Tuesday, July 5, 2016

hypocrisy ?

 If you had saved 473.75 dollars every day since our country was born you would now have matched the estimated jackpot for the mega millions lottery. That is not including any interest or taking inflation into account. If every day for 87,600 days you spent that amount you would have spent 240 million dollars. That is 240 years ! Isn't that amazing.  I will take my dollar to the lottery agent and purchase my chance. How many others will do the same ?  Somewhere between 15 and 20 million tickets will be sold. There hasn't been a jackpot winner in thirty three draws. The odds have shifted to the player and against the house. It certainly seems that way anyway. Like I said, I'll buy a chance.
 It is something that most, if not all of us think about. Winning the lottery. What would we do with all that money ? Big ideas are formulated and the dreaming begins. Truth is, none of us really know what the heck we would do. It's like taking that first drink of alcohol. Some can handle it just fine and others become drunks ! Money drunk wouldn't be a bad thing, would it ? Yes, it could be, but I'm willing to risk it. Really it is an unfathomable amount. Now I realize the government is going to take almost half of that amount in taxes. Okay so, I'm left with say 120 million dollars. If I spent 328,767.12 cents every day for a year, I'd be broke. Well, that is if I didn't earn any interest on anything or get any returns on investments. I'd have to spend over thirteen thousand dollars every hour ! Even rich people get tired so I would have to sleep and then try to make up for that when I got up. I'm already exhausted just thinking about it. Like I said, that amount of money is just unfathomable.
 These little flights of fancy are amusing. I do like to think about it but I need to be reminded. That happens when the numbers grow so large. The truth is the beginning number would be more than enough for anyone to live very comfortably on. The first joint lottery game was formed in 1985 with just three states. Scratch off tickets had been sold since the early 1970's. It has turned out to be quite the revenue producer. It is no surprise and only required the acceptance of the general public to be enacted.  There are still states in the United States that do not allow lotteries due to religious conviction or a conflict of interest with other gaming interests, think Las Vegas Casinos. Gambling was considered a vice by the general public but we have since decided it isn't so bad, so long as the government controls it. Hypocrisy ? Well that's an individual assessment. I'm still buying a ticket. If I win I will use the proceeds for humanitarian purposes. That justifies my participation. At least that is what I tell myself. Can you purchase a ticket to paradise ? No, of course not. There is forgiveness though. Thing is, you can't commit a sin knowing you will ask for forgiveness after the fact. Hypocrisy at its' finest. A moral dilemma for sure. Well, I'm still buying my ticket. Are you ?  

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