# You win $100 million. How much goes to charity? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 11, 2013, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-win-100-million-how-much-goes-to-charity/658106 "2013-05-11T22:41:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mr.Kobayashi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4af34b/32.png) [@Mr.Kobayashi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Kobayashi)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2013, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-win-100-million-how-much-goes-to-charity/658106/1 "2013-05-11T22:41:33Z")
On a whim you buy a Powerball ticket (or the equivalent in your country). To your great surprise it wins the jackpot, a cool one hundred million dollars. Not one cent more and not one cent less. The money is yours to do with as you see fit. How much of the sum do you simply…give away? Excluding friends and family, including donations to registered charities only (all they need is a pint a day). ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2013, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-win-100-million-how-much-goes-to-charity/658106/2 "2013-05-11T22:46:32Z")
Not a fucking dime. ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2013, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-win-100-million-how-much-goes-to-charity/658106/3 "2013-05-11T22:50:28Z")
10% to charities, 10% to close family members, 10% to slightly more distant relatives and friends. 30% to my pet non profit experimental organiztion set up in a trust. I would spend less than a million on a new home and probably just blow about 10 million. The remaining 40% might be distributed partially to charities over the years but be in a family trust with strict specification on how and when it may be used. ---
**Author:** ![Lanzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/74df32/32.png) [@Lanzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lanzy)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2013, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-win-100-million-how-much-goes-to-charity/658106/4 "2013-05-11T22:58:20Z")
0%, the last part of your sentence did not move me. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2013, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-win-100-million-how-much-goes-to-charity/658106/5 "2013-05-11T22:59:04Z")
First I’ll donate enough to charity to maximize my post tax net. After that some large portion for charitable purposes though not necessarily given away. I want to make sure the money is doing some good, not simply a tax write-off. I’d rather start a money losing business hiring people in a depressed area than giving it to established charities. It may seem silly, but I’d give a lot to Secret Santa and similar programs that brighten the lives of underprivileged children. ---
**Author:** ![Emtar\_KronJonDerSohn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/58956e/32.png) [@Emtar\_KronJonDerSohn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Emtar_KronJonDerSohn)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2013, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-win-100-million-how-much-goes-to-charity/658106/6 "2013-05-11T23:12:21Z")
I’d bank it and retire, continuing to support the same charities I currently support on the same annual basis but at a higher level commensurate to my annual budget. I wouldn’t just blow or give away millions of dollars for shits and giggles. ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2013, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-win-100-million-how-much-goes-to-charity/658106/7 "2013-05-11T23:14:19Z")
Eventually most of of it, since I am not likely to ever have kids(and even if I did I wouldn’t want them to be entitled shits). I said 10-20 because that it what would go within the first year or so. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2013, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-win-100-million-how-much-goes-to-charity/658106/8 "2013-05-11T23:14:43Z")
100 million, minus taxes, minus the cash cut, is only going to be about 25 million. So, I voted 1-10%, since I’d give at least a million, eventually. ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2013, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-win-100-million-how-much-goes-to-charity/658106/9 "2013-05-11T23:15:23Z")
99 million. I’d pay off my student loans, get started on a house, start a college fund for the kiddle, and get something going for retirement. I’d set aside some money for family members, but only plan to use it for emergencies. I would tell nobody about the money. I live a happy life, and I have no reason to believe that kind of money would do anything but disrupt that. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2013, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-win-100-million-how-much-goes-to-charity/658106/10 "2013-05-11T23:23:56Z")
I’d give half. Even after taxes, that’d be more than I’d know what to do with. ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2013, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-win-100-million-how-much-goes-to-charity/658106/11 "2013-05-11T23:26:19Z")
Probably a fair bit. I don’t have any kids, so don’t need to plan for them. I’d give a bunch to my parents and siblings, but really, who needs more than a few million? I’d keep enough for myself that I could travel and probably start a business or set myself up as a philanthropist. Whatever was left, which I’m guessing would be the bulk of it, I’d give to various charities. ---
**Author:** ![drachillix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/48db29/32.png) [@drachillix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drachillix)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2013, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-win-100-million-how-much-goes-to-charity/658106/12 "2013-05-11T23:32:46Z")
I wouldn’t go giving away a huge chunk, I would invest it and donate a hefty chunk of the revenues and get invited to all the cool parties, see if I can buy myself a city councilman or two via election donations and see if I can go all power broker, once that gets boring, move up to state government. ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2013, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-win-100-million-how-much-goes-to-charity/658106/13 "2013-05-11T23:46:08Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > First I’ll donate enough to charity to maximize my post tax net. That would be zero, wouldn’t it? How would it be anything other than zero? For me, I think maybe a million on a nice house, another couple of million invested so I never need to work again, the rest’s gone, one way or another. Apart from anything else, I need to think about my kids. Inheriting too much money straight up isn’t good for anybody. I can’t imagine spending your childhood watching your parents blow large chunks on fast living would be all that good for you either. ---
**Author:** ![SCAdian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scadian/32/3292_2.png) [@SCAdian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCAdian)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2013, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-win-100-million-how-much-goes-to-charity/658106/14 "2013-05-11T23:46:52Z")
None of the above. Somewhere between your last two answers - probably about .5%. ---
**Author:** ![Foggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foggy/32/1082_2.png) [@Foggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Foggy)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2013, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-win-100-million-how-much-goes-to-charity/658106/15 "2013-05-12T00:21:32Z")
80% or more. I’ve never wanted much and I know few people in real life. ---
**Author:** ![Sudden\_Kestrel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecd19e/32.png) [@Sudden\_Kestrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sudden_Kestrel)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2013, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-win-100-million-how-much-goes-to-charity/658106/16 "2013-05-12T00:21:59Z")
Under those conditions, 0%. If I’m giving money to charity, nobody’s going to define it but me. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2013, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-win-100-million-how-much-goes-to-charity/658106/17 "2013-05-12T01:04:58Z")
> [@Athena](#): > > Probably a fair bit. I don’t have any kids, so don’t need to plan for them. I’d give a bunch to my parents and siblings, but really, who needs more than a few million? I’d keep enough for myself that I could travel and probably start a business or set myself up as a philanthropist. Whatever was left, which I’m guessing would be the bulk of it, I’d give to various charities. Same here. I was going to say 40-50% but I voted 30-40% because I figure my friends and family would be very very needy 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Namkcalb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c89c15/32.png) [@Namkcalb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Namkcalb)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2013, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-win-100-million-how-much-goes-to-charity/658106/18 "2013-05-12T01:07:15Z")
Nothing, I have student loans to pay ---
**Author:** ![Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/prof.pepperwinkle/32/13627_2.png) [@Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Prof.Pepperwinkle)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2013, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-win-100-million-how-much-goes-to-charity/658106/19 "2013-05-12T01:26:45Z")
I’m getting up there in years. Enough to take care of me and Madame Pepperwinkle, and our friends and family, and then, easy come, easy go. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2013, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-win-100-million-how-much-goes-to-charity/658106/20 "2013-05-12T01:36:13Z")
> [@Sudden\_Kestrel](#): > > Under those conditions, 0%. If I’m giving money to charity, nobody’s going to define it but me. This is why I answered zero. I will be the person who decides if someone gets something, not some organization that thinks it knows better than me. Random waitrons get $10K tips. Pull a Steve Wynn and buy a shit-ton of $5000 gift cards just before Christmas. Pick a random kindergarten and pay the tuition of any of them that graduate high school. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-win-100-million-how-much-goes-to-charity/658106.md?page=2)