What would you do?

[Sven]

The multi-state PowerBall lottery is going to be over $200 million
Wednesday. This thread has been done on here before...

What would you do if you won the Lotto???
Upgrade your plane?
Get a newer/bigger/better plane? Get a fleet?
Get AMEL/ASES/ Instrument and/or Commercial ratings?

I'll wait until I win to decide... ;-)

[C J Campbell]

"Sven" > wrote in message
news:uKuHb.669964$HS4.4764314@attbi_s01...
| The multi-state PowerBall lottery is going to be over $200 million
| Wednesday. This thread has been done on here before...
|
| What would you do if you won the Lotto???
| Upgrade your plane?
| Get a newer/bigger/better plane? Get a fleet?
| Get AMEL/ASES/ Instrument and/or Commercial ratings?
|
| I'll wait until I win to decide... ;-)

Since I do not gamble I have little chance of ever winning one of these
lotteries, though it is not significantly less than the chance I have
winning the lottery even if I did gamble.

However, if by chance some individual were to give me such a sum of money, I
am certain I could find some things to do that involve type ratings.

[Ben Jackson]

In article <uKuHb.669964$HS4.4764314@attbi_s01>,
Sven > wrote:
>What would you do if you won the Lotto???

Google for this in r.a.rotorcraft and you'll see that a guy started a
thread like this in 1995 or so and then in March of 2003 posted and
said he had actually won the lottery. One of the most amazing sets of
threads I've ever run across...

--
Ben Jackson
>
http://www.ben.com/

[Paul Tomblin]

In a previous article, "Sven" > said:
>What would you do if you won the Lotto???
>Upgrade your plane?
>Get a newer/bigger/better plane? Get a fleet?
>Get AMEL/ASES/ Instrument and/or Commercial ratings?

Buy a house with an airstrip, and two planes, one for carrying large loads
long distances and one for fun. Probably a PC-12 or TBM-700 for fast and
heavy, and something (182, 206, Beaver?) on amphib floats for fun.

And then spend the rest on insuring those beasts.

--
"The magic of usenet has never been its technology; and, only in part, its
reach. Its magic -- its power -- is based on the very real human connections
that form 'round its threads of conversation... the relationships that are
kindled, flamed and, on occasion, extinguished and mourned." -deCadmus

[Dan Luke]

"Sven" wrote:
> What would you do if you won the Lotto???

After the family stuff...
I'd buy 500 acres in the Texas hill country west of Austin and build an
airport home on it. Then I'd spend a year shopping for airplanes.
--
Dan
C172RG at BFM

[Jay Honeck]

> What would you do if you won the Lotto???

A more interesting question might be: How many pilots actually play the
lottery?

I, for one, look at it as a tax on stupidity.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

[Dan Luke]

"Jay Honeck" wrote:
> A more interesting question might be: How many pilots
> actually play the lottery?
>
> I, for one, look at it as a tax on stupidity.

To paraphrase a post by Michael, you might as well hang on to your old
lottery tickets, since your hope of winning with them is about as good
as one you buy this week.
--
Dan
C172RG at BFM

[John Harlow]

> A more interesting question might be: How many pilots actually play
> the lottery?
>
> I, for one, look at it as a tax on stupidity.

Hehe - well, the odds are definitely against those who play, but it is a
pretty clever tax.

Plenty of poor(er) people pay - er... "play", thus helping recoop the
expense of schooling their own children.

I don't play very often, but the occasional buck thrown at it is not going
to matter.

The irritating thing to me is gambling is "illegal" - unless, of course, it
benefits the friggin' government. It's like TFRs - governmental planes are
unrestricted. George Orwell was right; just a little ahead of his time.

[Jim Fisher]

"Jay Honeck" > wrote in message
news:EQCHb.679485$Tr4.1697884@attbi_s03...
> > What would you do if you won the Lotto???
>
> A more interesting question might be: How many pilots actually play the
> lottery?
>
> I, for one, look at it as a tax on stupidity.

And one that states should have no right to impose upon their poor people.

--
Jim Fisher

[Judah]

I'd probably start off buying a nice little air-taxi company. This way all
this aviation stuff might actually pay me back! Plus I might actually be
able to keep some of the money that I won...

Then I would use the taxis in their downtime for training and fun..

Ahhhh. A dollar and a dream!

:)

"Sven" > wrote in news:uKuHb.669964$HS4.4764314
@attbi_s01:

> The multi-state PowerBall lottery is going to be over $200 million
> Wednesday. This thread has been done on here before...
>
> What would you do if you won the Lotto???
> Upgrade your plane?
> Get a newer/bigger/better plane? Get a fleet?
> Get AMEL/ASES/ Instrument and/or Commercial ratings?
>
> I'll wait until I win to decide... ;-)
>
>

[Judah]

You pay thousands of dollars a year to protect you from the small chance of
having an aviation accident and doing exactly $1 Million worth of damage to
someone else's property, but you're not willing to drop $2 on a chance to
win $200 Million cash?

We all pay lots of taxes on stupidity... What's a few more dollars to the
cause? :)

"Jay Honeck" > wrote in news:EQCHb.679485
$Tr4.1697884@attbi_s03:

>> What would you do if you won the Lotto???
>
> A more interesting question might be: How many pilots actually play the
> lottery?
>
> I, for one, look at it as a tax on stupidity.

[Roger Halstead]

On Sun, 28 Dec 2003 10:54:12 -0500, "John Harlow"
> wrote:

>> A more interesting question might be: How many pilots actually play
>> the lottery?
>>
>> I, for one, look at it as a tax on stupidity.

Not at all, it's an a investment system, or retirement plan, for those
who can't do math.

>
>Hehe - well, the odds are definitely against those who play, but it is a
>pretty clever tax.
>
>Plenty of poor(er) people pay - er... "play", thus helping recoop the
>expense of schooling their own children.

Wellll... In Michigan the lottery was supposed to support the schools,
but some how the money ended up being diverted to the general fund and
the schools are still struggling. I guess the powers that be figured
the schools wouldn't know what to do with all that money so they'd "do
what's best for the system".

>
>I don't play very often, but the occasional buck thrown at it is not going
>to matter.
>
>The irritating thing to me is gambling is "illegal" - unless, of course, it
>benefits the friggin' government. It's like TFRs - governmental planes are
>unrestricted. George Orwell was right; just a little ahead of his time.

Don't live near a "Reservation" do you?<:-))
There are others than the government who benefit from gambling.
Although even then you could say the local governments are the ones
who benefit. OTOH the nearby Casino pays royalties to all tribal
members and it's not insignificant. It's enough, a person/family
could live on it and the number of recipients is not small. Probably
the equivalent of a small suburban township.

As to the Lottery?
I guess I could probably do a pretty good job of indulging my wife and
myself. There are a lot of places to go, things to see...people to
do...er... Yah, that's close enough. <:-)) and lots of toys, (one of
the last F-33 Bonanzas, a few cameras, a new larger home on more land
for more towers and antennas, couple of telescopes, a variety of
cameras to compare, and I'd probably give a bunch away. I'd also take
up playing the stock market in a serious, but cautious fashion. I
already do to some extent, but I think Bill Gates' title is safe for a
while yet<LOL>

I spose if I plan on doing all that, my chances would improve
immensely if I go purchase a ticket. Now there are those who argue
that I'd only increase the chance of winning slightly, but I propose
the difference between slim and none is tremendous. If you calculate
it, it's infinite. OTOH my computer keeps coming up with a divide by
zero error.

Roger Halstead (K8RI & ARRL life member)
(N833R, S# CD-2 Worlds oldest Debonair?)
www.rogerhalstead.com


>

[Greg Burkhart]

I only throw a couple bucks into the lotto pool when it's 'worth it', over
$100 million or so. It gives me a slightly better chance of winning anything
than not buying ANY tickets. The few bucks a year I put into the Lotto is
less than I spent on beer at Oshkosh.

Now if I won the Lotto, I would be able to afford a whole week at Oshkosh!
;-)

"Judah" > wrote in message
...
> You pay thousands of dollars a year to protect you from the small chance
of
> having an aviation accident and doing exactly $1 Million worth of damage
to
> someone else's property, but you're not willing to drop $2 on a chance to
> win $200 Million cash?
>
> We all pay lots of taxes on stupidity... What's a few more dollars to the
> cause? :)
>
> "Jay Honeck" > wrote in news:EQCHb.679485
> $Tr4.1697884@attbi_s03:
>
> >> What would you do if you won the Lotto???
> >
> > A more interesting question might be: How many pilots actually play the
> > lottery?
> >
> > I, for one, look at it as a tax on stupidity.
>

[EDR]

In article >, Roger Halstead
> wrote:

>
> Wellll... In Michigan the lottery was supposed to support the schools,
> but some how the money ended up being diverted to the general fund and
> the schools are still struggling. I guess the powers that be figured
> the schools wouldn't know what to do with all that money so they'd "do
> what's best for the system".

Isn't it interesting how the state lottery systems don't seem to
generate much of a surplus, while privately run systems are so
successful they have to worry about corruption.
Kinda makes one wonder who the real crooks are, doesn't it?

[Chuck]

"Jay Honeck" > wrote in message
news:EQCHb.679485$Tr4.1697884@attbi_s03...
> > What would you do if you won the Lotto???
>
> A more interesting question might be: How many pilots actually play the
> lottery?
>
> I, for one, look at it as a tax on stupidity.
> --


Tell that to my cousin...

Your stupidity tax sure paid off for her and her family...

[Ben Jackson]

In article <EQCHb.679485$Tr4.1697884@attbi_s03>,
Jay Honeck > wrote:
>A more interesting question might be: How many pilots actually play the
>lottery?

I join any office pool at a rate at least as high as anyone else. I don't
look at is as buying a lottery ticket, just insurance against being the only
person in the office not to win. :)

--
Ben Jackson
>
http://www.ben.com/

[L Smith]

Sven wrote:

> The multi-state PowerBall lottery is going to be over $200 million
>Wednesday. This thread has been done on here before...
>
>What would you do if you won the Lotto???
>Upgrade your plane?
>Get a newer/bigger/better plane? Get a fleet?
>Get AMEL/ASES/ Instrument and/or Commercial ratings?
>
>
The more realistic question here would be "what would you do if you
won Sporty's
contest?" Pilots are actually likely to enter it.

Rich Lemert

[Ross Oliver]

On Sun, 28 Dec 2003 06:28:42 GMT, Sven > wrote:
> The multi-state PowerBall lottery is going to be over $200 million
>Wednesday. This thread has been done on here before...
>
>What would you do if you won the Lotto???
>Upgrade your plane?
>Get a newer/bigger/better plane? Get a fleet?
>Get AMEL/ASES/ Instrument and/or Commercial ratings?
>
>I'll wait until I win to decide... ;-)



I would buy a fleet of RV-6As, hire a gaggle of CFIs, and offer
free flying lessons to any kid age 12-17 who lives within 5 miles of my
home airport. Yeah, I know, homebuilts can't be used for commercial
purposes, so I suppose I would also need to hire a pack of lawyers to
figure a way around that.

Then, of course, I would need mechanics to maintain my fleet, so I
would find a closed-down auto shop at one of the local high schools,
and open an aircraft mechanic's school.


Ross Oliver
Future Commandant of the Tech Mavens Air Academy ;-)

[Jay Honeck]

> You pay thousands of dollars a year to protect you from the small chance
of
> having an aviation accident and doing exactly $1 Million worth of damage
to
> someone else's property, but you're not willing to drop $2 on a chance to
> win $200 Million cash?

I know you're being facetious, but I must point out:

A. I'm being forced by my bank to insure the plane.
B. The odds of a plane mishap are gazillions of times higher than of winning
the lottery.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

[Jay Honeck]

> Tell that to my cousin...
>
> Your stupidity tax sure paid off for her and her family...

You can do it for me, if you please?

Tell her that she's living high off the stupidity of millions of others.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

[Jeff Franks]

I would buy and restore a nice 707 and then wear a dorky looking Quantas
Captains uniform while flying around attempting to look cool as a
"spokesperson" for aviation.....oh, wait. That job's already taken.....



"Sven" > wrote in message
news:uKuHb.669964$HS4.4764314@attbi_s01...
> The multi-state PowerBall lottery is going to be over $200 million
> Wednesday. This thread has been done on here before...
>
> What would you do if you won the Lotto???
> Upgrade your plane?
> Get a newer/bigger/better plane? Get a fleet?
> Get AMEL/ASES/ Instrument and/or Commercial ratings?
>
> I'll wait until I win to decide... ;-)
>
>

[Judah]

"Jay Honeck" > wrote in
news:jsMHb.683055$Tr4.1710172@attbi_s03:

>> You pay thousands of dollars a year to protect you from the small
>> chance of having an aviation accident and doing exactly $1 Million
>> worth of damage to someone else's property, but you're not willing to
>> drop $2 on a chance to win $200 Million cash?
>
> I know you're being facetious, but I must point out:
>
> A. I'm being forced by my bank to insure the plane.


And I am being forced by my wife to buy the stupid lottery ticket!


> B. The odds of a plane mishap are gazillions of times higher than of
> winning the lottery.

But the odds of said mishap costing exactly the amount of your insurance
coverage are probably quite a bit worse...


And yes, I was, and continue to be quite facetious. :)


Now, if I could buy $200 Million in insurance for $1 and a dream, that
would be a winning bet! :)

[Harry Gordon]

I have never bought a lotto ticket since they started here in Texas. So, I
know that I will never have to seriously consider that question. However,
someone did give my wife a lotto ticket for her birthday a few years
ago...didn't hit one number :-(. When I think of winning the lotto I think
of the phrase: "Da Plane!" "Da Plane!" "Welcome to Fantasy Island."

Harry

"Sven" > wrote in message
news:uKuHb.669964$HS4.4764314@attbi_s01...
> The multi-state PowerBall lottery is going to be over $200 million
> Wednesday. This thread has been done on here before...
>
> What would you do if you won the Lotto???
> Upgrade your plane?
> Get a newer/bigger/better plane? Get a fleet?
> Get AMEL/ASES/ Instrument and/or Commercial ratings?
>
> I'll wait until I win to decide... ;-)
>
>

[Jim Fisher]

"Chuck" > wrote in message
>
> Tell that to my cousin...
>
> Your stupidity tax sure paid off for her and her family...

Let's hear thwe story, man! What'd she get?

--
Jim Fisher

[David Dyer-Bennet]

"Jay Honeck" > writes:

>> What would you do if you won the Lotto???
>
> A more interesting question might be: How many pilots actually play the
> lottery?
>
> I, for one, look at it as a tax on stupidity.

That, in fact, is what I call it on the occasions when I buy a
ticket. "I need to pay my stupidity tax."
--
David Dyer-Bennet, >, <www.dd-b.net/dd-b/>
RKBA: <noguns-nomoney.com> <www.dd-b.net/carry/>
Photos: <dd-b.lighthunters.net> Snapshots: <www.dd-b.net/dd-b/SnapshotAlbum/>
Dragaera/Steven Brust: <dragaera.info/>

[David Dyer-Bennet]

"Dan Luke" > writes:

> "Jay Honeck" wrote:
>> A more interesting question might be: How many pilots
>> actually play the lottery?
>>
>> I, for one, look at it as a tax on stupidity.
>
> To paraphrase a post by Michael, you might as well hang on to your old
> lottery tickets, since your hope of winning with them is about as good
> as one you buy this week.

I've thought about whether winning is actually any less likely than
their just sending you the check by mistake. But checking news
sources, it seems that people *do* actually win now and then, whereas
there are no documented cases of the check just being sent to the
wrong person.
--
David Dyer-Bennet, >, <www.dd-b.net/dd-b/>
RKBA: <noguns-nomoney.com> <www.dd-b.net/carry/>
Photos: <dd-b.lighthunters.net> Snapshots: <www.dd-b.net/dd-b/SnapshotAlbum/>
Dragaera/Steven Brust: <dragaera.info/>

[Roger Halstead]

On Sun, 28 Dec 2003 23:05:48 GMT, L Smith >
wrote:

>Sven wrote:
>
>> The multi-state PowerBall lottery is going to be over $200 million
>>Wednesday. This thread has been done on here before...
>>
>>What would you do if you won the Lotto???
>>Upgrade your plane?
>>Get a newer/bigger/better plane? Get a fleet?
>>Get AMEL/ASES/ Instrument and/or Commercial ratings?
>>
>>
> The more realistic question here would be "what would you do if you
>won Sporty's
>contest?" Pilots are actually likely to enter it.

Yup! one of the local Pilots won the Gruman Tiger a few years back.

Roger Halstead (K8RI & ARRL life member)
(N833R, S# CD-2 Worlds oldest Debonair?)
www.rogerhalstead.com
>
>Rich Lemert

[Teacherjh]

>>
But the odds of said mishap costing exactly the amount of your insurance
coverage are probably quite a bit worse...
>>

What insurance company won't cover it unless the damage is exactly the amount
of the coverage? I want stock in that company!

Jose

--
(for Email, make the obvious changes in my address)

[tony roberts]

> The multi-state PowerBall lottery is going to be over $200 million
> Wednesday. This thread has been done on here before...

Any pilot who won $200 million and only upgraded his existing plane
probably didn't need the money :)
--

Tony Roberts
PP-ASEL
VFR OTT
Night
Almost Instrument :)
Cessna 172H C-GICE

[Greg Burkhart]

"tony roberts" > wrote in message
news:nospam-BCCC5C.22162128122003@shawnews...
> > The multi-state PowerBall lottery is going to be over $200 million
> > Wednesday. This thread has been done on here before...
>
> Any pilot who won $200 million and only upgraded his existing plane
> probably didn't need the money :)
> --

I would probably keep my existing plane and upgrade it. Might consider
getting another aircraft. There are a lot of things that $100M+ would buy,
but I keep hearing the horror stories of 'winners' that blow it all and end
up worse off than if they hadn't won.

It's still a dream... ;-)

[Philip Sondericker]

in article , Nomen Nescio at
] wrote on 12/28/03 9:10 PM:

> Happy? Nope, they all looked
> like they were at
> a funeral. A friend that was in on it told me later that they each got a
> little over $3000 after tax.
> But for the rest of their lives, they will have missed $10 - 15 million apiece
> by 1 number.
> I can't think of a better reason to not play the lottery than that!

Call me a Pollyanna, but I would've taken my three grand, said "thank you
very much", and shut the **** up about it.

[Philip Sondericker]

in article uKuHb.669964$HS4.4764314@attbi_s01, Sven at
wrote on 12/27/03 10:28 PM:

> The multi-state PowerBall lottery is going to be over $200 million
> Wednesday. This thread has been done on here before...
>
> What would you do if you won the Lotto???
> Upgrade your plane?
> Get a newer/bigger/better plane? Get a fleet?

Not all of us own airplanes, you know. I'd probably start by paying off the
credit card I maxed out just getting my license.

[Jeff]

Is california or arizona selling tickets to this lottery?

I want to get some tickets but Nevada is not part of the lottery system
so have to fly somewhere where they do participate.


Sven wrote:

> The multi-state PowerBall lottery is going to be over $200 million
> Wednesday. This thread has been done on here before...
>
> What would you do if you won the Lotto???
> Upgrade your plane?
> Get a newer/bigger/better plane? Get a fleet?
> Get AMEL/ASES/ Instrument and/or Commercial ratings?
>
> I'll wait until I win to decide... ;-)

[Tom Sixkiller]

"Jeff" > wrote in message
...
> Is california or arizona selling tickets to this lottery?
>
> I want to get some tickets but Nevada is not part of the lottery system
> so have to fly somewhere where they do participate.
>
>
Arizona sells 'em.

[Judah]

No - the point is that every dollar you spend on coverage that you never
use is wasted, and any accident that costs more than your coverage means
that all of your dollars are wasted.

Sorry. I've gotten very cynical about the whole insurance and legal system
in this country. It's a big beef of mine.

(Teacherjh) wrote in
:

>>>
> But the odds of said mishap costing exactly the amount of your
> insurance coverage are probably quite a bit worse...
>>>
>
> What insurance company won't cover it unless the damage is exactly the
> amount of the coverage? I want stock in that company!
>
> Jose
>
> --
> (for Email, make the obvious changes in my address)
>

[Dennis O'Connor]

Many years ago when the Michigan lottery hit ten million bucks, on impulse I
stopped at the local party store on a friday night and got in line... I'm
standing there with my dollar in my hand and I have lots of time to observe
the line... The fella in front of me is obviously a hard working man, worn
clothes, down at the heels, thick calloused hands, greasy nails, etc... He
has a wad of the slips you mark with a #2 pencil for the machine reader to
enter your numbers... He is talking to himself and by the time he gets to
the register he has a hundred bucks worth of numbers marked up... By the
time he gets done with the clerk he has a hundred fifty bucks worth of
numbers...
I'm next and I have to ask the clerk what the rules are for the number
sequence, he tells me, I pick out some random numbers and surrender my buck
(no, I didn't get a single number in the drawing)...
But, I got a dollars worth of entertainment, and I have thought about the
guy numerous times... It was clear from his clothes, and his speech that he
was a laborer... A hundred fifty dollars had to be a major chunk of his
weeks wages that he could ill afford to throw away... I can afford to spend
that amount any time I choose, yet I was only willing to wager a dollar...
It is true (from my observation) that the lottery, and gambling in general,
preys on the poor... Strange that our governments find that attractive when
they have to supply welfare services to those newly impoverished by
gambling...

Don't get me wrong, I am a flaming capitalist and if the guy wants to waste
his money then someone might as well take it... Still, I find it strange
that those who can afford to gamble least, gamble most...

Denny
"Harry Gordon" > wrote in message
...
> I have never bought a lotto ticket since they started here in Texas. So, I
> know that I will never have to seriously consider that question.

[John Harlow]

> Not all of us own airplanes, you know. I'd probably start by paying
> off the credit card I maxed out just getting my license.

Yikes!

[Tom Sixkiller]

"Judah" > wrote in message
...
> No - the point is that every dollar you spend on coverage that you never
> use is wasted, and any accident that costs more than your coverage means
> that all of your dollars are wasted.
>
> Sorry. I've gotten very cynical about the whole insurance and legal system
> in this country. It's a big beef of mine.
>
Maybe if you understood it better...or, maybe if you understood it at all!!
(based on remarks above)

[Ron Natalie]

"David Dyer-Bennet" > wrote in message ...

>
> I've thought about whether winning is actually any less likely than
> their just sending you the check by mistake. But checking news
> sources, it seems that people *do* actually win now and then, whereas
> there are no documented cases of the check just being sent to the
> wrong person.
> --

The problem is not that people don't win, the problem is the EV is horrible.
That is, if you played the lottery forever, what would be the overall return
(essentially odds_of_winning*amount_won / amount_to_play). State
lotteries are horrendously bad. EV's around .5. Even the real sucker
casino games are up in the .9's.

[Tom Sixkiller]

"Dennis O'Connor" > wrote in message
...
[snip]
> It is true (from my observation) that the lottery, and gambling in
general,
> preys on the poor...

Well...the stupid, anyway.

> Strange that our governments find that attractive when
> they have to supply welfare services to those newly impoverished by
> gambling...

Hmmm...try as I might, I can't recall anyone going from gambling to
welfare. (Not that I pay it THAT much attention).
>
> Don't get me wrong, I am a flaming capitalist and if the guy wants to
waste
> his money then someone might as well take it... Still, I find it strange
> that those who can afford to gamble least, gamble most...

Are you referring to those who play the horses...or those who play the stock
market?

Company I work for bought a really nice Citation CJ a couple years back from
a guy who lost his ass in the stock market and had to liquidate quite a few
of his assets. The CJ was really nice...less than three years old, only 220
or so hours. AIUI, he got hit with a margin call and had to raise some
serious cash within 72 hours...

[EDR]

In article >, Judah
> wrote:

> No - the point is that every dollar you spend on coverage that you never
> use is wasted, and any accident that costs more than your coverage means
> that all of your dollars are wasted.

That's why they call it "risk" coverage.

[EDR]

Those of us with any understanding of mathmatics know that the odds of
winning are not in our favor. (On the positive side, the odds of losing
are greatly in our favor!)

Still, it is amusing to wager $1 on the chance of winning a much larger
sum with the odds of 1:11,000,000.

[Tom Sixkiller]

"EDR" > wrote in message
...
>
> Those of us with any understanding of mathmatics know that the odds of
> winning are not in our favor. (On the positive side, the odds of losing
> are greatly in our favor!)
>
> Still, it is amusing to wager $1 on the chance of winning a much larger
> sum with the odds of 1:11,000,000.

A buck for a cheap two minute thrill. Hell, two minutes with a hooker would
cost $100! (Come'on, admit it...that's the average males staying power!)

[G.R. Patterson III]

Jay Honeck wrote:
>
> A. I'm being forced by my bank to insure the plane.

Most people would pay off the loan if they hit the lottery big enough. I would
certainly drop the hull coverage if I won. I would get the best liability package
I could find, though.

George Patterson
Great discoveries are not announced with "Eureka!". What's usually said is
"Hummmmm... That's interesting...."

[G.R. Patterson III]

L Smith wrote:
>
> The more realistic question here would be "what would you do if you
> won Sporty's contest?"

Sell the Sporty's plane, pay the taxes (about 42% of the value), and trade my Maule
in on either a bigger Maule or a Cessna 180.

George Patterson
Great discoveries are not announced with "Eureka!". What's usually said is
"Hummmmm... That's interesting...."

[Aardvark]

EDR wrote:
> Those of us with any understanding of mathmatics know that the odds of
> winning are not in our favor. (On the positive side, the odds of losing
> are greatly in our favor!)
>
> Still, it is amusing to wager $1 on the chance of winning a much larger
> sum with the odds of 1:11,000,000.

1:135,145,920 for the Mega Millions jackpot :(

[David Dyer-Bennet]

"Ron Natalie" > writes:

> "David Dyer-Bennet" > wrote in message ...

>> I've thought about whether winning is actually any less likely than
>> their just sending you the check by mistake. But checking news
>> sources, it seems that people *do* actually win now and then,
>> whereas there are no documented cases of the check just being sent
>> to the wrong person.

> The problem is not that people don't win, the problem is the EV is
> horrible. That is, if you played the lottery forever, what would be
> the overall return (essentially odds_of_winning*amount_won /
> amount_to_play). State lotteries are horrendously bad. EV's around
> .5. Even the real sucker casino games are up in the .9's.

On the other hand, the *utility* to me of a dollar every month or so
is essentially nil; it simply dissappears out of my budget without any
consequences. Whereas the *utility* of winning a few million dollars
is very high -- it would completely change my life, let me spend my
time on those things I have to fit in around work most of the time,
travel more, and so forth.

And "utility" is more real than "money" to me.
--
David Dyer-Bennet, >, <www.dd-b.net/dd-b/>
RKBA: <noguns-nomoney.com> <www.dd-b.net/carry/>
Photos: <dd-b.lighthunters.net> Snapshots: <www.dd-b.net/dd-b/SnapshotAlbum/>
Dragaera/Steven Brust: <dragaera.info/>

[Teacherjh]

>>
the point is that every dollar you spend on coverage that you never
use is wasted,
<<

So is every moment you spend on preflight when you don't find anything wrong.

>>
and any accident that costs more than your coverage means
that all of your dollars are wasted
<<

No, though you may end up paying the difference, you don't end up paying the
whole thing. So in that case all of your dollars went to your benefit.

Insurance isn't magic.

Jose

--
(for Email, make the obvious changes in my address)

[Michael]

Judah > wrote
> I'd probably start off buying a nice little air-taxi company. This way all
> this aviation stuff might actually pay me back! Plus I might actually be
> able to keep some of the money that I won...

Folks, print this out and save it. It's a business plan for making a
small fortune in aviation.

Michael

[Chuck]

"Jay Honeck" > wrote in message
news:ltMHb.683062$Tr4.1710225@attbi_s03...
> > Tell that to my cousin...
> >
> > Your stupidity tax sure paid off for her and her family...
>
> You can do it for me, if you please?
>
> Tell her that she's living high off the stupidity of millions of others.
> --
> Jay Honeck
> Iowa City, IA
> Pathfinder N56993
> www.AlexisParkInn.com
> "Your Aviation Destination"


But I'm sure that she is thankful of the stupidity of the millions of
others. They are paying for college for her 3 kids, paid off all of their
bills and gave them an opportunity to make some really good investments...

Now if she would just loan me some money... :)

They way I see it, what is the difference in me spending $3 or $4 a month on
lottery tickets, or going to Vegas and blowing several thousand dollars in
the casino's?

I think I will buy a few tickets in a months time... A couple of dollars
isn't going to break me, and... you never know...

[Chuck]

"Jim Fisher" > wrote in message
. ..
> "Chuck" > wrote in message
> >
> > Tell that to my cousin...
> >
> > Your stupidity tax sure paid off for her and her family...
>
> Let's hear thwe story, man! What'd she get?
>
> --
> Jim Fisher
>
>

She bought a scratch off in Texas and won an instant million.

She and her hubby were smart though. Paid for kids college, paid off all of
their bills and invested the rest. Didn't blow any of it from what I have
seen...

It's not the $50 million jackpot, but hey, I'd settle for a measly million!

[Jeff]

thanks, I am going to Phoenix wednesday, gonna get me some

Tom Sixkiller wrote:

> "Jeff" > wrote in message
> ...
> > Is california or arizona selling tickets to this lottery?
> >
> > I want to get some tickets but Nevada is not part of the lottery system
> > so have to fly somewhere where they do participate.
> >
> >
> Arizona sells 'em.

[John Harlow]

> Now if she would just loan me some money... :)

Lol - I personally know a family which was once very close - until the
grandparents won the lottery. It ended up really ruining things for them -
there was much bickering about "fairness" and the grandparents really became
paranoid about who was being sincere and just trying to get on their good
side for the money. It wasn't a pretty sight.

[Judah]

So at a winning yield of $200 Million, the odds are paying better than even
for a $1 bet. Seems better than house odds in a casino...



Aardvark > wrote in news:GU_Hb.64573$xB5.10314
@bignews1.bellsouth.net:

> EDR wrote:
>> Those of us with any understanding of mathmatics know that the odds of
>> winning are not in our favor. (On the positive side, the odds of losing
>> are greatly in our favor!)
>>
>> Still, it is amusing to wager $1 on the chance of winning a much larger
>> sum with the odds of 1:11,000,000.
>
> 1:135,145,920 for the Mega Millions jackpot :(
>
>

[Judah]

Exactly - start with a large one...


(Michael) wrote in
m:

> Judah > wrote
>> I'd probably start off buying a nice little air-taxi company. This way
>> all this aviation stuff might actually pay me back! Plus I might
>> actually be able to keep some of the money that I won...
>
> Folks, print this out and save it. It's a business plan for making a
> small fortune in aviation.
>
> Michael

[Philip Sondericker]

in article , John Harlow at
wrote on 12/29/03 6:35 AM:

>> Not all of us own airplanes, you know. I'd probably start by paying
>> off the credit card I maxed out just getting my license.
>
> Yikes!

It wasn't quite as bad as it sounds--the license cost me 5 grand, and about
half of that I managed to pay in cash.

[Judah]

What's there to understand?

1. Man A requests services from Company B.
2. Company B provides services.
3. Man A trips on a crack in the floor, or spills his coffee on himself, or
gets too fat, or is exposed to horrible odors, or gets hurt in a random,
uncontrollable event of violence.
4. Lawyer C sees an opportunity to lay full blame on Company B.
5. Man A (and Lawyer C) sues Company B for outrageous sum of money - pain &
suffering, punitive damages, etc., that far outweigh any real damage done
to Man A in the first place, because there is no downside.
6. Company B Law Team uses scare and diversion tactics to push Lawyer C to
attempt to settle for some amount of money that might have even been
appropriate, if all the lawyers were not involved.
7. Lawyer C is being paid on a contingency, so he suggests to Man A to hold
out for more money (since half of it is his anyway, again no downside).
8. Lawyer C spends more of Man A's money to counter the counter-claims of
Company B.
9. Years of real pain and suffering and emotional distress go by as the
case spends an inordinate amount of time wasting everyone's dollars - even
tax dollars in the court system as judges read thousand-page dissertations
describing every possible angle and pre-empting every possible rebuttal as
to why Company B might be responsible for the fact that Man A tripped over
himself.
10. At some point the process ends. Either a settlement or a judgement is
made. Either way, it is generally very subjective, and has evolved with so
much baggage that neither party is satisfied with the result.
11. At the end of the day, the Lawyers send their bill, and walk away with
a nice profit.
12. Man A gets less than he would have if he had just settled in the first
place, anyway, but has invested an inordinate amount of time and effort and
pain and sufferring in the process.
13. Company B has spent more money in this litigation than it ever made on
the service it offerred to Man A.

No one really protects Man A or Company B.

So along come the insurance companies.

Now, Man A pays an insurance company a few hundred or thousand dollars a
year to protect him from an injury.

Company B pays another insurance company a few hundred or thousand dollars
a year to protect them from a liability.

And then the whole process repeats itself. Nearly identically. The biggest
difference is that since the litigation is now between two insurance
companies, with better trained lawyers who still have no downside, they
each increase the claim amounts well beyond reason until the lawyers are
making so much money it is obscene. And as a result, the insurance company
Actuaries have to raise all the rates because they are losing even more
money to the lawyers and the frivolous lawsuits.

And all Man A really wanted was a free refill for the cup of coffee that he
spilled while he tripped over his shoelace on their sidewalk.


Quite frankly, the insurance system would probably work if there were a
risk to filing a frivolous action. Then actuaries would have real,
relatively forecastable numbers to work with. But lacking that, it is
impossible in the current system to protect oneself from the possibility of
being sued for absolutely no legitimate reason, and for an essentially
unlimited amount. And if you are unfortunate enough to be sued by someone
(or something) with enough money to throw away, even your insurance company
might not be able to save you. And even if they do, it costs everone money
in the long run...

Hmmm.. I wonder why there are no Lawyer HMOs...



"Tom Sixkiller" > wrote in
:

>
> "Judah" > wrote in message
> ...
>> No - the point is that every dollar you spend on coverage that you
>> never use is wasted, and any accident that costs more than your
>> coverage means that all of your dollars are wasted.
>>
>> Sorry. I've gotten very cynical about the whole insurance and legal
>> system in this country. It's a big beef of mine.
>>
> Maybe if you understood it better...or, maybe if you understood it at
> all!! (based on remarks above)
>
>
>

[Teacherjh]

>>
So at a winning yield of $200 Million, the odds are paying better than even
for a $1 bet. Seems better than house odds in a casino...
<<

.... but you are likely to share the jackpot, so the EV is actually smaller.

Jose

--
(for Email, make the obvious changes in my address)

[Jay Honeck]

> I would probably keep my existing plane and upgrade it.

Wow -- a hundred million would go a long ways on your Ercoupe, Greg.

Hell, you could probably top MU-2 Mike, and gold-plate the whole danged
thing!

:-)
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

[Jay Honeck]

> It wasn't quite as bad as it sounds--the license cost me 5 grand, and
about
> half of that I managed to pay in cash.

That's not as bad as it sounds?

Yikes!

;-)
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

[Jay Honeck]

> The fella in front of me is obviously a hard working man, worn
> clothes, down at the heels, thick calloused hands, greasy nails, etc... He
> has a wad of the slips you mark with a #2 pencil for the machine reader to
> enter your numbers... He is talking to himself and by the time he gets
to
> the register he has a hundred bucks worth of numbers marked up... By the
> time he gets done with the clerk he has a hundred fifty bucks worth of
> numbers...

This is not uncommon at all.

As many of you know, in a previous life I spent 7 years in Racine, WI's
inner city (between Milwaukee and Chicago) collecting money from deadbeats.
This meant going into the poorest, meanest parts of town on what was known
as "Father's Day" -- the day the welfare checks arrived, shortly after the
first of the month. (It was called "Father's Day" cuz that was the only day
of the month anyone ever saw 'em.)

If you got to the deadbeat Moms before the Dads could take the money, you
stood a decent chance of getting paid. Otherwise, you were out of luck for
another month. And those deadbeats could be found standing in line at one
of two places: On the street, buying drugs, or at the convenience store,
buying lottery tickets.

It was always a lively debate, discussing which was more pathetic.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

[Chuck]

"John Harlow" > wrote in message
...
> > Now if she would just loan me some money... :)
>
> Lol - I personally know a family which was once very close - until the
> grandparents won the lottery. It ended up really ruining things for
them -
> there was much bickering about "fairness" and the grandparents really
became
> paranoid about who was being sincere and just trying to get on their good
> side for the money. It wasn't a pretty sight.
>
>

That could happen very easily in my in-laws family...

[Greg Burkhart]

"Jay Honeck" > wrote in message
news:QB7Ib.698670$Fm2.603110@attbi_s04...
> > I would probably keep my existing plane and upgrade it.
>
> Wow -- a hundred million would go a long ways on your Ercoupe, Greg.
>
> Hell, you could probably top MU-2 Mike, and gold-plate the whole danged
> thing!
>
> :-)
> --

If I gold plated my Ercoupe, I'd have problems with the W&B. ;-)

I wouldn't spend the whole $100M on the Ercoupe, probably a few k's to get
some 'features' (not rudder peddles!) and someplace nice to keep it. Maybe
move to an airpark? I'll decide after I win...

[Dennis O'Connor]

No problem with my family... When my father died at 41, the brothers and
sisters descended upon the farm like locusts with all sorts of claims that
they had loaned money on a handshake, etc... The judge allowed their claims
(1950's) and they turned my mother and myself out into the road (not even a
street :) with the clothes on our backs... I told em to go **** up a rope at
the time...

Funny thing, 20 years later when I had clawed my way out of poverty into the
upper tax brackets, they suddenly showed up at my office and wanted me to be
'family' again... I reminded them of my last set of instructions to them as
they turned us out... So, if I win a 100 million, I won't be hearing from
them, at least... Ghod knows what vermin will turn up otherwise, though...
Denny
"Chuck" > wrote in message
.net...
>
> "John Harlow" > wrote in message
> ...
> > > Now if she would just loan me some money... :)
> >
> > Lol - I personally know a family which was once very close - until the
> > grandparents won the lottery. It ended up really ruining things for
> them -
> > there was much bickering about "fairness" and the grandparents really
> became
> > paranoid about who was being sincere and just trying to get on their
good
> > side for the money. It wasn't a pretty sight.
> >
> >
>
> That could happen very easily in my in-laws family...
>
>

[Jim Buckridge]

"Sven" >:
> The multi-state PowerBall lottery is going to be over $200 million
> Wednesday. This thread has been done on here before...
>
> What would you do if you won the Lotto???
> Upgrade your plane?
> Get a newer/bigger/better plane? Get a fleet?
> Get AMEL/ASES/ Instrument and/or Commercial ratings?
>
> I'll wait until I win to decide... ;-)

I formed an office pool. 27 people spent $5 each ... 135 tickets.
There's no way we can lose!

If I had $100MM to spend, I'd make a small fortune in aviation by
starting out with a large one. Maybe buy a private strip in the area,
some gliders, and spend the rest of the money on lawyers so that I can
actually make it a nice operation.

[smackey]

(Jim Buckridge) wrote in message >...
> "Sven" >:
> > The multi-state PowerBall lottery is going to be over $200 million
> > Wednesday. This thread has been done on here before...
> >
> > What would you do if you won the Lotto???
> > Upgrade your plane?
> > Get a newer/bigger/better plane? Get a fleet?
> > Get AMEL/ASES/ Instrument and/or Commercial ratings?
> >
> I formed an office pool. 27 people spent $5 each ... 135 tickets.
> There's no way we can lose!

I've never bought a lottery ticket, but it would be at least a teensy,
teensy, teensy, teensy, teensy (but still 20 times) better and more
tempting to buy a ticket and hope for one of twenty $10mm prizes than
one $200 mm prize.

[Brooks Hagenow]

"Philip Sondericker" > wrote in message
...
> in article , John Harlow at
> wrote on 12/29/03 6:35 AM:
>
> >> Not all of us own airplanes, you know. I'd probably start by paying
> >> off the credit card I maxed out just getting my license.
> >
> > Yikes!
>
> It wasn't quite as bad as it sounds--the license cost me 5 grand, and
about
> half of that I managed to pay in cash.
>

Not for me. I hate paying interest. I put my lessons on my credit card but
I make sure I will be able to pay it off at the end of the billing cycle.
Credit cards are nice, but have the potential of being very evil. I have
several of them but always pay off their balances every month.

As much as I would love to just go nuts and fly as much as possible to speed
up getting my license, but I just hate paying interest. I don't think I
have paid interest on anything for over two years now. Anything I finance
needs to be interest free for the first 3, 6, what ever months and I need to
be confident that I can pay it off in that amount of time or I won't do it.

And yet, I pay the "stupidity tax" from time to time when the PowerBall
jackpot starts getting up there.

[Paul Sengupta]

I just look at the lottery numbers each time. I then satisfy
myself that I wouldn't have chosen those numbers then
carry on about my business.

Paul

"David Dyer-Bennet" > wrote in message
...
> On the other hand, the *utility* to me of a dollar every month or so
> is essentially nil; it simply dissappears out of my budget without any
> consequences. Whereas the *utility* of winning a few million dollars
> is very high

[Paul Sengupta]

The lottery in the UK occasionally pays for some good stuff:

Duxford museum:
http://www.iwm.org.uk/duxford/airspace.htm
See "Funding the Project".

Getting XH558 flying again:
http://www.tvoc.co.uk/index2.htm

I prefer to donate directly to these projects though.

Paul

Roger Halstead" > wrote in message
...
> Wellll... In Michigan the lottery was supposed to support the schools,
> but some how the money ended up being diverted to the general fund and
> the schools are still struggling.