I Won On Powerball...

...or should say got some money back since it was only $4.00 for having just the Powerball number. I did not start to write this though to tell you merely about my $4 win; I am wring this to show you just another example of how we are sliding closer and closer toward socialism in this country with its redistribution of wealth. The example I am about to show is one that may seem inconsequential right now but it is another example of redistribution of wealth and of government bumbling.
 
The below chart shows the distribution of the Powerball prizes as awarded in NY State. The first number, on the first line, shows how many winners there were in NY for the first prize in NY (there were no first prize winners in NY), then the second line shows the number of winners of the second prize, how many numbers had to have been selected on your ticket to win that prize and the amount of the prize, it goes on likewise from therefor each prize down to the ninth. The only difference is that some lines show you were also required to have the Powerball number to win that particular prize. Take a look:
 
 
 

0	First	5 of 5 + Power Ball	$0.00
4	Second	5 of 5	$1,000,000.00

54	Third	4 of 5 + Power Ball	$10,000.00
1801	Fourth	4 of 5	$100.00
2612	Fifth	3 of 5 + Power Ball	$100.00
92157	Sixth	3 of 5	$7.00
42998	Seventh	2 of 5 + Power Ball	$7.00
264922	Eighth	1 of 5 + Power Ball	$4.00
497933	Ninth	Power Ball Only	$4.00

Do you see anything, in how the prizes were awarded that seems not just right? I don't know about you but I was always under the impression that having one regular number plus the Powerball number was less likely than selecting merely the Powerball number alone. That means the odds of getting those two numbers were slimmer than getting solely the Powerball number. Yet, by some stretch of munificence, the state of NY has decided that, regardless of the odds, anyone with only the power ball number should receive the same amount in prize winnings as someone with both the Powerball and a single regular number. That goes likewise for prizes 6 & 7 and also for prizes 4 & 5. So, NY State, in its all knowing wisdom about how to dole out money to the undeserving has decided not only to do so with my and your taxes but also, to some small extent, with lottery winnings, at least for Powerball.  

Here is they show the odds of winning and note, as I said above, even though some prizes are much less likely to be won than others, the amounts won for those particular wins are the same. The columns are: how many numbers required for that prize level, prize amount, prize amount with some sort of multiplier (you pay extra to try to win that), and finally the odds:

5 + Powerball	Grand Prize	Not Applicable	1 in: 175,223,510
5	$1,000,000	$2,000,000	1 in: 5,153,633
4 + Powerball	$10,000	$40,000	1 in: 648,976
4	$100	$200	1 in: 19,088
3 + Powerball	$100	$200	1 in: 12,245
3	$7	$14	1 in: 360
2 + Powerball	$7	$14	1 in: 706
1 + Powerball	$4	$12	1 in: 111
Powerball	$4	$12	1 in: 55

I am certain that those who win for having 4 plus the Powerball would have pretty good odds of winning a lawsuit claiming that they should get the same amount as those who selected 5 numbers because 3 plus the Powerball is awarded the same amoiut as 4 numbers and two plus the Powerbal is treagted the same as 3 numers regrdless of the ofdds being different for each. Anyway, my bet would be that within a year or two at most, you will see that the prize distribution for lottery games, in places like NY, have come even closer to being more even for all the winners under the grand and second prizes. After all, we have got to be unfair to those who did something less likely than others would do (like pick winning numbers or holding down a good job with good pay). 

All the best,
Glenn B