Saturday, March 31, 2012
Lottery ticket-holders in Kansas, Illinois and Maryland each selected the winning numbers, which were: 2-4-23-38-46, and Mega Ball 23.
Lucky lottery ticket-holders in Kansas, Illinois, and Maryland likely put an end to the fantasies of a nation after Mega Millions winners were announced Friday night. The $640 million jackpot, believed to be the world's largest such prize, is expected to be split between three winners who picked: 2-4-23-38-46, and Mega Ball 23. The Mega Millions game, played in 44 states and jurisdictions, gripped imaginations and pocketbooks alike all week after the prize grew by more than $300 million since the previous drawing on Tuesday. On Patch, Twitter, and Facebook, ideas for how to spend the loot ranged from philanthropic to frivolous: As of Saturday morning, no media outlet had reported any of the tickets as being claimed. Earlier this week, …
Friday, March 30, 2012
You're more likely to get pregnant from a fling than win the lottery. Where does Michigan fall on the "suckers index"? Take the Patch poll.
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Friday, March 30, 2012
The Mega Millions jackpot has leaped to more than half a billion dollars. It's estimated at $640 million for Friday night's drawing — $462 million if a sole winner takes the cash payout. The lottery is a suckers bet. Always has been. But the dream of winning the lottery and leaving behind the daily grind is hard to shake. More than $50 billion was spent on lottery tickets in 2010, and prizes totaled $32.8 billion, according to a Bloomberg ranking of state lotteries. Michigan adults spend an average $312.91 per year on the lottery - the seventh most in the country. (In Massachussetts, it's a whopping $860 per year.) Where does Michigan fall on Bloomberg's Suckers Index? "The Sucker Score is calculated by subtracting the total dollar amount …
Saturday, March 24, 2012
Are you more inclined to play with a prize like that?
Need $363 million? Who doesn't, right? Well, Tuesday could be the day. The Mega Millions lottery prize has been increased to $363 million, one of the highest jackpots ever. The next drawing will be 11 p.m. Tuesday, so you can still vie for a piece. This is the third-largest prize in the multi-state lottery's history, behind a $390-million jackpot in 2007 and $380-million jackpot in 2011, according to megamillions.com. Earlier this week, Michigan made national news because five tickets, matching five of the six Mega Millions numbers, were sold at the same Meijer store in Northville. Those prizes were $250,000 each, according the Michigan Lottery. “There are a lot of things that can sometimes seem like they’re impossible to happen. But we …
Dale Murrish
1:23 pm on Saturday, March 31, 2012
Lotteries are an immoral way for governments to raise money. They take advantage of people's desire to get rich quick, and are generally a regressive tax on those who can least afford it. The only good thing about them is they are a voluntary tax. The worst false advertising is done by government: it's for education. No it's not, it's for the general fund; it's all one big pot. Spending is … more ›