Neal lassoes $232M Powerball lottery prize

[Onkel Neal]

Unfortunately, not this Neal (http://www.nydailynews.com/news/us_world/2009/06/06/2009-06-06_south_dakota_cowboy_neal_wanless_lassoes_232m_p owerball_lottery_pr.html) :wah:


This calls for a "Yee-haw!"

A cowboy who had his trailer repossessed and couldn't pay his taxes lassoed one of the biggest lottery jackpots in history - a $232.1 million Powerball prize.

South Dakota rancher Neal Wanless came forward Friday, a month after he bought the lucky ticket in - get this - a town called Winner.

"I want to thank the Lord for giving me this opportunity and blessing me with this great fortune," said the 23-year-old.

"I will not squander it."


Couldn't pay his taxes or mortgage but has the odd dollar or so for gambling...oh, well, I guess it worked out for him :)

$232 Mill...how could you spend it all???

Ok, here's my challenge to you: list here the steps you would take if you won $232 million. Would you take the day off immediately and contact the lottery commission to claim your winning? What would you tell your boss and co-workers? Would you quit immediately, or stay on for 2 weeks notice? Who would you tell first? What finance company or attorney would you retain? What would your first week be like? What would you spend it on? What would be your investing strategy?

[Letum]

I would keep my job, set aside a yearly income of £100k and invest the rest safely. That would take about £6mil. Another £6mil for friends and family.

The rest wouldn't be of much use to me.

ed: It must go to a a subsim.com donation!

[August]

I'd quit my job so fast my hat would be left floating in the air like in those Saturday morning Looney Toons cartoons. But I wouldn't leave the school hanging. I'd hire a local telecom company to teach the rest of my course.

Next I would throw a huge banquet dinner for all my family, friends and favorite acquaintances, flying them in if necessary. We're talking several hundred people, and this is the important part, the event would be open seating.

We'd have a great time hearing tales and stories and once everyone finished their dinner i'd tell them that there is an envelope taped underneath each one of their chairs which is my gift to them. Inside the envelope would be a bearers check ranging from $10,000 to $100,000. One lucky person would get $1,000,000.

In all the confusion i'd make my escape up to Maine and begin construction of my Island Fortress. :smug:

[CaptainHaplo]

First, I would take the day off to verify and do the basic groundwork involved in claiming the prize. Note my choice would not be to accept the "over time payout", but the full prize in one chunk. While this reduces the winning substantially, there is a reason for the decision.

Now down to about 180M due to the above decision, arrrangements would be made with various financial institutions, both banks and investment firms for deposit and investment. Also count 1/3 out - (60M) for taxes, which should be paid up front and in full. While there are all kinds of tax loopholes that could be used, just get it done so its never a worry.

That now leaves 120M being invested or secured. 20M I would set out for the future of my lady and myself, 10M in trust for each of my children, and the rest allowed to work and grow.

It should be noted that national organizations for the most part would not benefit, as they tend to not use charitable gifts wisely. Local charities that I am familiar with and know their workings would also benefit greatly. The 2 exceptions - the USO and the American Red Cross. And yes - there would be a present in subsim's future.

So - if anyone has the winning powerball numbers - I won't leave you in the cold!

Edit - yes I would work my 2 week notice. Professionalism shouldn't change just because it can.

[Onkel Neal]

I'd quit my job so fast my hat would be left floating in the air like in those Saturday morning Looney Toons cartoons. But I wouldn't leave the school hanging. I'd hire a local telecom company to teach the rest of my course.

Next I would throw a huge banquet dinner for all my family, friends and favorite acquaintances, flying them in if necessary. We're talking several hundred people, and this is the important part, the event would be open seating.

We'd have a great time hearing tales and stories and once everyone finished their dinner i'd tell them that there is an envelope taped underneath each one of their chairs which is my gift to them. Inside the envelope would be a bearers check ranging from $10,000 to $100,000. One lucky person would get $1,000,000.

In all the confusion i'd make my escape up to Maine and begin construction of my Island Fortress. :smug:


Awesome!! :rock:

First, I would take the day off to verify and do the basic groundwork involved in claiming the prize. Note my choice would not be to accept the "over time payout", but the full prize in one chunk. While this reduces the winning substantially, there is a reason for the decision.

Now down to about 180M due to the above decision,

Actually, more like $88.5 mill, according to the article.

[NealT]

Wasn't this Neal either...:wah::wah::wah:

[Jimbuna]

I'd make sure all my family and friends were comfortable for life....donate to some of my favourite charities and keep the rest aside to pay for my medical expenses because the minute I found out I'd won I would probably suffer a heart attack. :DL

[bookworm_020]

This sounds like Brewster's millions! I would have thought that Neal would have bought a submarine!:hmmm:

[UnderseaLcpl]

The very first thing I would do is hire a good tax lawyer to help me get as much of the money under the IRS' radar as possible.
I'd probably quit my regular job, as well. Working for the railroad is a sweet gig, but I dislike working for a polygopolistic industry with a union labor force. Everything is slow, expensive, and inefficient.

After that, I'd like to start a business. I'm not sure what kind. I'd love to run a private security firm, or a private school, but the red tape and tax overhead would make either venture difficult, especially with such a small amount of capital. And it depends on what the tax lawyer says as well. There are many industries that recieve hefty subsidies, even if they aren't productive.
I would also invest a few million in agricultural futures, for the time being. The stock market is a bit too volatile for my taste at the moment, and there is going to be a general devaluation of currency, making traditional low-risk investments less rewarding.

Finally, I would donate what I could spare to charities I like and friends and family. I'd bank about half a million as a rainy-day fund in case everything goes horribly wrong. I'm not a person with expensive tastes, so that would more than suffice. If things looked really bad, I'd buy gold with that 500k. It would be a loss at that point for sure, but gold prices tend to go up(inflation adjusted) when the economy gets really bad, so I'm sure I would at least break even in the long run.

[Schöneboom]

Here's the submarine to buy with that loot... live at sea like Captain Nemo! In my case, with an all-female crew! :woot:

http://www.ussubs.com/submarines/phoenix.pdf

[nikimcbee]

Poor Moto-dude.:O:
http://storygamer.files.wordpress.com/2008/04/center_strongbad_technology.jpg

[CastleBravo]

It's always fun to embark upon the 'what would I do with the money' aspect. I'm just not that lucky. :(

[bookworm_020]

The only way I'll ever win is if someone buys me the winning ticket!:cry: