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BiVRiP
General
April 11th, 2012 @ 10:23AM
Registered:
2003-05-11
Location:
Canada
Posts: 1879
| My standing rule is I'll pay for one and only one line of numbers if the jackpot is at least $10 million (in Canada our lotteries are much smaller but then again it's not taxed so we can keep all the winnings).
Yes, I know the odds are against me but the fact is somebody will eventually get it so it may as well be me.
Is it a waste of money? Not anymore than any other vice people indulge in. I look at it as just another form of gambling. Expect the house to win. As long as you're having fun and you have the money to spare, have at it. |
supervillain
Marine
April 11th, 2012 @ 9:24AM
Registered:
2003-03-25
Location:
socal
Posts: 181
| Gabe you don't have to worry about that because they are not going to win. Save your $5 and tell them they a are more likely to be killed by bees on the way to the liquor store to buy the lottery tickets than to win the jackpot.
|
Gabe
Special Ops
April 9th, 2012 @ 8:17AM
Registered:
2006-04-19
Location:
Boston
Posts: 54
| You gotta buy into the pool though....Even though the lottery is a scam and even though someone might take the money and run...you HAVE TO buy into the pool :)
...Can you imagine the feeling if your office won and you didnt throw in the $5 bucks? And everyone you know is rich and quits their jobs and you are stuck working with all new people (or worse your office gets closed because everyone quits).
You might say you could live with it, but you're lying, it would haunt you forever. It's worth the money just as insurance against that. |
nate_orenstam
Special Ops
April 7th, 2012 @ 9:29PM
Registered:
2003-04-05
Location:
Posts: 1406
| people who are into buying lottery tickets aren't generally with it enough to go to that trouble, wootah.
except that texas woman who wins over and over again--i'd get in a group buy with her anytime. |
Wootah
non-leet
April 5th, 2012 @ 10:52PM
Registered:
2003-05-16
Location:
Utah
Posts: 1461
| Why are people so stupid.
Aside from the fact that playing is stupid, but I would also insist that an entire list of all numbers belonging to the pool were published prior to the drawing and provided everyone in the pool.
Then they could see every number their money bought. |
Darren
Red State Cowboy
April 5th, 2012 @ 2:10PM
Registered:
2004-08-30
Location:
Dallas, TX
Posts: 1145
| I bought 12 - each one tasted better than the last. Of course I'm talking about beers, the lottery is for people bad at math, or Stanford mathematics doctorates that have a system in place (we have a winner in Corpus here that's hit like 4 times). I'd rather work for my money. That much money at one time is corrupting. Hell anything over a million would corrupt a person that thought it was all the money in the world.
And apparently this Maryland woman is hoaxing? Honestly, I think if you screwed your coworkers out of their ticket with that lame excuse I would watch my back until the day I died. So many lotto winners come up dead.
If you ever do win, the best thing in the world is to 1) Find a good estate lawyer 2) Don't change anything about your life immediately 3) Collect the money and disappear without anyone knowing you won except close friends and relatives - and even they are suspect because they could come trying to challenge the winnings. |
Slev
Marine
March 31st, 2012 @ 5:51PM
Registered:
2003-03-26
Location:
Seattle
Posts: 471
| Really the only good time to play a lottery like mega millions is when payout after taxes > odds of winning and the media hasn't picked up on high jackpot yet so there's higher chance of only 1 winner. Tuesday's drawing would have been better to win than friday's huge drawing. Once the media goes crazy you know there's going to be multiple winners on the next drawing because so many tickets will get sold. |
killer6600
Marine
March 31st, 2012 @ 3:17PM
Registered:
2007-06-16
Location:
canada
Posts: 1156
| the lottery is only good for scratch tickets you get in a birthday card |
Charkoth
Right Wing Extremist
March 31st, 2012 @ 1:52PM
Registered:
2003-05-08
Location:
OHIO
Posts: 2200
| I prefer to think of it as a tax on people who are bad at math.
I've never agreed with that saying. In fact most people who play the lottery know quite well the odds are hopelessly against them. The fact that they continue to play makes them more stupid than bad at math.
All that said after researching the numbers on this lottery your odds of winning are in fact positive when you compare the ratio of the cost of playing to the jackpot so people who playing at this point get a pass on the stupid card ( = |
Disastrous Fate
General
March 31st, 2012 @ 10:53AM
Registered:
2004-02-09
Location:
Posts: 1012
| Honestly, I sort of forgot that people actually played the lottery. I guess I assumed only old people who didn't know any better played. Now, it seems like everyone is talking about it. Absurd. |
redgeopower
Marine
March 31st, 2012 @ 8:15AM
Registered:
2003-08-24
Location:
OR USA
Posts: 176
| I play, I know I ain't going to win.
But is anybody posting on this site rich? I will never be rich working in my profession.
I play for the dream.
|
craig
Guitar God
March 31st, 2012 @ 5:31AM
Registered:
2005-01-06
Location:
Tampa, FL
Posts: 334
| "The lottery is a tax on stupidity."
I prefer to think of it as a tax on people who are bad at math. |
RowdyRoddyPiper
Nut Job
March 31st, 2012 @ 4:20AM
Registered:
2003-06-20
Location:
Nashville TN
Posts: 1672
| heh i knew someone up north would win. |
MogKupo
Peon
March 30th, 2012 @ 8:58PM
Registered:
2003-08-16
Location:
Morgantown, WV
Posts: 21
| If you spent that much money buying up every combination, you`re running a big risk that someone else will randomly win as well and end up splitting the pot.
I think winning a jackpot such as that has as good or better of a chance of turning your life miserable as it does making it great. |
nate_orenstam
Special Ops
March 30th, 2012 @ 8:47PM
Registered:
2003-04-05
Location:
Posts: 1406
| suckers and their money are soon parted. |
Trickshot
Peon
March 30th, 2012 @ 7:54PM
Registered:
2006-10-22
Location:
Lansing, Michigan
Posts: 354
| If I win I`m starting a cult. |
cobsteele02
Marine
March 30th, 2012 @ 7:48PM
Registered:
2004-10-08
Location:
O'Fallon Missouri USA
Posts: 709
| We spent $2.
Would be nice but I don't have my hopes up. I would for sure take payments in installments over the lump sum if we were to win. |
Nebuchadnezzar
The King
March 30th, 2012 @ 3:05PM
Registered:
2003-03-20
Location:
Irvine, CA
Posts: 3627
| Guy at work spent $500. |
undreaming
Kali Compton
March 30th, 2012 @ 11:20AM
Registered:
2009-05-30
Location:
SLC, UT
Posts: 254
| My co-workers made a $300 pool and one of them is driving to Nevada (no gambling in UT) to buy tickets. What a waste of time and money! |
rawfish
Peon
March 30th, 2012 @ 10:56AM
Registered:
2003-10-15
Location:
Northern California
Posts: 701
| Heard you`re more likely to be killed by a vending machine than win this lottery. |
Charkoth
Right Wing Extremist
March 30th, 2012 @ 6:18AM
Registered:
2003-05-08
Location:
OHIO
Posts: 2200
| Well you can call it many things. And yeah I know there are ways to beat certain lotteries that are statistically flawed or have certain periods of time where the payoff is statistically higher than the cost to play.
That being said, unless you really enjoy the excitement of repeatedly getting your hopes up (no matter how misplaced) and getting them crushed, there is no reason to play the lottery.
Long story short: Play it because you enjoy playing, not because you have a "chance" to win anything. |
Nebuchadnezzar
The King
March 30th, 2012 @ 12:51AM
Registered:
2003-03-20
Location:
Irvine, CA
Posts: 3627
| 1 in 176 million |
Darren
Red State Cowboy
March 29th, 2012 @ 11:15PM
Registered:
2004-08-30
Location:
Dallas, TX
Posts: 1145
| Actually Chark, the lottery is a tax on people that are bad at math.
We have a lady here in Texas however that is good at math and won several times. Only requires a Stanford education in mathematics however.
And for the record I will waste that money on beer, at least I'll get something for my money.
EDITED: 2012-03-29 23:16:26 |
buck0
Peon
March 29th, 2012 @ 5:23PM
Registered:
2003-03-25
Location:
Ventura County, CA
Posts: 45
| It`s up to $540m and climbing. I heard you have a better chance of getting hit by lightning two different times in your life than winning the lottery. |
Charkoth
Right Wing Extremist
March 28th, 2012 @ 7:36PM
Registered:
2003-05-08
Location:
OHIO
Posts: 2200
| The lottery is a tax on stupidity. |
Iceman
Peon
March 28th, 2012 @ 6:58PM
Registered:
2012-02-21
Location:
Indiana
Posts: 40
| I know the odds aren`t in my favor at all and it`s a bad bet for sure but for such a big payoff I think it`s worth wasting 10 bucks (2 gallons of gas). It would remind me of the time my guild was doing lotto drawings I invested 100g for 5 tickets and won 15kg when others had invested 1k-2k. Somebody has to win so might as well be me! Hell if I won I`d pay off nebu`s house for a spot in future betas ;) |
RowdyRoddyPiper
Nut Job
March 28th, 2012 @ 5:53PM
Registered:
2003-06-20
Location:
Nashville TN
Posts: 1672
| its going to be some 87 year old in new hampshire who wins it and doesnt know how they will spend the money |
Miamihrrcne
Marine
March 28th, 2012 @ 5:49PM
Registered:
2004-03-12
Location:
Miami
Posts: 801
| technically it does hurt. Expected value for playing the lottery is 0 thus putting 10 dollars into a pot with a 0 EV is always a bad bet.
but for shits and giggles i'm going to actually play it this one time. i know i'm going to lose, but at least i can say "i played it that one time it hit 500 million" |
Miamihrrcne
Marine
March 28th, 2012 @ 5:48PM
Registered:
2004-03-12
Location:
Miami
Posts: 801
| for the first time in my life i'm going to buy a lottery ticket on friday. |
Iceman
Peon
March 28th, 2012 @ 5:14PM
Registered:
2012-02-21
Location:
Indiana
Posts: 40
| Never hurts to try though right? I don`t ever play the lotto myself but I put down 10 for the hell of it. I can`t even imagine what I`d even do with that amount of money. |
