General Discussion

If someone wins it, I hope it's someone that didn't have a cent to their name, and then didn't blow it on ridiculous stuff or some mysterious guru who shows up the moment they get the money, gains their confidence as an "adviser," and who disappears when it's gone (mostly into the guru's pocket).

I actually know one person who won a big lottery. It was about $15 million, and it was in Spain. The guy had had some reversals in his business, made bad loans to friends who stiffed him, and was just about bankrupt. He then won the lottery. He paid off his debts, and then got sued for divorce by his wife. He threw a bunch of money at her, saying, "if that's all you care about, here's a couple million, happy now?" (She was). He got his life in order, went back to his former modest life, minus his previous mistakes and the worries they brought, and is now one of the most contented guys I know. He has a loyal girlfriend who is very smart, a modest lifestyle, lives way below his means, and is determined never to face ruin again. He could have bought himself a fancy car, fancier digs, and stretched himself thin. Instead, he said, OK, I got lucky, and I'm not gonna blow it this time." His friends are exactly the same ones he had before he fell on hard times, during the hard times, and after he overcame them. I think he was a BIG exception.

If someone wants to drop $350 million after taxes in my bank account, I won't stop them, but I won't go out of my way to make it happen, either. The likelihood seems a bit too remote to worry about it.