20 Million Dollar Morality Question.

[MA-Caver]

You just won 20 Million Dollars in a lottery.
Simple enough question.
What do you do with the money?
Knowing that much cash doesn't hang around forever. Many lottery winners usually go right back to their mean income within 5 years of their winning. Primary reason for this is the sudden leap out of their "comfort zone" and into a place where it's not surprisingly unfamiliar. What seems like unlimited spending cap.
But the question remains... what would you do? Now I could make this an exorbitant amount of say 200 million which is still realistic considering some states grand prize powerball type lottos. But we'll stick with 20 million.
Of course many of us should know that 20 million will not "fix it". So my question is think it over and answer what would you do with the money.
You could hoard it all for yourself, and some to family (of course ) and a little here for charity and there for that. Round the world trips, big houses, cars, boats and so on.

Question of morality here is would you (honestly now) spend it helping others?
We say yes of course, most of us would in our hearts. Reality? Hmm... already there's that reluctance building up deep down inside isn't there?

Oprah Winfrey is supposedly doing this "game" where you are given X amount of money and are supposed to use it to help people. Nothing gets spent for yourself. Now that just doesn't seem fair does it? Of course not.

So lets say... 10% goes to you... (2 million bucks) and considering that's quite a chunk of change for just one person personally isn't it? Even with a family it's still a good sum of money.
90% has to go to help others. How would you do it? Simplify your answers please and take a bit to think about it. You could help out hundreds of families, pay off mortgages for them, pay off hospital bills for their children, provide needed money for valuable research that many others who could afford it don't think is valuable for their own reasons.

I'm still thinking of how I would do it. But would love to see your participation.
Is this realistic? Umm, prolly not but it's something to think about, something to ask ourselves. Think of it as a Brewster's Millions type game. But without the idiotic blow as much as you can in 30 days.

Got to thinking about this and it made me curious. With this broad and diverse of a group of people... it might be interesting. By the way... there are no right or wrong answers here.

 

[mrhnau]

I've thought of this a good bit... just idly passing time Good question, btw...

you know the old adage, "Give the man a fish, he eats for a day. Teach the man to fish, he eats for a lifetime". While the concept of handouts sounds lovely, it would be nice to be able to help people help themselves, you know? Maybe help poor but competent kids get to college. I've always had a soft place for the homeless, so maybe some kind of work training facility, to get them employed and off the street...

Personally, I'd like to take care of my family, make sure my child won't be suffering or needing too much. I'd spend a bit on myself (more the wife honestly ) and make sure I'm making enough on interest to be ok.

There is a lot of really good research going out there, so that might be worthwhile...

I'd tithe to the church or some worthwhile ministry.

Other than that, the "charity" aspect would probably be on a case by case basis. However, I have heard that people that win those things wind up getting hounded to death by every sad sap story ever invented. I'd hate to be taken advantage of by every huckster out there that smells $.

 

[Hawke]

I saw some studies about lottery winners and how they lose it all.

I use this same question on some of the girls I date (mine is actually one million dollars all at once tax free).

What would I really do with 20 million dollars? Assuming it's tax free and one lump sum....

I would invest the 20 million and live off the interest. So 10% interest would be 2 million a year. And if invested correctly that would be tax free too.

Use the interest to help out my family and close friends (bills, mortgages, etc).

Set up trust funds for my future grandkids (after 30 years of compound interest they will be well off, of course they only get 25% of it at 30, and another 25% at 40, the rest of it at 50. This way they will still have to work and if they mess up they still have money coming to them for another chance. Hopefully they will learn a valuable lesson and not mess up again).

I would live below my means.

I would anonymously only help out a few charities (mainly all of it deals with children).

Most of the people I ask say they would help lots of charities. This spreads the amount given too low. I prefer a few, so they get more.

Do more random acts of kindness which doesn't have to cost that much at all. Fun to watch people's face light up with joy.

I would travel the world to experience their culture. I enjoy eating foods from other places (Los Angeles and San Francisco have amazing restaurants from all over the world). I would be interested in their style of massages as well. Also I would definitely want to study their style of martial art.

 

[mrhnau]

I would invest the money and live off the interest. So 10% interest would be 2 million a year. And if invested correctly that would be tax free too.

Let me know where I can get a guaranteed 10% interest. I need that

 

[Hawke]

I am NOT a financial planner or councilor.

Before next week is over talk with a financial planner that you pay by the hour. Lesson to his/her advice.

Some of the municipal bonds are ~5% but are usually tax free.

Others have mutual funds 20% + but are not usually tax free nor is it guarantee.

There's also a way you can max out on your CDs for the people that do not like to take much risks.

Let say you have $5,000.

(going to make up numbers for the interest rate to keep the math easy but you can go to Bank Rates to get the real numbers)

CD - Year One - $1,000 @ 2%

CD - Year Two - $1,000 @ 2.5%

CD - Year Three - $1,000 @ 3 %

CD - Year Four - $1,000 @ 3.5%

CD - Year Five - $1,000 @ 4%

What you do is move each CD to a Five year every time it matures. So move the One Year to Five year. Two Year to Five, Three Year to Five, and Four Year to Five. Keep doing this until all of it is giving you five year returns.

Every year you have a CD giving you a Five year return.

YEAR
2008 CD 1 -matures next year- (2009) - CD 5 (Year 2014)
2008 CD 2 -matures next year- (2010) - CD 5 (Year 2015)
2008 CD 3 -matures next year- (2011) - CD 5 (Year 2016)
2008 CD 4 -matures next year- (2012) - CD 5 (Year 2017)
2008 CD 5 -matures next year- (2013) - CD 5 (Year 2018)

I prefer the hourly financial advisor instead of the CDs b/c 4-5% is too low, but it's very safe.

Remember I am NOT a Financial Planner. Talk with your accountant.

 

[IcemanSK]

Like a lot of folks, I've thought about it a bit. I have worked in social services for most of my adult life. I've always wanted to start a non-profit. Having money so I wouldn't have to worry about myself would make raising money a great job. I also have very wealthy (self-made) relatives who know how to hold onto money. I'd call them for advice & hire their people to help me do it.

Would I live better than I do now? You betcha! I would say I wouldn't go nuts: but I'm not sure that I wouldn't go "off the reservation."

 

[crushing]

I'd pull into a gas station and top the car off!!!!

-------------------
Actually:
Pay off car note
Pay off mortgage
6 month emergency fund
Kids college funds
Gifts to parents
Gifts to siblings
Charity
Some MA gear
Invest and build wealth to be able to give more
Travel more

 

[terryl965]

I would just stay the same except one big thing no bills.

 

[JadecloudAlchemist]

My intent is the same if I had no money it would be to take care of my family and help others as best I could.
Given a large amount of money would not change who I am but allow for more ways to do this.
I would most likely start a Homeless organization that assist in job placement.
I would use the money to start up a new fast food place that serves actually healthy food be it Vegan, Vegatarian, Orangic and natural meats.

Take care of my family and use money for school.

 

[Big Don]

For me, the magic word is "Anonymously".
Nothing, aside from the tax records, would have my name on it.

 

[Sukerkin]

I have to say, daft as it sounds, that 20 million Pounds let alone 20 million Dollars is not really enough to do any significant lasting good for more than a handful of people.

Going with the premise that you get $2M for yourself (and that the best way to use half of that is to settle debts, clear the mortgage etc whilst investing the rest) then I would go for splitting the remaining $18M into nine stipends for either individuals or small organisations (to cover running costs from the interest).

Altho' it's tempting to go for some of the more obvious causes that tug at the heart strings, I think I may well use these stipends to give scientists and researches financial freedom to follow their work. This would clearly be very small scale stuff of the Workshop Inventor type but whilst it might be wasted money on the one hand it might also pay off big time with a discovery that benefits everyone.

It would be a gamble which, given where the money came from in the first place, I find quite fitting.

 

[MA-Caver]

My father plays the lottery hoping like so many thousands of others to be that next big winner. At 82 yrs of age I'll not say anything nor let my own pessimistic view of the whole affair interfere with his dream.
I was recently interviewed by a college student working on his masters in finances and he asked me about what I thought. I told him "in a word; pipedream." He wondered about that saying that there are those big/huge winners. I told him yes, there were, you read about them in the paper or see them on the news. Sad for them because now everyone (who keeps track of those things) now knows you've got tons of money and they'll be pounding down your door. Yet how many thousands are disappointed on a daily or weekly basis because they were two or three numbers short of the big prize? How often do they go back and try again. My father, at least once a week.
But the money paid for buying tickets, at least here in Tennessee (and I'm sure in other states) goes towards education which helps those less fortunate to send their kids to college on scholarships. Not a bad thing at all. Because you never know where the next Einstein comes from or the next Salk or Pasteur.

Still, winning it is the question and what to do.
For one thing, disappear for a good month. Not wholly move out but just close the house down, (empty the fridge, etc.) and go rent a small place in another state quietly and anonymously as possible. This will at least keep the bulk of the door pounders off your back. Get a family member or neighbor to check on the house twice or three times a week to empty the mailbox and pick up the papers and make sure no-one has broken in.

What to do now.
1. Pay off outstanding debts of mine and my family's, including mortgages, cars, whatever.
2. Spread out the (10%) in a few banks so that it's not all in one basket as it were.
As Big Don stated these things are done anonymously. Probably open a dummy corporation named Soze Enterprises and list the head as Keyser Söze (just for the hell of it).
3. Randomly pick out a street in my city in a middle or lower middle class neighborhood, and for two or three blocks, pay off the mortgages on every single house on that street leaving the owners free and clear.
4. Randomly choose 5 children from St. Jude that are in the highest debt and pay those bills.
5. While I like the idea of the homeless center where job placements are assisted. There are state agencies well trained for that, the homeless only need to walk through the doors and cooperate fully with the agents in charge of them and they'll find work. But with that create a private fund to at least provide money so that they can pay to get their cars fixed, have a 6 month bus/public transportation voucher, and an amount to help cover any delinquent bills they may have once they have found adequate employment. I can't tell you how many times I've had to struggle to "catch-up" on my bills (rent, utilities, etc.) and feel discouraged because the first couple of paychecks (usually small) are gone by the time I cashed them at the bank or at the check-cashing places. Having that "edge" of not owing anything when first starting a job helps quite a bit.
6. Help small inventors get started with their great ideas. You know the ones, the ones that usually find their way in-between aisles at Home Depot. The ones where you walk past, stop, and look and slap yourself on the forehead saying "WHY didn't I think of that!"
7. There are a few *ahem* special interests groups (for me anyway) that could use a bit of a cash-windfall.
8. Any money left over... do the house thing again on another street in another neighborhood.
9. Oh yeah, definitely tithe to the church... which one still remains to be seen. :uhyeah:

 

[Xue Sheng]

I have thought about this a bit, not much actually, but a bit. I use to try and think what I would/should do with it and then one day I watched a show about lottery winners of MEGA amounts of money and in ALL cases it changed their lives DRASTICALLY... some better some worse but in all cases there were some fairly bad things they had to deal with.

After that I stopped buying lottery tickets, not that big a deal since I only bought them once or twice a year but I honestly do not want things to change that much. But if someone came up to me and said here is 20 million I would likely take it but the thought scares me today where at one time I thought it would be a good thing.

 

[FieldDiscipline]

Buy a decent house and then I'd put the lot in the bank and try and live off the interest.

The great thing for me would be being able to do a job that I enjoyed, without worrying about the pay.

I'd give regular monthly money to BLESMA and Combat Stress and the Royal British Legion. I have the opportunity to spend money because people who need these charities did what they did.

I wouldnt see family go short, but I dont think I'd be buying myself or anyone else for that matter anything ridiculous.

 

[Kacey]

Like many others, I would pay off my debts (1st mortgage, 2nd mortgage, car, student loans), and pay off debts for my parents. Then I would buy an annuity for each of my parents - my father, in particular, has very little retirement income. After that, I would talk to my uncle, who has dual degrees in law and finance, and is a very successful CFO... actually, I'd probably talk to him first.

Once all of my bills were taken care of, I would invest for my retirement - I could live happily and high on the hog on my current income... and yes, I would continue teaching. If I stayed home all the time I'd be bored out of my gourd! I would then start investigating the best ways/organizations to donate to, probably within the area of education - back to "if you give a man a fish...", that being why I became a teacher in the first place.

 

[newGuy12]

Right. The FIRST thing I would do is to talk to a lawyer. A nice, comfortable, long talk. Don't worry, keep the meter running Counselor, I have cash.

Next, I would stash some money, enough to get by on meagerly for the rest of my life, plus a little extra -- I would hire some accountant or investment Person to give pro advice.

Then -- you must give the rest away. This is important, it will keep the money from eating your soul.

Who to give it to? I am not sure, but I would be inclined to contact those shooters in BlackWater and say, "If you guys really do want to so an op in the Darfur, and if $X is enough, then get the lads ready, because I will freaking bankroll it." Now, I may change my mind, because I do not like to encourage this kind of thing, BUT, you know, I might NOT change my mind, and those guys in BlackWater at the top are thinking about doing and op there anyway, so I might just say, "Okay, you got the funding now, and if you can keep from getting caught or in trouble, here you go!"


!!!

 

[MA-Caver]

I think I would hire also a private hit team to go to Nigeria and take out the country's internet connection so they'd stop spamming and scamming people with crap about how they want to use your account to deposit millions of dollars that they don't have or to tell you that you've won their version of the lottery. Sheesh!

 

[crushing]

I think I would hire also a private hit team to go to Nigeria and take out the country's internet connection so they'd stop spamming and scamming people with crap about how they want to use your account to deposit millions of dollars that they don't have or to tell you that you've won their version of the lottery. Sheesh!

I ALREDY GOT MILLIONS DOLLARS TO DO THAT, BUT ONELY YOU CAN HELP ME GET MONEY OUT OF INTERNATION ACCOUNT. I APPRECIATE YOUR CONFIDENSES IN THIS MATTER.

PLEASE PM ME YOUR BANK ACCOUNT NUMBERS. UNDERSTAND I WILL NOT SHARE YOUR NUMBER WITH ANYONE ELSE. BELEVE ME PRIVACY IS UTMOST CONCERNS. I LOOK FORWARD TO OUR BISUNESS RELATIONSHIOP.

PLEASE NOTE THIS TRANSACTION IS 100% SAFE.

YOURS FIATHFULLY,
DR. CLEMENT OKAN

 

[Andy Moynihan]

Assuming taxes are taken care of and the 20 mil is REALLY 20 mil:

5 mil to St. Jude Children's hospital

5 mil to NRA

5 mil amongst family/friends who need it

5 for me.