting for taxes or any of that. I was just stating what the jackpot is reported to be, which is 230 million. Of course if you take the cash option it won't be that.

Ahhh. That is precisely what the Lottery Directors want you to see.  They want you to see the $230M. They do not want you to even think about what the real amount will be.  The diamond doesn't shine as well when it is under a spot light. One winner in 2007, did not choose the cash option, and I am convinced their poor knowledge of the English language contributed to that decision. As soon as the lottery throws the lure into the lake, I immediately cut it down to 25%. That is what I plan to win. I do not plan to win something that I know does not, and will never exist.

It is also why their $15M jackpot, that really results in $6M take home is not enough for me.  I would settle for that ammount, but it is NOT my goal to win only $6M. I want, at least, a deposited amount of $40M minimum - after deductions. I have no plans for an extended-bed pickup. I will buy the car my chauffer wants to drive and has a comfortable backseat.

MeFirstYouLast, we're not stupid!  None of us are being manipulated by the lottery.  We comment on current jackpot levels using the published jackpot amount knowing full well that if we take cash that'll decrease the amount by half right off the bat.  And of course we're adults who file taxes every year, so we know what the tax burden will be.  WE KNOW WHAT THE REAL AMOUNT WILL BE.

Go to usamega.com, the sister site to this one, and find the game you're interested in and click on Jackpot Analysis for all the breakdowns of each jackpot if you really wanna know.  Good luck! 

Thank you Lilly! I am glad someone understands what I'm saying and knows that I'm not stupid. I was just stating the published amount not the detailed amount.

Tntea and Sirbrad,

You really can retire on $1,000,000?  To be truly honest, living in California I couldn't-but I could live much more comfortably, because I would then be able to put away enough for retirement but still work (at a job that i liked not one that income would force me to be tied to.)  The good news is, I would only need about 4 to 5 million to not work at all.  I still have a ways to go before I could even think about retiring.  but no I don't need $150 or even  $20 million.

God please let me prove to you that winning the lottery won't spoil me.

Never said you were stupid.  Maybe you're self analysing too much? 

What I did say was the annuity amount is a fanasty and never was and never will be. So why quote a fantasy?  Maybe because it is easier to dream about a fantasy then about reality? When you're dealling in hundreds of millions, the difference is major.

All over this blog are quotes of  retiring on the $10M or $15M, and people being folloish or crazy to want more.  That tells me that there are a lot of people looking into the brightness and acting like deer. Or to be blunt, fish going after the lure. They see $15M and their brain does not register $6M.  That is precisely why a lot of lottery winners go bankrupt. They don't deal in the real numbers, only the fantasy. When the real runs out, they are not prepared for it.

Tell your kid you are going to let them stay out of school all week, then only let them out one day. Even your kids know that 25% was not a true week.  The reality is what counts, not the fantasy. Unless you are blinded by the lure!

Self analysing? Whatever. Judging by your posts, you take things too seriously and are a downer. I'm done.