JCC If you won the powerball jackpot

And say it was 300 million after taxes. How much would you give away to ensure your privacy and your name not being released. Some states will allow that but most will not. How much would you give to a governor or a legislator to remain anonymous? How would you try to remain anonymous? How long would you work at your job before quitting? Or would you stay there. Or would tell everyone you quit and that you won the lottery? How many relatives would know?

 

I would give away 14 million to a strange woman to ensure she lived close enough to me for me to maintain a never-quite realized fantasy that the two of us might one day have a romantic relationship together.

 

if i had three hundred million dollars i seriously wouldn't give a ****. i would be too busy on my party boat, with occasional jaunts on my party chopper to the newly built helipad at my party mansion.

 

I'd finish up graduate school without having to worry about funding, and then become a wandering logician hobo.

 

Tell no one. Stuff it away in an account somewhere and watch it grow. Proceed with life as if nothing ever happened.

 

Very much this.

I'd also settle all debts, see that my old folks and close family members are well taken care of, then retire somewhere south of the equator like New Zealand. Or Australia. Or simply split the year between both places.

 

As is the case for whenever we have this thread pop up (because it always does pop up), here's exactly what I do:


-purchase Dodger season tickets.

-hope against hope that I could somehow use my money to get courtside season tickets for the Lakers. If not, then I put my name on the waiting list (for tickets elsewhere at Staples Center), and then buy tickets off places like StubHub in the meantime in order to go to the games.

-purchase a house in either the West San Fernando Valley or the Hollywood Hills.

-take care previous financial considerations, and of course give bits of the $$$$ to friends & family.

-Etc...

 

Here's what I would do:

I'd buy up some airtime on all the major networks. I'd heavily advertise a live ten-minute long program. It would cold open with me sitting on a throne on top of a mountain of my 300 million in cash (take a little for the aforementioned costs). I'd monologue to the camera about Eastern philosophies and ethics, and throw in a choice "it's about sending a message" line, then I'd climb down off my mountain, light a match, and throw it on the money. It all goes up in flames.

Then I'd laugh.

Cut.

 

Most people would change the channel long before you got to that part.

 

Fine. I'll buy up airtime during the Super Bowl, then.

edit: obviously, the ten minutes would have to be cut down to one minute, however.

 

All that advertising space would probably cost more than $300 million anyway.

 

Super Bowl audience. They're not going anywhere. No need for advertising anymore.

 

Firms pay a lot for Super Bowl advertisements because the event has a big audience, not because there's some magical obligation that keeps people from ignoring commercials. You'd last about all of 15 seconds with your philosophy lecture.

 

Do you even watch the Super Bowl? Don't you think sports are worthless or something?

 

He's right, though.... you'd get muted, or you'd become the little box in the corner of the screen while they surfed other channels. The bottom line being, nobody would give a **** about your philosophy lecture... especially during a superbowl party.

Also... you'd light all the money on fire and go right back to living with your parents? Really?

 

I'd slap myself and wake up. Because statistically, you're never going to win the powerball/lottery.

 

No, I never have, and yes I basically do. But that has nothing to do with the concern here, which is how advertisements work.

 

the thing i'd probably spend way too much money on is having hall and oates play at my house.

 

Not to mention, if you're lighting the money on fire you're still acknowledging that it has some kind of power or meaning, so I don't think you're really in a position to be lecturing others on Eastern philosophical traditions.

 

Stick it all in banks to gain interest and give the interest made to various charities for the rest of my life, pay off the debts my family owes. Then upon my death have the remaining money used in the same manner by my decedents from now until the end of time.

 

Having an imagination is fun, though.

 

Seriously speaking, uhhh... no! I am kind of bemused by how everybody came creeping in and taking my stupid little fantasy seriously, though.