We Own Our Choices, Good and Bad


In 1985 and again in 1986 Evelyn Adams won the New Jersey lottery.  Her total winnings were $5.4 million.  Evelyn (who admits to having a gambling problem) blew through both wins and now lives in a trailer.   She sounds like a soul mate for William Post who won $16.2 million in the Pennsylvania lottery in 1988 and within one year had lost it all and was $1 million in debt.  He now lives on social security and food stamps.

            Ken Proxmire of Michigan won $1 million and five years later was in bankruptcy.  Janite Lee (Missouri) won $18 million so it took her eight years to end up in the same boat.  William Hurt and Charles Riddle ($3 million and $1 million, respectively) both ended up not only broke, but selling cocaine.  At least Post and Proxmire tried investing in family businesses; Hurt and Riddle decided that starting a curb side addiction kiosk was their enterprise of choice. 

            Suzanne Mullins won $4.2 million in 1993 and is now deeply in debt.  She borrowed money, using her winnings as collateral, then took a lump sum payment and stopped paying her debts.  She, of course, blames circumstances.  In truth, they all blame, “circumstances.”  No one, evidently, is actually to blame for being given a windfall in the millions and blowing it on high living, arrogance and stupidity.  [Damn, why am I thinking of Congress!]

            The unhappy truth is that 90% of lottery winners are broke, in debt and back to work or on the dole just five years after their big win.  Stupid is as stupid does.  The same goes for ignorance, impulsivity and weak will.

While all of us want to be rich and thin with no effort on our part, most of us have a more realistic look at the world.  There are some things I most certainly will never own.  Jaguar’s are the only car that will make me turn my head, but they are too expensive and need too much maintenance.  Kobe beef is just a steak, and a slab of beef from Kansas City tastes spectacular, plus the jazz is better.  Finally, without meaning to give anyone out there an, “Emperor’s New Clothes” moment, if you spend more than $60 on a purse (just a place to hold your money prior to spending it) God is telling you that you have too much money or too little sense. 

This leads me to the current health care debacle.  The Little Prince’s minions are currently trying to sweet talk this sour pickle.   His burqa-wearing toadies (Sibelius and any woman MSNBC calls a journalist—pardon my mirth at that—come immediately to mind) are telling us that people made bad choices with their health care, but now the government is making good choices for them, and charging them accordingly. 

Some people do make bad choices.   You can not legislate against them.  If you believe you can, walk down to the local shopping mall and observe what some people are wearing. 

People buy what they want.  They make choices.  Usually the choices are made for good reasons: practicality, economics, a balance of positives and negatives.  Sometimes they are made for terrible reasons.  But each person owns that choice!  In my world, Americans get to reap the success of their good choices which will make them confident.   They will also have to pay the penalty for their bad choices, which will make them cautious.  A cautious, confident citizenry sounds like a pretty good America to me.  

Trust people, not government and keep the faith.    

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