That's very kind, but as your fellow man, I can't allow you to make such a sacrifice. Just send me the $500 mil and I'll take care of it. Thanks anyway though.

The one thing I laughed at: It's a good thing that they are saying you don't need to make more than $75,000 pre tax? to set our expectations right for the rest of the 21st century. I have often thought of a number that I could have that would just pay my bills and expenses based on average cost of living in America and let me conservatively pursue some of my other interests and spend time with my family. How could they possibly know this number unless they spoke to the IRS or some other agency? I think they calculated it based on the same assumptions and are saying "Don't get your hopes up about leaving the middle class, because you won't be happy doing it." This line must some government agency and not the study.

J.P(Me? I couldn't wait to stand near the coming soup lines and laugh and laugh)

Forgive me for the following length, but having read the history of dozens of winners, may I suggest if you won that or any huge lottery, and you think those soup lines are coming, then that money may not go as far as you think.So you better be careful about laughing at those who are less fortunate. For a number of reasons.

First, people don't change their spending habits after getting the big jackpots. If you weren't a wise investor before, you aren't going to be one after. Second, be prepared for the relatives to come out from the cracks. You also will be getting those calls from people in all kinds of binds.Winners in the past got calls in the middle of the night from people threatening to kill themselves unless they got help. What about frantic parents of very ill children dying who need help, to those homeless on the street. Past winners got overwhelmed by calls such as those.

Are you going to keep all that money and just watch your fellow humans suffer and die needlessly while you have more money then you really need for your basic needs the rest of your life? Because suddenly, what will that make you as one of those upper 1% rich you probably criticized so often who doesn't care about the working poor or middle class struggling to make ends meet?Remember that saying, where much is given, much is expected.What names did you call those people?

As other former winners have discovered how many cars do you really need or how big of a house? With those new digs, come new furniture, grounds keepers, insurance costs, security systems, fancy resort fees, club fees, special schools for any kids and all the other trimmings to float in the new circle of friends you will hang around with. Dock fees for boats, planes, etc. You must pay the costs that go with that fancy new life style.

Then there are those who will target you, possibly try to kidnap a loved one, or try to kill you to inherit your money. You must wisely invest your funds, perhaps in numerous banks, because your money is only insured by the Federal government up to $100,000 per account. That money isn't going to go as far as you think, I promise. Just check up on all those other winners, It is startling how many ended up broke and way in debt.

Remember, if the US dollar tanks compared to foreign currency, you can lose the value of your investments. Other winners have been sued over the stupidest stuff. One man was pulled over by a Highway patrol officer and later sued. He settled out of court for 5 million. So be prepared. Lawyers will be coming after you hired by all sorts of greedy people looking for stupid reasons to make a buck off of you.

Last, you must decide who your real friends are and who is just there for your money. it is a difficult world suddenly, when you must wonder if people are there because you have money, or because they like you for who you are. You may think, standing and laughing at those in a soup line is a great idea. But the wheel of life is a funny thing. One day we are up, and suddenly life throws us to the bottom. Humility is a good thing to keep in life. And a generous helping hand towards others whenever. possible.

Money can't buy you happiness, but it sure can take you to alot of places where you can find it!

Glen-1484791The one thing I laughed at: It's a good thing that they are saying you don't need to make more than $75,000... How could they possibly know this number unless they spoke to the IRS or some other agency?

Where exactly does it say you don't need to make more than $75,000? The only reference to that number I see says "Research shows that the impact of additional income on happiness begins to level off around $75,000". I didn't see the word "need" in there anywhere. And here is the study they're talking about:

Using Gallup data collected from almost half a million Americans, researchers at Princeton found that higher household incomes were associated with better moods on a daily basis — but the beneficial effects of money tapered off entirely after the $75,000 mark."

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/08/opinion/sunday/dont-indulge-be-happy.html?pagewanted=all

It would make an awful lot of kids happy in the Philippines where on the island Cubu I own aprox. 3 acres, and I would build a school that they could attend for free. One of the saddest things I've seen was a naked little boy crying as he watched through a fence other kids playing in a school yard becouse his parents didn't have enough money to pay for him going to school.

Happiness doesn't come as a result of getting something we don't have, but rather recognizing and appreciating what we do have.

Money can't buy you happiness, but it sure can take you to alot of places where you can find it!

It certainly can buy you piece of mind. My honey and I don't have many financial worries - have good jobs and no problems paying the bills, but let's face it - no matter how good you have it you always wonder - "now if only I had this, too!" It's human nature, I guess. At this point in my life, I don't "need" anything. They're WANTS. There's a difference.

WAIT..................I guess I was too slow to accept this serious challenge and other more generous souls have already risen to the task. This is a serious job and I just can't let you people suffer this fate................I will have to bring myself to help you all out with this onerous task and suffer the awful fate of adaptation to this role

Then there is Pete who is so bitter with life already that he just can't lose another opportunity to blame our President................Hate and bitterness is something money won't reduce so Pete it is a good thing for you to not win this lottery.

Given the choice of being poor and miserable or rich and miserable, I'll choose rich.

I'd settle for a lot smaller amount. Anything would be appreciated.

I think I'd pick a dozen countries and build a small estate in them, they wouldn't all be corrupt at the same time..If I got sick of one president I'd go visit another..

It would be hard work being a philanthropist as most all of it would go to the needy, the way I see it life is short may as well enjoy it, I can't think of a more fulfilling way.

NC I'm pretty sure Pete was telling a joke..At least I laughed.

I'll take my chances at not being sad with $500,000,000

I think the author's point is that it's better to be poor than rich, which is why all the rich people should just give the government all their money in taxes and just be poor and happy. There is definitely an undercurrent in this country against anyone with money or even the idea of having money. Misery loves company!

dbpIndy: Well said. One doesn't have to be a rocket scientist to understand which political ideology it is that embraces your narrative.

These handful of studies are too inconclusive. Can you imagine how many lottery winners there have been since 1970 ? I cant even think of a number but it would have to be in 10's or 100's of thousands of people who have won some type of lottery.

Look at the majority of people who buy tickets and or gamble, it looks to me like most of them come out from the hills and are not really that well off in life to begin with. They cant even manage their lives with next to nothing for income, so how will they do it when they do have the cash.

The people who would have great lives after winning the lottery are people who know how to control their lives and are sucessful in life, not some ghetto person who wins.

Another thing to point out, is the guy who won in WV. His vehicle was broken into at a strip club !!! This already tells me what kind of person he is. He is going no where in life, your not going to find lasting happiness there, only temporary and false happiness. His name is public after winning, people find out where he lives, then go rob him. Media doesnt help, and right to our privacy is next to gone in this country.

I have to believe the common factors in all those stories of people ending up worse off for winning is the winner doesn't listen to the people they trust and that the winner feels the money will last forever. You know buy a new house, 10 million dollars worth and forgetting the taxes every year are 600,000 or so.

My plan is simple pay the initial taxes, take the fund and take 10 or 15% of it as the I want fund and the reset is diversived in different places that I help choose. But first and formost is MOVE to a new location so NO ONE KNOWS me. And Yes I have my chance for it in my wallet, as I tell others it's spending 2 dollars on a dream. Good luck to everyone who plays and I hope I win

If I won, I would not be in those statistics! I promise! If you don't beleive me, then you are welcome to hand over the money and watch me.

Part of our happiness is accomplishing something. That amount is great and certainly changes your focus from worrying about housing and food, to plenty of free time. But if you don't fill that free time with something of meaning(run your own business, work for someone, go to college, etc) you will just end up broke and unhappy. Face it, its the challenges of life that define us.

I never understand studies like this. Personally, if I won millions of dollars, I'd quit my job, buy a nice home in cash, and spend all of my free time with my wife and our dogs. I'd rescue a ton of shelter dogs, and when we have kids, I'd provide them with a great life and make sure they'd never have to worry about financial difficulties. Quitting my job and doing things I love every day is enough to make me happy.

NC1234: Then there is Pete who is so bitter with life already that he just can't lose another opportunity to blame our President.....

I'm not bitter with life. I'm quite happy with life thank you, rich or not. Just having a little fun on the forum and throwing a little politics in the mix. It's called a sense of humor.

A lot of the problem is people who win the big jackpot didn't know how to manage their money to begin with- and they expect to do better because they have multimillions? Managing money is partly about managing behaviors and emotions as well. Without that ability one is doomed to squander their winnings and end up with worse headaches than they've ever known.

On that point, I'll be glad to win the $500 mill and assume the all the 'headaches' that would follow :)

I would help out the struggling people in my community by setting up a bigger and better food pantry and push the politicians to have legislation passed for job retraining for those out of work.

I'm already happy, I just want to be content!

The major economist i have spoken with all agree on one thing and they all were VERY adamant about it.....

MONEY IS DYNAMITE to MOST people....they all three, firmly and with vigor, stated that at different times, when discussing large sums of money that people are awarded.

Most here would not know how to handle LARGE amounts of money at all...

Money can't buy happiness (or intelligence, apparently), but it sure can alleviate a lot of stress!

How can winning the lottery not make you happier?

What makes me happy? My fun hobbies.

What makes me unhappy? My pissy boss.

$500 million, and I never deal with my boss, and I can spend all my time doing fun things with people I like... How does that not make you happier?

I think alot of people would be happy with the winnings until they find out that the government takes about 60% of that money. Damn blood suckers. And I agree with alot of others here, money wont buy you happiness but it cant hurt.

Can big media finally stop telling us what makes us unhappy and what makes us happy?

I swear it is harder and harder to get the news on any one day because big media is always clouding the facts with their opinions. I don't need their agenda to make my life worthwhile.

When you know how to deal with money, there is never an issue....

The same can be said about our Congressional leaders, they have NEVER learned how to handle money... so their answer is always, "Give us MORE"

I think the article may be missing the point: yes, you may end up right back where you were, life-wise, but the way I see it, you'll end up right back where you were with a whole hell of a lot more money.

Ahhhhhhh yes, the mediocrity meme continues.

Of course it doesn't surprise me to see this type of article on PMSNBC. It states more money won't make you any happier than you are today. This is the nonsense that the statists and the social and economic justice for the collective cabal want you to believe.

This is the incessant indoctrination that the government worshippers have been promoting for decades. You, as an individual, are incapable of being happy with more money, but the government with its mass of bureaucrats can magically take more and more of your money and make everyone happier. The chosen elitists in government are the benevolent unbiased redistributionist’s that cannot be challenged. But not you as an individual. You are too uninformed. You are too easily manipulated. You are just too stupid to handle you own life, let alone your own money.

What is most amazing is that they even set an arbitrary level of happiness at about $75,000 of income. This is now the upper limit of what you should try to achieve, not much more because you won't be happier. If you do make much more you should just surrender it to a more noble cause, perhaps submitting more in taxes to the government, because government does such a bang up job managing our tax dollars. Remember, you are incapable of finding a family member or friend that could benefit from your generosity, only someone else can do that for you.

This does fit into the newly established level that is considered "rich". This newly anointed income level is $200,000 if you're single or $250,000 if a couple. At this point you are in that newly created angry, heartless, uncaring cabal called the 1%. From this point you must surrender more of your money to the real caretakers in our lives, the government.

Remember, these faceless bureaucrats have read many books, some have even written a book, about how to redistribute your money better than you can. They have proven their expertise by creating $16.3 trillion in debt, but don't let that influence your trust in them. They just need more of your money to be sure to pay that off, someday. Not today, or in the near future, someday. Someday, the government will fix all their fiscal problems, they just don't want to tell us when. In the meantime they will just keep spending more until it magically happens. This should reassure all of us of their competence.

We shouldn’t be concerned that when the government just keeps spending more and more of our hard earned money they will most likely just change the level of being “rich” to get more from us. This is the level of indoctrination the government has over many Americans. A simple example of their capability is the ongoing “war on poverty”. In 1960 the poverty rate was 14%. Today, after spending an estimated $17 TRILLION on this war, the poverty level is 14.3% (15.1% with current recessionary effects). Only a fool can argue this success.

So, if you do win this massive amount of money just calculate how long you are likely to live and multiply it by $75,000 and live off that until you die. The rest of the money should all go to the government. The remaining $500 million will run our government for about 75 minutes.

Good luck.

I'm already pretty happy, but it would be really nice to not have to stress over paying the bills. Plus, I'd love to travel. There are so many cool places in this world that I'll never see, because I can't possibly afford it. I'd hire a financial planner / business manager that I trust, let him control everything and give me a monthly allowance. I wouldn't "take care" of all of my daughter's financial needs, but definitely give her a monthly allowance too. She is already happy and independant, so I'd pay for college, but make sure she had a career she loved so that she would continue to have her own identity and self respect. I work for an investment firm and I've seen people blow through large inheritances and end up bankrupt, because they didn't have any self control, and I would hope that I would not let that happen to my family.

I tend to agree with the article. If you are a middle income family, and you come into a lot of money, such as this lottery prize, things change. Unless you share your millions with the rest of your middle income friends and family, your lives become completely different. You stop working, and do your hobbies, but all of your friends still have to work. They won't necessarily be able to just drop everything and go on an extended vacation with you. A shopping excursion would be completely different, unless you do all of the buying for your friends. And how long until your friends start to expect you to buy everything? And how long is it before that becomes irritating for you? And how do you decide who share your money with? Where is the cut off for that?

I would also say that people who are "legitimately" rich (note the quotation marks for those taking offense to the word legitimate), i.e. businessmen/women, trust fund babies, etc won't accept you because, while you are now unbelievably rich, you are still a middle income person. High income snobbery could make you a total outsider. I think the transition would be very difficult. Overwhelming even.

Being as altruistic as I am I really would gladly throw myself on the hand grenade of winning that $500 million. I'll gladly suffer the winners curse and you won't even have to give me a medal for it. Come on folks pray for me to win so I can become a "job creator"!!!

Windancer is spot on. A friend of mine who has counseled a lot of people on financial handling told me the following: "Poor people have poor habits." That is, many (most? in his experience) poor people are poor because of their bad spending habits. They simply do not know how to handle money. Getting a huge influx of money will not help them. They make huge purchase, houses, cars, extravagant lifestyle, etc. but when the money is gone they have nothing left and quite literally lose it all. Then they are poor again.

For example, my friend told me that a couple had come to him for advice on getting out of some debt. They were expecting some additional money including a reasonable tax return. He told them (short story) they needed to pay the debt. They agreed. He crossed path with them at a later time and asked how they were doing and if they had paid their debt. The answer was no the didn't. Instead they bought a new deck for the house that wasn't necessary, a washing machine (the old one was still good), etc. They remained in debt.

This seems to be a common story with people who win the "lottery". They immediately have grand ambitions but have no idea how to look at the long term because being poor, they can only see to the next paycheck.

I'm really not trying to criticize here or degrade people who's situations are difficult. I have been there too. But too many times poor people are poor because they've never known what a budget is or how to properly manage their finances.

I think happiness can be had at many levels of income, as long as we live within our means. The government should be following this too. To say that $75000 is the income which people can be happy at is a pretty stupid thing to say. I say that happiness is living within a budget, having the long term perspective in mind, and sticking to it. This approach gets you out of debt, and being out of debt, at least in my opinion, is a cause for happiness.

I'd take $75k, you know the amount this nitwit writer says makes you happy, go to the strip club and make it rain. That would certainly make the strippers happy.

Screw the new cars , and big houses. I'd build a school for 7.62x39mm sad story.

I'd also build some sort of fried chicken hut/beer barn.

@JP..........Interesting how ones post gets collapsed by the comm for expressing the obvious/reality. People do not want to hear it, they'd rather deny it and pretend like it doesn't exist, all while they wallow in their fantasy land dreaming about what they will be doing once they win that 500 million $ lotto. Sadly, the reality of it all is is that the modern day soup line is already here in the guise of fifty million people lining up at the grocery checkout to redeem that EBT card. You see, it's really there, but, modern technology has made it invisible to the unsuspecting eye, which is exactly what it is intended to do. Fifty mil people will make hundreds of miles of soup lines, but no worries. Soup lines? What soup lines. I don't see no stinking soup lines. Do you?

If I win, there is no way in hell I am going to have a $900 water bill.

It may not make you "happy" but it likely limits the extent of your sadness - never having to worry about any expenses, including big ones such as emergency medical expenses, expenses from disasters, etc.

IF it doesn't make you happy, you can always give it back!! I'm for one am willing to find out!!

Everyone knows happiness is driving a Chevy Volt. So with a lottery win I could finally afford one.. and be happy. ;)

I would set up a foundation. Give most of it to charity.

Find a way to keep people off of my lawn.

It's not that you don't worry about expenses, you will still need money coming in because you will have money going out. You pay off your debit first thing. Then you fix all of the thing you have let go by the way side and did not take care off. You need to have your attorney and financial planner. If you have an old car you will need a new one but it does not mean you need the expensive always in the shop car. If you want a home or new home or vacation home, you can invest in one but it doesn't have to be extravagant. Everything else will fall into place, don't go APE S..., give it time. Probally set up a trust of some type.

I think the biggest challenge would be to find the right financial people who you can trust and who would be working solely in your best interests.

This would be of the utmost importance to me because of what I would do with the winnings. Yes, I would keep about 10-15% to ensure never having to worry about money for the rest of my life. The rest, 85-90% would go to establishing a foundation to help LOCAL humane and dog rescue organizations not only in my community but across the nation. No national organizations for me. They spend way too much money on high administrative salaries, fund raising, and lobbying efforts. I want to help the small, local organizations that are out in the field, "boots on the ground", so to speak, the people who actually get their hands dirty and do things. Local charities for children would also be on my list.

To each his own, but that's my goal. You see dogs, if you show them kindness, will lick your face even if they are hungry and you have nothing to give them. In the same situation, people will spit in your face, curse you, and stab you in the back as you leave.

7.62x39mm

It would make an awful lot of kids happy in the Philippines where on the island Cubu I own aprox. 3 acres, and I would build a school that they could attend for free. One of the saddest things I've seen was a naked little boy crying as he watched through a fence other kids playing in a school yard becouse his parents didn't have enough money to pay for him going to school. #1.8

Look - no one has even won yet and the scams are starting. And even if it isn't a scam, there will be many other people you don't know knocking at your heart for your $$$.

It's nice to hear stories of people who win and live happily and responsibly. If I won, I'd pay off my student loans, my parents' mortgage, quit my job and start a horse rescue and sanctuary (after I invested a great deal safely, of course). There is also a local horse rescue that has been trying to buy a facility for years, they currently rent one, so I would definitely buy them a huge piece of land to call their own.

Actually, what would make me happiest would be not having to work anymore. Winning the lottery would enable me to do that. Doesn't matter if I have half a billion dollars, or my current salary annually.

"PLEASE don't throw me in that brier patch Br'er Fox..."

Just my luck to win the $550 Million Jackpot and find out the Mayans were right, the world is going to end on Dec 21st.

The way I've got it figured out, I'd have to win AT LEAST $75M in order to do all the things that I want to do with it; i.e., pay off my mortgage, pay off my best friend's mortgage (she's been my best friend for over 45 years), put my grand nieces and grand nephews through college, set up small trust funds for them (I have no children of my own), give $1M to each of the schools in my city to be used ONLY for teacher's supplies and school repairs, etc. If there were anything left over, I'd invest it wisely through a trusted financial advisor (if you can find one). I would NOT quit my job since I love my job. I would want to continue to keep busy; otherwise, I'd just stagnate. Fortunately, I'm perfectly happy with the home I live in and the car I drive....don't need to buy a new one. I COULD use a new fridge, but not that major. I have no credit card debt, so don't have to worry about that. My house does need to be termited, I think, but that's not a big deal either. So, I'm perfectly happy with what I have, and if I had a little extra money, my friends and family would share in it before anything. Money becomes too important when you don't have it....I'm doing okay, so winning the lottery, although it would be kinda neat, doesn't really appeal to me. I don't even bother buying a ticket. The thing that gets me is that most of the winners are people who couldn't afford to buy the tickets in the first place...but I guess if you don't buy a ticket, you can't play the game.

IMO, NO ONE needs $500M+ for ANY reason. That's just too much money. They should limit the lottery winnings to a certain amount; i.e., $5M or $10M....the rest should go where it was supposed to go in the first place...the schools! Giving someone over $500M is just ridiculous as far as I'm concerned....but, again, that's just my opinion.

STLRunner, Mark (and others) I too will suffer in the misery of having millions.

Heck, I'd be more than happy with just 1/10 of 1% ($ 550,000).

Although that would not allow me to live in the style I would gladly become accustomed, it ain't chicken feed.

BTW, Didi, if you win, you can send $475,000,000 my way, I'll find something to do with it, you can keep the $75,000,000.

Here's a sweet idea.

Perhaps a Government program that protects you from the decision you made to spend money on your losing Powerball tickets?

"If you vote for me as President, I promise you will never have to take responsibilty for your poor choices in Powerball numbers again!" (Cheers !) -Democrat Nominee of your choice

Misery? I'd be more than happy to help test that theory.

How does that song go, "may God afflict me with wealth, and I never find a cure". I think it was from "Fiddler on the Roof". First of all when I play lotto the odds are 50/50. Too win or not win. Second, great wealth doesn't cure all your problems, it cures some, but create others. If your friends find that you won $500 mil., do you actually think they will treat you the same way as they did before you won? I think not. I wonder if you get a nosebleed if you go from the 99% to the 1% too fast and you start wishing you could take back your vote for President Obama!!

Happiness is over-rated, I prefer contentment and peace of mind. Money can definitely buy peace of mind. I suppose there aren't many who haven't imagined what could happen if they won some insane amount of money in a lottery. I know I have my list and most of it has to do with things that niggle at me. The first thing I'd do is set up trust funds for each one of my relatives living on disability. They'd get a set monthly allowance that would pay for their living and medical costs. Next would be everyone in the family gets their mortgages paid off and I'd buy one of my sisters a house and most likely set her up with enough money so she could have the luxury of pursuing what she really would like to be doing instead of killing herself for $12 an hour. I'd most likely give this property to our children and move somewhere else. Retirement would definitely be part of this package. Then he could spend his time working in his little machine shop and gardening.

From what was left I'd make sure enough was put away in order to be able to live for a very long time. After that I would most likely find some small local businesses to sponsor by helping them to pay their taxes and hire more employees. This would have to be set up as some type of reward system, as in they'd have to meet certain criteria or else lose the sponsorship. I would also love to buy trucks full of healthy food to have delivered to homeless shelters, soup kitchens and food banks.

After I had done all that I would have a warm fuzzy feeling for a very, very long time and I could go to sleep each night not wondering what's going to happen to my loved ones who have to rely on government support for their disability because there's no way I can currently afford to support them.

As for my friends treating me differently, I really don't have a single person I consider a close friend. I have acquaintances but by now almost all of real friends are dead. With a whole lot of money I might actually find some new ones! LOL

Ah, but alas, no one here bought a ticket this week. The husband said when it gets that high he doesn't even like to buy one for fear of winning because the shock would probably kill him.

Well, I didn't win either.

But thanks for all those people concerned about the bad things I would have faced, especially YOU Windancersong-1494878 (that was quite the lengthy advice column).

However, all of YOU (including me) are still going to win those soup lines (hope they are serving your favorites). We are still a warmongering nation bringing despair to so many in the world. In fact, just tomorrow (literally tomorrow), while nearly the entire planet is voting at the UN to recognize basic human rights for Palestinians the US will be almost singlehandedly trying to prolong oppression.

Have a nice day.

(Oh, almost forgot. While I won't be standing to the side of the soup lines laughing I will be behind you coughing on your neck. And dont' complain, I will just laugh.)

7.62x39mm---- Why not pay for it surely it cannot cost that much have not been to the Philippines since 1970 but cannot imagine it has changed that much.

Money does buy happiness.

I was raised in a poor family. I was always angry when I was young. I got in a lot of fights and lied to women just to get in their pants. I treated my family and friends badly.

I then started my own company and now I'm worth about $12 million. I'm very happy! I don't fight. I help out friends and family. I do charity work. Ok, I still lie to women and tell them I love them to get in their pants though! No one is perfect.

If you have 12 million.... two things....

1. You would NOT tell people on and internet forum talking about the lottery

2. People worth that amount do not discuss money with many people if at all...

I seriously doubt you have 12 million worth of assets.

If you have 12 million.... two things....

1. You would NOT tell people on and internet forum talking about the lottery

2. People worth that amount do not discuss money with many people if at all...

I seriously doubt you have 12 million worth of assets.

Shosyn,

2 things Skippy:

1. You are a liberal who hates rich people. I also detect some envy perhaps?

2. You are a liberal who immediately says "You lie!" when you get stomped in a debate.

Liberals. God love em! LOL!

Why does "envy" always enter these comments when somebody makes a realistically negative comment about somebody who has unexpected wealth?

A few months ago, there were stories about the incompetent bus monitor who was bullied and became famous when the brats responsible posted their behavior on the internet. Somebody set up an account on an unregulated site and and people turned over $700K to reward somebody for failing to do her job. Any of us with the temerity to question the wisdom of this outpouring was stomped on and accused of "envy".

Anybody who automatically accuses anyone who doesn't agree with them of being "liberal", isn't playing with a full deck, and/or needs to scapegoat other groups not like themselves, in order to feel that THEY aren't the ones with the problem.

No lib here.

Now:

If you couldn't find happiness before being rich, you mostly won't find it after being rich. Your personal outlook on life has everything to do with your "happiness".

Lots of $$ can make it easier to do what you want, and eases any financial worries you might have.

I'd have to remain anonymous, if I won the lottery. I wouldn't want every grifter and long lost "friend" showing up on my doorstep.

That cowboy looking guy(Whitaker) in the article who won the lottery, brought those problems on himself. He had the $$ to hire a driver or cab, yet still drove drunk anyway. He leaves over $500,000 cash in his car, then wonders why it got stolen.

If you can't handle yourself, and your spending(partying), then I can see where access to a huge fortune might be a detriment to your well being.

At this point in my life, I know I could handle winning a fortune. I'd take care of all the necessary things to last my family(and their kids) a lifetime, donate to worthy causes, and not get out of control.

Money cannot BUY happiness.... but you can rent it for so long you'll think it's yours...........

Yes American Lobo I agree,

A fool and his money are soon parted...!!!

Who in their right mind would have that kind of cash on them???

I think winning would make you happy, how many have heard the bragging of winning by others,

it's always fun to win and always a fond memory.

It what you do after you win that will either make your life better or cause you to suffer.

If I should win, I think I will be smart enough to know that the money is a great responsibility

and that I should make wise informed and prudent decisions about it.

If I should loose it all, I will still get a kick out of saying I won the big one.

Winning 500 million would definitely not make me happy. Being able to take my son on exciting adventures, making sure he would be set no matter what happens, Helping people who are in need and actually providing the resources to actually get them on there feet, having a stable home, making sure my grandmother is taken care of after all she has done for me, Investing in my brother who is truly talented and has a great career ahead of him, and etc... Yeah none of that would make me happy. Way for MSN to be a downer. I waste 2 dollars on complete crap all the time. I can count on one hand how many times I have gambled but rather than going to get two McDouble's I think getting a lottery ticket is ok. If I don't win so what. If I win well that would be truly amazing and like you said mike, for most of us, life isn't all peaches and cream now.

There is a HUGE difference between suddenly becoming wealthy and working super hard to achieve wealth.

If winning millions of dollars in a lottery doesn't do anything to boost a person's happiness, then working super hard and becoming a millionaire is just a huge waste of time -- 'cause working my ass off ain't done a damn thing to make me happy at all.

Besides I wouldn't call what either of them did "working super hard", more like intelligent business acumen, persistence, and lucky timing in some cases. I don't think they ever worked as hard as a typical laborer does any day of the week. Anyone who is smart can handle winning the lotto. We only hear the horror stories.

Even bill gates admits it was good timing and IBM being too dumb to see money in front of their face that made him rich.

Chris, just because someone wins the lottery does not mean they do not work hard or haven't been working hard to try and make it big. I have read no rule book that says if you win the lottery you have to stop working hard and become a lazy slob. Some people have goals and aspirations that money can't buy but can make it easier to achieve. I want to be a pilot and have been saving for school. Money can help me pay for school but It is me who will have to work hard to actually get my pilot's license.

The second is a little simpler. She says, "Just because you win the lottery, it does not change you as a person."

That word "does" needs to be replaced with "should". This article should be common sense but even I realized it took maturity for me to learn the lesson. The Bible is right on as it teaches:

1Ti_6:10 For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

Money (whether a little or a lot) is a tool to accomplish things in this world, From paying a house note, buying gas to saving for college or starting a grand project.. A medium of exchange..... with it you can do great good.. or great evil... but the money itself is not evil... I don't play the lottery.. but who would mind being "rich"? I can use more money.. I'm sure (from the posts) the vine agrees but don't love it... Use it, Save it, Spend it... But don't love it. Money is NOT evil... having a lot of it (in itself) is NOT evil... but making it your 'god' is. It can never buy Happiness.. it can never buy Heaven.

Lottery winnings are taxed at the same low rate as Capital Gains, right?

Then ask Paris Hilton, or any of the Rockefella kids. Thes Kids Don't earn any of the money....

Food always tastes better when you cook it yourself. Working hard to revolutionize the world and being rewarded for it with money has got to give you a sense of pride and happiness. Which is something you won't get if you are just a stupid person who won the lottery.

Eric S- True but steak you cooked yourself tastes a lot better than a hot dog you cooked yourself. And that much cash plus your hard work can make a big difference.

TheJamyC,

I have read no rule book that says if you win the lottery you have to stop working hard and become a lazy slob.

Did I actually say that? Wow... If so, then you have my up most apology!!!

AAAAAaaaactually, the more I read your post... the more it seems like you have been burnt too hard about something in life and are wanting to plaster impotent rage in the form of pissant rant at my expense. Seriously, I said nothing of the like and I see no where that you could have come up with such.

I retract my apology and have a nice day!

BEER MUG

Gates may say it was timing and I agree a large part was. As far as Buffet, he started working at 11 delivering newspapers and saving his money then investing it. He was buying stocks as a child and spending long hours researching company's as a teen. He earned every penny he has.

Money DOESN'T change you as a person Flame. It does however let the real you come to the front. If you were a good person poor you will stay that way, if you were an a$$ you will be a bigger one.

Chris, you didn't say:

TheJamyC,

I have read no rule book that says if you win the lottery you have to stop working hard and become a lazy slob.

Did I actually say that? Wow... If so, then you have my up most apology!!!

but what did you mean by the word HUGE in your first post? If you weren't implying what JamyC said, then what did you mean?

Not to mention his/her post does not seem personally against you in anyway....

CricketJ19PA

but what did you mean by the word HUGE in your first post?

It has been proven that those who work hard for their money are phenomenally happier than those who simply receive it. This has been proven with electroencephalography where two groups of test subjects were given candy (yes, just candy) for either performing a difficult task or simply doing nothing.

At first both groups' Anterior Cingulate (motivation) and Lateral Orbitofrontal (emotional responses) lit up showing that they were happy to receive the candy. However as the test went on, the group who simply received the candy for doing nothing had much, MUCH less activity in those sections of the brain than those who performed difficult tasks.

In fact, those who were trying to perform the difficult tasks had even HIGHER activity in those sections of the brain after failing several times and then finally succeeding at the task they were given.

Thus I stated that there is a HUGE difference in simply receiving money and working hard for it.

I see what you are saying - I chose to focus on the words "work super hard" the opposite of "lazy slobs" and assumed the same thing as the other guy.

Alan-962575, the first poster, spoke of Bill Gates and Warren Buffett... both of whom have worked "super hard" to attain their abundance of wealth. Of course there are those who work super hard to make ends meet... but both Allen and I were definitely not talking about such people. Thus, I cannot understand how this could be misunderstood as calling everyone else lazy slobs.

In other words, you guys are thinking WAY TOO MUCH!!!!

Well thinking way to much is probably better than not thinking at all.

Like I said, I understand what you are saying after you explained it. I just felt the way your first comment was written, didn't agree with Alan's comment and therefore meant the "opposite".

you forgot Iowa

And Texas.

TX is for losers.

Spoken like the internet coward you are!!!!!

So it's ok for the old geezer who's worked all his life to become rich to spend his money on luxuries, but it ain't ok for a lottery winner to spend their money on luxuries? Ok, got -- no luxuries allowed for anyone who ain't got super-rich by working their ass off for more than 40 years.

I'm making an observation -- not passing judgment.

It's the way you made that "observation"..............

You said "the person who actually worked for his or her money..." This is pure rubbish. Most people ACTUALLY WORK for their money much HARDER than business executives and wall street traders. They just are not PAID as much for the work they do. Actually I always laugh when these guys get on TV and say they shouldn't be taxed more on their millions because they got it through all their "hard work". This is nothing but self-serving RW slop served up to massage their ego.

Agnon...

Invisible is saying, in general, that if success is suddenly dumped in your lap without having to struggle a lifetime planning for it, chances are things will go badly. If own your own business your would never do such a thing because you would have had good and bad experience along the way preventing this, as well as never achieved success in the first place. It is just human nature.

As far as these execs and and businessmen and street traders that make their money working for someone else, they derail as well. The successful group of these employed that do not derail are mentored and coached what to do and what not to do once they achieve this position. Trust me I know a few. Some are nice reasonable people, others are complete fools just following the rules and being mentored. Others are still in debt up to their eyeballs and burn the cash as fast as they get it. For this last bunch when the music stops, they go under and let others fix the damage around them,

Most people ACTUALLY WORK for their money much HARDER than business executives and wall street traders. They just are not PAID as much for the work they do.

I've said it before and I'll say it again. There are those who have an over-inflated sense of self worth plus the ability to do something about it.

As far as these execs and and businessmen and street traders that make their money working for someone else, they derail as well. The successful group of these employed that do not derail are mentored and coached what to do and what not to do once they achieve this position.

Bingo. We've seen it in sports stars, musicians, businessmen, and actors. Larry Ellison is the CEO of Oracle and he's always running low on money because he buys things like 100 million dollar yachts he can never use because he's always working hard. He's going to retire and be penniless. It's insane.

Pretty much what I'd do with that amount of money is a few million to secure myself and my family for the rest of our humble lives with the remaining bulk going to a philanthropy organization I would found and run.

I have been miserable with money and miserable without money and surprisingly enough, I would rather be misurable WITH MONEY!

Invisible Hand: ah, but what about the uber wealthy diletantes who "earned " their money the truly old fashioned way, by having their relatives die and becoming the beneficiaries of the trust funds ?

For example: Paris Hilton, the Kennedy's, the Rockefellers; while most members of the families are fairly sharp, some are dumb as stumps, yet that doesn't prevent them from spending like, well, billionaires.

I agree: I was not old enough to vote when My state put the Lottery in, but I would have voted against it for the very same reasons - sure some of the money goes to fund useful programs, but a lot of it goes to the pathetic weasels who prey on people's fantasies.

Every time I see some "Punter" who is encamped in line in front of me - wasting time and money on those tickets (and making me late as well) I want to tell that person "1-800-bets off"....

Oh, so sad that you are so damned inconvenienced by someone who is waiting in line ahead of you.....WHAAAH!

Grow Up Agnon Mema.... I am guessing you are one of those trolls who live in their parents basement.

Grow up? Why -- am I really any less mature than you are, who complains about being oh-so-inconvenienced because you have to wait in line? Hey, next time you're so inconvenienced -- go to another store.

Oh, and while i was living in my mother's house until a couple years ago, it was because she was in her 70s and couldn't do the yard work and such anymore., so I was there to help out and do what she couldn't do. Was it inconvenient? Yeah, it was -- but it was my CHOICE, so I didn't feel a need to go about bitching about it (and I'm still not bitching about, it was an honor to do for my mother).

So kwitcherbitchin about being inconvenienced in the check-out line.

Actually I will agree with you on this one. I only play it when the pot gets big enough to make the headlines, but it is definitely a drain on those living below the poverty line. The LOTTO is basically the GOPs idea of a retirement program for the 99%.

Invis, Hendricks & Beer Mug,

I understand your point. The lottery is for suckers like us. Even says so in past adds; "You can't win if you don't play!" (You're most likely not going to win, but buy a chance.) Equivalent to beer adds like "Why ask why? Try Bud Dry?" (Don't think... drink) But we do put a little in to try and grasp a dream from time to time.

I do not understand people who win these jackpots and then lose all the money or become completely unhappy. The guy in the article got $545,000.00 stolen from his car at a strip club. Review: became a millionaire, went to strip club, $545,000.00 left in the car, married. So people know who you are because of your money and you took thousands of unguarded dollars to a place where people hustle hard for cash and when it was stolen you had to report it so your wife had to hear about your whereabouts after the fact? I'm not hearing where the MONEY was the cause of unhappiness....

Spending more than the occasional dollar or so on the lottery is a form of taxation on stupidity, not poverty.

California needs to join Powerball so that I can get my $1.00 worth of dreaming what it would be like to win half a billion. We'd probably be the most boring lottery winners ever, though.

Most folks I know, that throw a bunch of money away on the lottery are comfortably middle class, although they will sure cry about being poor if you make the mistake of asking. As far as I am concerned, if you can afford to blow over a hundred dollars a week on lottery tickets, you are far from poor.

My wife and I work our asses off and still have to juggle the bills to keep food on the table and decent cloths on two growing kids but, I don't run around bitching and moaning about being poor or see in any way shape or form how Obama has anything to do with it for good or bad.

This subject sure does bring out the babies! I mean, come on! Cry me a river for the wealthy who don't want to pay their fair share of taxes and idiots who can't manage to live off of millions of dollars in lottery money!

I am willing to bet that no one posting on this board knows the first damn thing about being poor! When your kids come to you crying that they are hungry and you have no idea how you are going to feed them, then come crying about being poor. I have never been there myself and I damn sure hope I never am. How many, born and raised in this country in the last 100 years, really has? Even those living on welfare, in this country are not really poor.

You want to see poor? Go to the Philippines. many of the supposed 'poor' in the USA are there because they won't try to better themselves.

This is why I like lotteries...it is a tax on the dumb and poor...isn't it about time they paid something into the system?

"Paid something into the system"? You think they get their lottery tickets for free?

Bingo. The lotto winners whose lives are "ruined" are the ones who buy vacations to Vegas and gold-plated statues of Elvis. There is plenty of ways a lot of money can enhance your life.

And what, exactly, is wrong with a gold-plated stutue of Elvis ?

OH, I get it, you must be one of those Sinatra fans, right ?

Every year hundreds die by lightning. Lightning over lottery, Hummm, let me think for a second.........Give me the lotto thank-you.

Well lets do the math: Each lotto pick gives you one chance in 200 million of winning, whereas if you don't play you have ZERO chance of winning. It's not an investment opportunity. It's a game and a little bit of hope. Like Willy Wonka's golden ticket. Skip one meal out on the town and give yourself 10 shots at the big one. That's not a bad move.

Of course it would be nice to win that jackpot - but then you have a greater chance of dying by lightning then to win it.

Your odds of winning the lottery are about the same as if you got into approximately 10 car accidents driving to the store followed by being struck by lightning the moment you stepped out of your car.

The next time you have a lightning storm, run out in the front yard and hold your 9 iron up; you'll have a better chance of getting struck by lightning than if you just sit in your living room. I"m guessing you would be afraid to do that.

Have you ever read any of Plato's dialogues? Socrates was a first class blo-hard, a-hole combination. Really, it always amazes me that he was revered by past generations. Read Aristophanes' "Clouds" and you will get some idea of why the Athenians got fed up with the guy.

Your deflection doesn't make the statement less true.

What Socrates said may be true, but there's also Angry Guy's Corollary: It's a lot easier to "find yourself" if you have a dump truck full of money to help with that darn pesky reality.

I will put a lot of $100 bills on a pallet and encase the whole thing in saran wrap, and send it to another country....because Bush got away with sending 363 TONS of shrink-wrapped $100 bills to Iraq, I can send a couple dozen pounds of $100 bills to some other country.

So the government just gets it. If you really want to destroy it buy something like gold and dump in a active volcano....but then again the price of all the other existing gold would just go up in value... so how can you really destroy money so nobody gets it.

yea that would show them! What would it show? or even do----on Saturday's drawing it would just be 700 million

Your papers please

Rick!!!, I don't know what papers are you talking about! but I do have two green cards, an American Express an a Retired US Army ID card.

10315 Plus-- Most people never trust any financial advice from someone who doesn't even know how to spell 'dollar'.

Hey, I guess that when Bush was President he never got a cut of any taxes.......

The difference between a liberal who wins the lottery and a conservative who wins the lottery: The liberal says "Now I can help others", while the conservative says "Now I have more money".....

The liberal should say "Now I can help more people than I already have". You don't need money to help others.

again...its not Obamas cut...its what it costs to be an American citizen..its not free you know...further I doubt if you pay enough to cover your costs to the rest of us...

aahh the old " I may not be rich now but when i am guys like me better watch out!!!" conservative balderdash .... look some people are hollow inside and no amount of cash will fill that hole tho they try ... better to be happy and do what you can ... lottery is a scam yes and it does give some hope to people who are down ... me i have not played the lotto in years ... but i can see where someone could play it ... and as to people playing it too much they would have done somethingels self destructive if the lotto was never invented ....

again...its not Obamas cut...its what it costs to be an American citizen..its not free you know...further I doubt if you pay enough to cover your costs to the rest of us...

Then how come military members pay taxes? Have they not already paid enough?

Agnon Mema wrote: The difference between a liberal who wins the lottery and a conservative who wins the lottery: The liberal says "Now I can help others", while the conservative says "Now I have more money".....

You got it wrong Agnon, the liberal who wins the lottery quickly becomes a conservative.

I'll gladly take on that "stress" any day.

I have owned three Mercedes cars in my lifetime, all purchased used when I was young. Today, I could afford to pay cash for one or two new ones, and I drive a Camry. I've done a lot of research, and I have come to the conclusion that my Camry goes anywhere a Mercedes can go, and it is more economical and reliable.

Now that I am in my sixties, I find excess "stuff" to be burdensome.

I actually sold my C.amry to buy it, maybe when I'm older I will drive something more practical but I figured if I'm ever going to own a sports car it should be while I'm young. From your post I assume you made the same decision lol

Your 20's is the time to drive a clunker because nobody will judge you for being broke. I'd rather have had the clunker in my 20's and a nice car in my 40's than the other way 'round because I foolishly took on too much debt when I was young.

Adam Johnson -- that's because one "rides" in a Mercedes, but one DRIVES a BMW.

The problem here is that you, like many people that win the lottery, assume that to be happy you need things like a nice car... Nice things don't bring happiness, it's what you do with your life that brings you happiness.

Like the winner at the end of the article implies, you have to take the money and use it in a way that creates a better lifestyle for yourself. Working in a factory for years on end and worrying about bills is what most people want to get away from, but if you take the money and quit your job, buy a mansion, buy a few expensive cars, sit around all day looking at all your stuff, or blowing your money on strip clubs and gambling, and doing nothing that actually positively reinforces your attitude, you're going to be depressed because you're not doing it right.

And that is what I have to say to any winner of the lottery that isn't as happy as they could be. Sure there are going to be some serious downsides to having a lot of money, but as long as you deal with those in the right way, you'll be fine.

The article implies that lottery winners on average "aren't much" happier than before they won, and that is because most people in general lack the intelligence to make themselves "much" happier. We all have the ability to be happier, all more money does is provides you with a better means to accomplish that so that the everyday stresses of bills and such, do not weigh down your entire life.

People with little to nothing in terms of money, could potentially have a greater level of happiness than a billionaire, but typically that is not the case unless you're talking about a monk or something. The others typically fall into a category of people who have led very unfortunate lives, or just have no clue of how to provide themselves with a better life. That usually starts with education and the ability to see beyond social stigma. In a lot of cases, even the rich and educated have hard times seeing beyond that social stigma.

Well, if you buy a Mercedes just to impress yourself, sure you're going to get sick of it, but if you buy a 1956 300SL gullwing, or a 1968 300SEL 6.3, or a 1986 Euro 6 liter Hammer because you like to drive and it makes you smile, that's another matter...

Annie ### I love driving my corvette ,also love driving my honda but your right do like riding in honda more than the corvette.

The odds are astronomical, but the whole point of spending the two dollars is you get to daydream for a few days about the off chance of winning, and when you lose the money still goes to a good cause as very often the winner was someone in need.

Yeah, your odds are zero if you don't have a ticket at all. But you are way more likely to be killed in a car accident on the way to pick up your ticket. Someone hits the jackpot eventually. The most numbers I ever got on a ticket was 4.

Actually, about half of the money paid for lottery tickets goes to prizes; the other half goes to the states and for administrative costs, including advertising. Each state allocates lottery receipts according to its laws, usually for education programs.

"reality check" should be renamed to "far from reality" because you can't even conduct a simple google search to find out how much states get paid from lottery sales and go into their budgets and where the money is directed.

The last time the powerball lottery grew this big, there were many articles talking about what kind of an impact a single winner in a cash-strapped state would have on their budget.

The money does go towards education with out a doubt. Here is what they do, say they budget $10 for schools, someone wins the lotto so the schools get $2 from the lotto, the state will redirect $2 somewhere else this way the schools still get the $10 but now they have an extra $2 to spend somewhere else. So in the end the school are no better off but they can legally say the money went to the schools. Politics 103

Pedro, you are exactly right on how they do that. The lottery money, once they have played their sleight of hand trick, just goes toward more government waste.