United States
Member #972
December 30, 2002
468 Posts
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From the MA lottery website:
>November 14, 2005- Karen Bianco of Lenoxdale is the Lottery’s newest millionaire. She won a $1,000,000 prize playing the Set for Life instant game. Bianco, pictured here with Lottery Executive Director Joseph C. Sullivan- her husband Paul and son CJ, is presented with the first of 20 annual payments of $50,000 (less taxes).
The only problem is she isn't a millionaire, which I would define as someone who has a million or more dollars after taxes. Would you call someone who made $50,000 a year for 20 years a millionaire? I wouldn't. But the MA lottery would. Fire up the yacht, I'm practically a millionaire myself by their definition.
United States
Member #972
December 30, 2002
468 Posts
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I think you have to be awarded about $1.66 million at one time to have a million dollars left after taxes. Even if she got a check for a million dollars, instead of the $50k a year for 20 years plan, she would only have about $650,000 after taxes. Still not a millionaire.
United States
Member #4,416
April 22, 2004
1,075 Posts
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It wouldn't matter one bit to me whether they called me a millionaire or not. The money is what matters. I think most everyone here at LP would be considerably better off winning $50,000 (less taxes) a year for the next twenty years. I know it's a lot more than I've ever won in all my years of playing the lottery games. I'm a person of modest means and desires, so that amount of money would be quite a windfall for me. Anyone who would turn up his nose at that amount of money must already be doing pretty well.
Magnolia, Delaware United States
Member #18,794
July 20, 2005
789 Posts
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Hey guys and gals look at the state it comes from in the first place! MA the Majority Democrat state! Everyone knows that's a joke in it's self! Ha Ha Ha!
Keep dreaming the impossible dream, it just may come true!
United States
Member #12,618
March 18, 2005
2,060 Posts
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It wouldn't matter one bit to me whether they called me a millionaire or not. The money is what matters. I think most everyone here at LP would be considerably better off winning $50,000 (less taxes) a year for the next twenty years. I know it's a lot more than I've ever won in all my years of playing the lottery games. I'm a person of modest means and desires, so that amount of money would be quite a windfall for me. Anyone who would turn up his nose at that amount of money must already be doing pretty well.
aye'
I agree. I know I would be better off with $50,000 a year for 20 years. =)
United States
Member #379
June 5, 2002
11,296 Posts
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Hey guys and gals look at the state it comes from in the first place! MA the Majority Democrat state! Everyone knows that's a joke in it's self! Ha Ha Ha!
The NY Lottery is the second most "corrupt" in the nation in terms of annuity-only prizes, and is also a "blue" state, although Gov George Pataki is a Republican.
New Jersey United States
Member #21,205
September 4, 2005
963 Posts
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Hey guys and gals look at the state it comes from in the first place! MA the Majority Democrat state! Everyone knows that's a joke in it's self! Ha Ha Ha!
If I were a Republican, which I'm not, I would be very careful about making representations about stretching the truth. Last I looked, there were American soldiers, many of them fine men and women, being blown to bits in service to equally obvious lies.
It is of course not a mystery that all lotteries misrepresent what winners actually get. This is completely independent of the politics. In fact that only state that I know of that has actually inflated a jackpot far beyond what was actually justified by the kitty is Texas.
Some people, including the publisher of Lottery Report, actually suspect that the interplay of political corruption and lotteries is in some places far worse than the long standing and well known practice of defining what does and does not define a "millionaire." http://www.lottoreport.com/gtechbush.htm
The use of the word "millionaire" has never inspired me to buy a lottery ticket. Like many people I distinguish between advertising and reality. I may buy a product irrespective of the nature of the advertisment - even when I know advertising is deliberately false. The best thinkers do not rely on advertising to make judgements. They find out the truth on their own.
In case you don't know by the way, the Governor of Massachusetts, who bears direct adminstrative responsibility for the Massachusetts lottery, is a Republican, Mitt Romney.