I won the Euro Millions too!

No, I’m not buying all 5 thousand readers of this blog a drink. Nor am I going to splurge it on a holiday, a mansion, or a fast car. And I definitely will not be giving 10% of it to charity; the lottery is set up to give to charities so why should charities get any more.

Well for one thing I only won £2.80, not £161,000,000.

But it set me thinking. Who would you share your winnings with? Is there a left/right divide. In other words do socialists give to the needy and charity, whilst rightees give to their favoured few in order to look good. I suspect that the most marxist of socialists would not share their money whilst capitlists would be sharing their money with the employees of the businesses they invest in.

Hanna August 8, 2011 at 14:26

When I first came in to this post, I thought you was one of the big
jackpots winners. But small amounts can mean stuff to. For example you could
by a really god cup of coffe for the money!

Span
Ows July 18, 2011 at 22:16

Engineer mentions setting up a charitable trust, that’s a definite,
followed by a few selected scholarships (a la olde worlde monied
families) and of course close family and even distant…the trouble is that
doing all that makes keeping it secret impossible so all your “friends” need
help, as has already been commented.

What bugs me (apart from me not winning 161 million) is that these idiots
try to be normal “oh we’ll carry on playing the lottery” etc WTF for! you
could spend an absolute fortune AND STILL get 10 million a year in interest!
You could live off the interest of the interest and STILL be very well off!
agghhh! Like the biddy who won a few million and said she would buy a new TV
FFS! Walking to the TV shop would net you interest to pay for 10 TVs!!!

(sniff)

Zaphod July 18, 2011 at 21:17

“I’d tell the wife, and absolutely nobody else.”

And she’d only tell her best friend. Who would only tell two others. Those
would each tell only three.

The only person not told would be you. (Because everyone was told in
confidence.)

But you would suddenly find yourself very popular, and all your friends
would have money crises.

If you stuck it out, you would eventually have no friends left. You’d make
new ones, affluent ones. But you wouldn’t like them much.

Tell no-one!
(Except me.)

Michael July 18, 2011 at 20:27

I’d tell the wife, and absolutely nobody else.

Then I’d make my excuses at work and leave. A few extra rounds down the
pub, nothing too extravagant. My preferred method of giving money to friends
in need would be an envelope of cash through the door in the middle of the
night.

I’d buy myself a decent-sized old building in the centre of my city and
convert it into a music cafe, with recording studios upstairs. I’d put live
bands on in the evenings, and serve lunches for the office staff in the
daytime.

I’d keep my 1999 Mitsubishi Delica, but splash out on a snorkel, a new roof
rack, an Iron Man suspension kit and a carbon black respray.

Not too fussed about owning a house, but I would like to learn to sail.

It’s quite a responsiblity, when you think about it.

One of these days I might even buy a ticket

Zaphod July 18, 2011 at 20:19

I’d admit to a useful but reasonable win. Enough to treat my loved ones to
some substantial one-off generosity.

Then I’d think about it for months, maybe longer.

How to avoid it ruining all your friendships?

PS, I’ve never done the lottery, never will.

Simon Cooke July
18, 2011 at 18:28

Funny we had the very converstion – the first thing we’d do is resurface
the drive (it’s a shared drive). But only after a really good blow out!

Joe Public July 18, 2011 at 16:35

Firstly I’d weed out those I know, from those who claim to know me.

Ed P July 18, 2011 at 13:55

All the above family & debt stuff, then:
Fund the Sunlight Centre,
to help expose political corruption.
Escape from Euro-fascism &
taxation by buying a small island and develop self-sustainable dwellings on
it.
Build all the engineering designs I’ve accumulated but never had the
funds to complete.

J July 18, 2011 at 13:06

You could pay for the NHS for 14 hours and buy yourself 18 houses in
Manchester.

Chris
Gilmour July 18, 2011 at 12:46

I reckon I’d pay for the Dartford Crossing to be free for a few months, and
a big banner to let people know that I’m paying for it. Just so business round
the capital would run a little more smoothly for a while.

Man July 18, 2011 at 12:36

I would build a rocket an just go.

Livewire July 18, 2011 at 12:22

And some miserable git commenter called you a “data entry clerk”, give me
his IP address
and his fingernails get the Mad Frankie Fraser treatment, oh
generous Babbage of the blogosphere.
On topic, and a classic capitalist
answer. Buy things with the £2.80 and use your skills, or marketing
techniques, to add value. Eventually it becomes £2.8 million and you employ
lots of people. Wave a shotgun to stop criminals and socialist governments
taking it off you. You can’t live for ever so breed suitable offspring to take
over the business, there is a Spartan version where if they’re unsuitable you
throw them off a cliff but that’s a bit harsh IMHO.
Next problem?
Widespread corruption in politics, journalism and law enforcement, and you’ll
like the solution. Trial by computer, impartial, honest, low cost and combined
with
disposal of the corpse at the end of the process.
I’ll leave you to
work out which section of society gets to programme the justice
computers.
Fear the geeks, we wait patiently for the next evolutionary
stage of society, Geekworld.

Patrick Harris
July 18, 2011 at 12:16

I’d spend most of it on wine, women and song and the rest unwisely.

Gildas the Monk
July 18, 2011 at 11:45

I have thought about this. What would I do? I would try to tell no
one.
I would take a day off. Then I would pay off my debts. Then I would
make sure my relatives were OK. Then I would get my teeth fixed. Then I would
buy a couple of houses were I really wanted to live. Then I would re-establish
the library and the record collection that my ex wife stole and vandalised. I
would buy a nice car. Then I would go back to work. And set up some sort of
charitable foundation. Oh, and visit La Raccoon and Co! There would be a
party. With egg sandwiches and crisps and sausage rolls and balloons. Sigh

Engineer July 18, 2011 at 11:39

Well firstly, SBML, congratulations and don’t spend it all at once.

If you suddenly get landed with a sum like £161 million, you’d obviously
help out a few relatives and friends, and see that they were set up reasonably
well and any financial worries sorted. You’d probably buy yourself a few
little luxuries – a nice car, or maybe two; a more comfortable house, maybe
even a bottle or two of super-posh wine, just to see what it really tastes
like, and whether the fuss and price are justified. Then what?

One thing that might be worthwhile is setting up a charitable trust. The
interest on that sort of capital would be sufficient to do a lot of good, and
you could spend your days helping others and making a difference in ways that
matter to your sensibilities. In my case, that might be the preservation of
our industrial heritage, promoting our engineering past and future to the
wider population, and helping people to learn skills and set up businesses
with an engineering basis. I think I’d include agriculture and food-related
horticulture as well, because without a sound and stable food supply, we are
in the soup.

However, I can’t help feeling that suddenly being landed with that sort of
money could bring more problems than it solves, unless you’re a very
clear-sighted and strong-minded individual. The best of luck to the winners;
they may well need it.

Clarissa July 18,
2011 at 11:39

I’ll see your £2.80 and raise you the £11.60 that I won. By my reckoning it
translates to about 3 pints (at London prices) so hardly worth getting excited
about.

However if I had won such a large amount I’d
a) ensure that close family
are comfortable for the rest of their life
b) become a philanthropist

tangentreality July 18, 2011 at 11:46

I agree.

backwoodsman
July 18, 2011 at 11:05

OT ( Been away). Mr G , please pass on my best wishes to Anna for a speedy
recovery !

Engineer July 18, 2011 at 11:19

Hear hear, and ditto.

Gildas the
Monk July 18, 2011 at 11:58

Thanks, will do!