I hit the Powerball in last Saturday's drawing, "11", but only one other number, the combination paying out $4.00 on my five-ticket, $10.00 chance. "A tax on the stupid", I know, but I'll likely plow my "winnings" back in to yet another chance, now that I'm playing "on the house's money..." Wish me luck...! I gather that the payout is up to about $20 million? Can that be? My philanthropic juices are prematurely simmering, my self-indulgent juices percolating...

I won $100 on powerball on Saturday night before Christmas one year. I cashed the ticket on Sunday and drove to the store that sold me the ticket. the girl that sold it to me was working. I went in and asked her if she remembered selling me a ticket. She replied "Yes, I do." I handed her a $20 bill. She was surprised and excited. She started jumping up and down. I was laughing at her. I asked her "Were you surprised/" She replied "yes". I asked her if she was happy? She replied " Oh, Yes, very!" I told her "Now you know how I felt!" That was the last time I ever won on powerball but I still play!

I hit it also. I always use "11" as my powerball number. It was my SO badge number, and besides that it seems to hit that number frequently. I got one number with power play for 10 drawings so this one pays $12.00. $8.00 more and I've got my money back and there's still nine more drawings. Years ago I went out west with my FIL. He bought two one dollar scratch offs and gave me one. His won $1,000.00. I'm kinda glad he won because he would have wanted at least half or more if I had won. You would have had to have known him. In Mississippi we've got almost as many casinos as LV yet the state legislature consistantly votes down having a lottery. The last three times I've been to a casino I've brought home money. Don't ask about the ten times prior to that. Margaritaville recently opened on Back Bay Biloxi. Since Hurricane Katrina they let them build on dry ground. It's smaller than the other places and the $2.00 Margaritas are really good. I'll probably go back.

I have one 11 on a ticket. I think that I will use the $4 to buy 4 Mega Million tickets since they are still $1. When the PowerBall gets to $600 Million again, I will buy another ticket.

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Corripe Cervisiam

People rant and rave about those playing the powerball while on public assistance. Me-I'm all for it. At least that way I know they are paying their fair share
I was asked what I would do if I had won and my answer was very simple.
"Reward my friends and punish my enemies."

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Forum consigliere

Well said !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I didn't even look at my tickets yet. I'm not sure if I could afford to win. It's not the money it's the people who will be looking for handouts. I just won't want to be bothered.

I bought one each Powerball and Mega Millions with the multipliers Wednesday. Cost: $5. Didn't win anything Wednesday, but I hit the Mega Ball on Friday. I won $8 for that, bought another Powerball with multiplier for that huge Saturday drawing. Cost: $3. Didn't win. Sigh. But all three tickets ended up costing me nothing, so I feel kinda lucky!

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Very interesting...

I hit the Power Ball too...

"A tax on the stupid"???
Please explain as I don't see it that way. So I spend $10 bucks a week for a very small chance at millions, why is that stupid? I see coworkers blow whole paychecks at the local casinos on a regular basis. Gambling is fine when it is done responsibly.
Besides, here in South Dakota, the funds from lotto and legal gambling mean I don't have to pay any state income taxes!!

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NRA Life member

That is the sad part about lottos and such--those who cant afford to pay--play in the hopes of winning-which most of the time-isnt the case. I worked in a Circle K Store before I was in L.E. and had two elder ladies who would come in and spend all their money on scratch offs-always leaving broke. Another was an elder gent who came in on his pay days-I think he was a Mechanic? and would stay till he lost everything. I was always the cashier they would come up to to play these card games. While this gent was playing one time-I went to go see the Store Manager and tell him what was going on and asked if I could deny him more tickets since he won-absolutely none of the time. This to me was akin to not allowing a drunk person to come purchase more spirits. Well, to what I already knew and was to my disgust--I was told I had to keep selling those tickets. Needless to say--I put my 2 weeks notice in and in a week-had a job working for another State Agency.

As a PS to all this, I normally do not spend money on scratch-off tickets but--I bought a $5 dollar "John Wayne 100th year Birthday Cellebration" ticket-and won $5 bucks. I bought it because it had a great photo of Duke in the movie: Hondo--which is my all time most favorite Western. Anyway, in order to collect-had to turn in the card. SO I got another-and lost the $5 bucks-but now have a collectable lottery card worth more than both cards purchased.

The most I ever won-was 2 weeks ago. While doing laundry-I went to a Stripes store-bought a $3 Star Trek lotto card-won $30.00 The cashier asked me if I wanted the $30 in cards or cash-I said ill stop while im ahead and took the $30.00-to which the others standing in line said I did the smart thing and two of them told me on leaving-that they wished they could do as I did when winning-instead of taking all in cards and losing.

Hey I am a Powerball winner too $4.00

I know someone that won $4000 per week for life on a scratch off. The guy gave up smoking but still went to the same store for coffee every day so instead of buying smokes he would buy tickets...

Then a few weeks ago I went to a gas station and this guy was buying ticket after ticket, he would rub off the bar code and scan it. He win some and lose most just buying and buying, kinda sad really.

They way we are all willing to pay "the tax on dreaming" without complaining, I often thought that a national income tax lottery would be an interesting way to reduce national debt.
Think about it, what if when you did your tax's you had a chance at a $1M payout for every $20 of your return you let them keep. Many of us would buy in for a chance (or twenty) with nary a groan since it's money we've never seen anyway. Heck, I see the scratch ticket crowd at the corner store every AM that might just wipe out the deficit on their own if presented the right odds! Best yet, since it would only be eligible to those working stiffs that file a return, you might even get some dead beats to start working just so they can get a stab at getting rich :-)

Of course, the IRS has credibility problems of ther own right now....

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Dave