Annapolis Capital Punishment

From today's Baltimore Sun, a piece about a Maryland man who just won the big lottery:

"Bartlett, 40, declared his intent to take a lump sum of about $48.6 million, or $32.6 million after taxes, rather than an annuity, which would pay him $3.7 million a year until 2032. Lottery officials said the winner would receive his check in seven to 10 days.Bartlett said he won't live extravagantly. He'll still shop at Wal-Mart and eat at McDonalds, he said, and has no plans to give away the money outside of family.The Wicca devotee has also said he wants to help improve a New Age gift shop he considers his spiritual home and focus on teaching. Wicca is a nature-based religion."

I guess he is now a Lumped Proletariat.

Oh yeah. CP loves these stories about regular folks becoming instantly and fabulously wealthy, and who say they won't change. Many such stories have been documented of the exact opposite happening to others who were similarly "lucky". Some of them ended up broke and in despair. Hey--this would make a fascinating movie.

CP is not a millionaire, nor does he play one on tv, nor does he go to McDonalds or Wal Mart. However, if he won the lottery, he'd be there in a second in a brand new Ford Explorer, just to take advantage of those deals. NOT!!!

No doubt, these big-box paragons of the American consumer culture will gobble up this story and rebroadcast it to the masses. Meanhile, won't it be fun to see how his "New Age" business--his "spiritual home" will be affected? I guess this guy must have read, and sold a few copies of "Think and Grow Rich" or "Wishcraft". Heck--it worked! Or was it just the odds???? If this Wicca is a nature based religion, maybe this fellow will buy up undeveloped land in Maryland and give it to the Nature Conservancy--or build a stone circle upon it?