The DMV is so insidious. They are allowed to tax used property sales.

Yes, and that also keeps me from being the one paying for the occasional
winners! Playing the lottery is stupid beyond belief, but I realize
that many people play, even people I know who seem reasonably sane
otherwise.


Matt

 

There are more winners than you realize. The winners aren't publicized
unless the jackpot grows into the HUNDREDS of millions range. I mean, you
can find the names of the winners if you want, but if they hit for hundreds
of millions, you hear about it whether you want to or not. -Dave

 

Sheesh - another creep that thinks he has a right to disobey any law
he calls unjust.

 

What if, as a NY resident, you purchase something from a state with a
higher sales tax (probably very few states compared to NY)? Would NY
credit you the difference?

 

Yes, that is what keeps folks coming back. But check out the numbers
.... most lotteries pay out less than 50% of what they take in. This
means that on average each player loses half their money. Obviously,
this isn't distributed evenly so a lucky few will come out WAY ahead,
some may break even, but most will lose most of their money.

I'd much rather invest my money wisely than throw it down the toilet.


Matt

 

Something I've always wondered: When they talk about what percentage of
the take goes into payouts, do they factor in the salaries of all the
state employees who do nothing but run the lottery system?

Bill Putney
(to reply by e-mail, replace the last letter of the alphabet in my
address with "x")

 

A.K.A. Moron Taxes. Ironically, they are the most regressive of all.

 

Better than nothing (i.e. what you get when you pay the same amount each month
to rent your housing).

 

I've always assumed that this included the overhead to run the system as
well as the money paid out to the schools and whatever other groups
supposedly benefit from the lottery, but I certainly don't know that for
sure.


Matt

 

True, but the discussion was strategies to save taxes, not home owning
vs. renting strategies.

Matt

 

x-no-archive: yes

Yeah, who does he think he is, Clinton?

 

Dear Laura:

Does it drive you crazy the same way that you believe that Mrs.
Bush is getting away, in your opinion, with murdering children, adults
and women?

In other words, shut the f up you psycho bitch. You are as psycho
as they come, so don't talk to me about anything. You don't have your
feet firmly in reality.

signed: One who thinks this bitch is a psycho bitch.

 

Yes, that's why they call it gambling. Matt, lighten up. I'll keep
spending my $2 a week. Thanks

 

If you own a home and have equity in it. You can also deduct interest
on your second home which could be a yacht or motor home.

good point

 

The dream alone may be worth $2 a week. The problem is the people who
can't afford $2 a week but buy $100 in tickets anyway.

 

The point is that the benefits increase with your income. Buying a
house is a luxury that poor people can't afford. Almost everyone
would prefer to own a house (or at least a condo) but only those who
can afford it get a government subsidy. Meanwhile subsidized housing
for the poor is being torn down to build luxury condos.

 

I've been trying to lighten up for some time now, but losing weight
isn't easy when you are over forty!

It's your $2 and your toilet, so flush at will.


Matt

 

Poor people don't pay all that much federal tax anyway, so getting these
benefits doesn't make as much difference.

Matt

 

Poor people do not pay ANY federal income tax. The latest
figures from the IRS show that the bottom 49% of income earners
in the US do not pay ANY federal income tax under the newest
(Bush) tax rates. The bottom 22%, with children, get a refund
GREATER than their withholding that is big enough to pay their
FICA as well.


mike hunt

 

That's a very good point. BUT, it's not the lotteries fault those people
can't control themselves.