The Mega Racket is now $1.6 Billion

Other discussions not related to the Permanent Portfolio

Moderator: Global Moderator

Post Reply
User avatar
Ad Orientem
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 3483
Joined: Sun Aug 14, 2011 2:47 pm
Location: Florida USA
Contact:

The Mega Racket is now $1.6 Billion

Post by Ad Orientem » Fri Oct 19, 2018 11:21 am

I am embarrassed to admit it but, I threw away a couple bucks on the lottery. I figure $2 can be justified as a form of cheap entertainment. I'm renting a daydream and its a lot cheaper than going to the movies.

So what do you think of my soon to be new boat? For sale at $45M...
https://www.yachtcharterfleet.com/luxur ... athena.htm
Last edited by Ad Orientem on Mon Oct 22, 2018 5:52 pm, edited 3 times in total.
User avatar
Cortopassi
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 3338
Joined: Mon Feb 24, 2014 2:28 pm
Location: https://www.jwst.nasa.gov/content/webbL ... sWebb.html

Re: The Mega Racket is now $1 Billion

Post by Cortopassi » Fri Oct 19, 2018 3:21 pm

$2 for 15 minutes of fantasizing is worth it.
jacksonM
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 364
Joined: Wed Sep 26, 2018 1:59 pm

Re: The Mega Racket is now $1 Billion

Post by jacksonM » Sat Oct 20, 2018 11:34 am

Just learned that I hit the Mega Ball on Tuesday's drawing.

Now I have to decide whether to put my $2 winnings towards a can of beer at the convenience store or let it ride for $1.6 billlion.

It'll be a tough decision.
User avatar
dualstow
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 14228
Joined: Wed Oct 27, 2010 10:18 am
Location: synagogue of Satan
Contact:

Re: The Mega Racket is now $1 Billion

Post by dualstow » Sat Oct 20, 2018 3:38 pm

Winning too much would destroy your my life. A few hundred thousand, no prob. A billion? That’s a curse. Note the absence of a smiley here at the sentence end.
Sam Bankman-Fried sentenced to 25 years
User avatar
Tortoise
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 2751
Joined: Sat Nov 06, 2010 2:35 am

Re: The Mega Racket is now $1 Billion

Post by Tortoise » Sat Oct 20, 2018 4:09 pm

dualstow wrote:
Sat Oct 20, 2018 3:38 pm
Winning too much would destroy your my life. A few hundred thousand, no prob. A billion? That’s a curse. Note the absence of a smiley here at the sentence end.
Ditto. For me, winning up to maybe $100 million might be manageable, but $1 billion or more would just be... a curse.
User avatar
Kriegsspiel
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 4052
Joined: Sun Sep 16, 2012 5:28 pm

Re: The Mega Racket is now $1 Billion

Post by Kriegsspiel » Sat Oct 20, 2018 5:34 pm

I wondered why everyone was talking about it.

Can you win and stay anonymous?
jacksonM
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 364
Joined: Wed Sep 26, 2018 1:59 pm

Re: The Mega Racket is now $1 Billion

Post by jacksonM » Sat Oct 20, 2018 6:24 pm

Kriegsspiel wrote:
Sat Oct 20, 2018 5:34 pm
I wondered why everyone was talking about it.

Can you win and stay anonymous?
I think this depends on the law in the state where you live, but if you win you are stuck in a catch-22 situation. They tell you to sign the back of the ticket immediately if you win so nobody can hit you on the head and take it from you but if you sign it you have, in effect, identified yourself. The only way around this is to set up a trust fund in advance and sign the trust fund's name on the back of the ticket. But who makes that kind of advance planning for winning the lottery? You would have to be feeling real lucky.

I read about a woman in New Hampshire who signed her ticket but still managed to remain anonymous except for the city in which she lived. It required a court battle however. At least she had plenty of money to pay the legal bills.

One entity that definitely won't let you remain anonymous however is the IRS.
User avatar
Ad Orientem
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 3483
Joined: Sun Aug 14, 2011 2:47 pm
Location: Florida USA
Contact:

Re: The Mega Racket is now $1 Billion

Post by Ad Orientem » Sat Oct 20, 2018 6:57 pm

Kriegsspiel wrote:
Sat Oct 20, 2018 5:34 pm
I wondered why everyone was talking about it.

Can you win and stay anonymous?
Eight states have laws allowing lottery winners to remain anonymous. A few others have loopholes that might give de-facto anonymity to those who claim the prize through a carefully constructed trust. But most states require any human beneficiary of the lottery or trust to be named. The states that do allow winners to remain anonymous are Delaware, Kansas, Maryland, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota,Texas and most recently Georgia.
User avatar
dualstow
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 14228
Joined: Wed Oct 27, 2010 10:18 am
Location: synagogue of Satan
Contact:

Re: The Mega Racket is now $1 Billion

Post by dualstow » Sat Oct 20, 2018 7:10 pm

jacksonM wrote:
Sat Oct 20, 2018 6:24 pm
Kriegsspiel wrote:
Sat Oct 20, 2018 5:34 pm
I wondered why everyone was talking about it.

Can you win and stay anonymous?
<snip>
I read about a woman in New Hampshire who signed her ticket but still managed to remain anonymous except for the city in which she lived. It required a court battle however. At least she had plenty of money to pay the legal bills.

<snip>
That was an interesting case to follow. She was pretty active in her area before winning and once the court case began, the cat was out of the bag pretty quickly.
Sam Bankman-Fried sentenced to 25 years
User avatar
Ad Orientem
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 3483
Joined: Sun Aug 14, 2011 2:47 pm
Location: Florida USA
Contact:

Re: The Mega Racket is now $1 Billion

Post by Ad Orientem » Sat Oct 20, 2018 7:38 pm

dualstow wrote:
Sat Oct 20, 2018 3:38 pm
Winning too much would destroy your my life. A few hundred thousand, no prob. A billion? That’s a curse. Note the absence of a smiley here at the sentence end.
Whoever wins this is not going to be a billionaire in reality. It would take most of 20 years of the annuity to get there and that will be taxed. If, like most people, the winner takes the cash you are looking at around $900 million (that will likely go up before the drawing) in a pre-tax lump sum. But the point is well made. Most people who are buying tickets are dreaming of yachts and islands and private planes. Most have probably given little or more likely no consideration to the practical realities of going from working or middle class, in the space of about a minute at 11PM EDT Tuesday night, into a member of the top .001%. Even if you have the misfortune of living in one of the uglier tax locals (hello New York City), and you take the cash, you are unlikely to walk away with less than $450 million. That is a mind blowing amount of money. And most folks just aren't going to be prepared to deal with it. Worse, is that unless you are very lucky in your domicile, you are going to have to deal with becoming an instant celebrity. Probably a global celebrity. Whatever normalcy existed in your life is over. Gone. Stick a fork in it. You are going to be hounded by moochers, nuts, con men, criminals and people who are honestly in a jam and maybe hoping for a hand. The winner will likely need bodyguards, at least for a while. Having to move or even go into hiding? And what about family? They are going to have their world turned upside down too.

I'm not sure if I am down for that.
User avatar
ochotona
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 3353
Joined: Fri Jan 30, 2015 5:54 am

Re: The Mega Racket is now $1 Billion

Post by ochotona » Sat Oct 20, 2018 7:55 pm

I spend about $1 per month on lottery tickets for fun, and I always choose the lower-paying games. For me, winning $250,000 would be just grand.
User avatar
dualstow
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 14228
Joined: Wed Oct 27, 2010 10:18 am
Location: synagogue of Satan
Contact:

Re: The Mega Racket is now $1 Billion

Post by dualstow » Sat Oct 20, 2018 8:14 pm

Actually Ad, I think for many winners, you can classify family along with the moochers and other problems, not with the victims.

I’m with you, Ocho. 250K would be digestible.
Sam Bankman-Fried sentenced to 25 years
User avatar
Ad Orientem
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 3483
Joined: Sun Aug 14, 2011 2:47 pm
Location: Florida USA
Contact:

Re: The Mega Racket is now $1 Billion

Post by Ad Orientem » Sun Oct 21, 2018 11:32 pm

The vultures are already circling. Here is my vote for the worst proposed investment portfolio for the Mega Millions winner...


Image

From here...
https://www.forbes.com/sites/garthfries ... cabcc8578c.

I am just shuddering.
Don
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 286
Joined: Fri Apr 21, 2017 6:21 pm

Re: The Mega Racket is now $1 Billion

Post by Don » Mon Oct 22, 2018 10:59 am

Take the cash payout or the 29 year annuity?
User avatar
Tyler
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 2066
Joined: Sat Nov 12, 2011 3:23 pm
Contact:

Re: The Mega Racket is now $1 Billion

Post by Tyler » Mon Oct 22, 2018 11:12 am

Ad Orientem wrote:
Sun Oct 21, 2018 11:32 pm
The vultures are already circling.
If you think your crazy second cousin asking for money is irritating, I can only imagine the mad rush of large asset management firms looking to get their claws into a billion dollars.
User avatar
dualstow
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 14228
Joined: Wed Oct 27, 2010 10:18 am
Location: synagogue of Satan
Contact:

Re: The Mega Racket is now $1 Billion

Post by dualstow » Mon Oct 22, 2018 12:39 pm

Crazy second cousin, investment firms, and charities, some of which will be created on the same day that you are known to be a winner.
Google some of the horror stories. It's a blessing and a curse. O0 But mostly a curse, I would think. Like on the level of John Steinbeck's 'The Pearl.'
Sam Bankman-Fried sentenced to 25 years
User avatar
dualstow
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 14228
Joined: Wed Oct 27, 2010 10:18 am
Location: synagogue of Satan
Contact:

Re: The Mega Racket is now $1 Billion

Post by dualstow » Mon Oct 22, 2018 12:45 pm

Don wrote:
Mon Oct 22, 2018 10:59 am
Take the cash payout or the 29 year annuity?
You know, the pundits always say take the lump sum payout, and I think that's *usually* good advice for maximizing the reward. However, once the prize gets up into the tens of millions, if I were unfortunate enough to win -- my wife buys tickets -- I would do the opposite: the annuity.

That way, you don't have to worry about managing that ungodly amount of money all at once. You'd still get, what, $10,000,000 a year with the current jackpot? More manageable.
Also, if someone sues you for all you are worth, it might help to have more coming down the pipeline. Unless they sue you on future checks. That's more difficult, isn't it?

Alternatively, lump sum payout and put everything but $10MM into a charitable trust in year one.
Sam Bankman-Fried sentenced to 25 years
User avatar
Cortopassi
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 3338
Joined: Mon Feb 24, 2014 2:28 pm
Location: https://www.jwst.nasa.gov/content/webbL ... sWebb.html

Re: The Mega Racket is now $1 Billion

Post by Cortopassi » Mon Oct 22, 2018 4:24 pm

I would take every relative out to at least 1st cousin and give each a million and force them to be on stage with me so there'd be less focus on one person/one family.

But I would try as heck to remain anonymous. Might even be worth telling my extended family I will split evenly. Really, if I have 30 million vs. 300 million would it matter?
User avatar
Ad Orientem
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 3483
Joined: Sun Aug 14, 2011 2:47 pm
Location: Florida USA
Contact:

Re: The Mega Racket is now $1 Billion

Post by Ad Orientem » Mon Oct 22, 2018 5:34 pm

If you are thinking of buying a ticket, and you have one of those eight states within a reasonable distance, I'd buy the ticket there, You might end up paying some extra tax, but when you are talking about almost a billion in pre-tax cash, who the bleep cares? As to lump sum or annuity, unless you don't trust yourself and think you might go off the deep end with spending, I'd take the lump sum. All they do with the annuity is buy Treasuries. And you don't even get the tax benefits that normally come with US Sovereign Bonds because they are being held by the lottery. Speaking of taxes, the top income tax bracket is currently at its lowest level since 1930. Anyone who doesn't think taxes are going up over the next 30 years... I've got a lottery ticket I will sell you cheap.

I don't see how anyone who is familiar with basic boglehead and HBPP principles is likely to go horribly wrong in their investments. Investing the money is likely to be the least worrisome problem for anyone on this board.
User avatar
dualstow
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 14228
Joined: Wed Oct 27, 2010 10:18 am
Location: synagogue of Satan
Contact:

Re: The Mega Racket is now $1 Billion

Post by dualstow » Tue Oct 23, 2018 8:13 pm

Cortopassi wrote:
Mon Oct 22, 2018 4:24 pm

But I would try as heck to remain anonymous. Might even be worth telling my extended family
Lol, NO, Corto. You’re going to remain anonymous by telling your extended family? How do you think that’s going to play out? O0
Sam Bankman-Fried sentenced to 25 years
User avatar
Tyler
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 2066
Joined: Sat Nov 12, 2011 3:23 pm
Contact:

Re: The Mega Racket is now $1.6 Billion

Post by Tyler » Tue Oct 23, 2018 9:13 pm

If I won a billion, I'd consider allocating a million a year to hire an actor to play the role of the winner. They'd do all the interviews, talk about how it changed their life, and field the mobs of people looking to make a buck. I'd select them based on people I think could handle it and who would genuinely do something nice with the money, and I'd do it through a lawyer so they'd never know my identity. And every year I'd hire a new person to play the same role, claiming that they were the TRUE winner. Eventually the media would tire of being played, the sharks would move to easier targets, and every actor could go on with their life with a million dollars in their pockets. I'd probably take a turn one year just for kicks.

But if you ever see someone pull this off, you didn't hear it from me. ;)
User avatar
dualstow
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 14228
Joined: Wed Oct 27, 2010 10:18 am
Location: synagogue of Satan
Contact:

Re: The Mega Racket is now $1.6 Billion

Post by dualstow » Tue Oct 23, 2018 9:44 pm

^ Frickin brilliant! O0 ^
Sam Bankman-Fried sentenced to 25 years
User avatar
Ad Orientem
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 3483
Joined: Sun Aug 14, 2011 2:47 pm
Location: Florida USA
Contact:

Re: The Mega Racket is now $1.6 Billion

Post by Ad Orientem » Tue Oct 23, 2018 11:51 pm

Word on the internet is that there is at least 1 winner in SC. That's one of the eight states where you can stay anonymous. I hope this is true.
User avatar
dualstow
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 14228
Joined: Wed Oct 27, 2010 10:18 am
Location: synagogue of Satan
Contact:

Re: The Mega Racket is now $1.6 Billion

Post by dualstow » Wed Oct 24, 2018 5:44 pm

Ad Orientem wrote:
Tue Oct 23, 2018 11:51 pm
Word on the internet is that there is at least 1 winner in SC. That's one of the eight states where you can stay anonymous. I hope this is true.
Appears to be true!
Sam Bankman-Fried sentenced to 25 years
Post Reply