Another "Would You?" Thread - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

hokieian · 10-01-2004, 11:53 AM

The scenario is this:

There is a lottery where you have a 50% chance of winning $100,000,000. However, if you don't win the money you will be killed immediately.

Would you play?

How about if the odds are 75% in your favor?

lost22coast · 10-01-2004, 02:03 PM

i voted no. i have enough money to live on right now and i live in a beautiful place already. but if i was starving and living in a bad place i might do it at 99 percent. more money would be cool but i'm not too concerned about it.

CoachAlan · 10-01-2004, 05:26 PM

That's essentially the same idea I had, lost. A vote to play the lottery would be like saying that your life's not worth living if you don't have $100M.

pan6467 · 10-01-2004, 06:40 PM

The lottery is such a waste. The people I see play most are those that really can't afford it.

I'm not against gambling but the odds in the lotteries are so one sided in the state's favor it's sad, yet they get the people to play.

It's like here in Ohio if the state wants to allow gambling let in the casinos at least the odds are better.

inharmony · 10-01-2004, 07:22 PM

voted no...living is way better even during hard times

Baldrick · 10-01-2004, 07:27 PM

Ten years ago before my wife and girls, yup I'd play. Today, not a chance. Not just for myself, but I am very much looking forward to growing old with my girls.

gondath · 10-01-2004, 07:36 PM

I'd go for it even at 50% but only if the damned government didn't get to take out a share.

Willravel · 10-01-2004, 08:02 PM

$100 mil is a big chunk of change, but it's not worth such a gamble, even at 99% possibility of success. The only way I would accept is if a family member needed the money that wasn't available otherwise. Example: brother needs heart surgery and insurance bailed, or daughter is kidnapped by terrorists. Of course such occasions are obviously not the norm, so I'll stick with no thanks overall.

Meier_Link · 10-01-2004, 08:57 PM

99% is an acceptable level of risk. 50 or 75% still leaves a good chance of losing, but 99% is close enough to a sure bet for me.

radioguy · 10-02-2004, 10:11 AM

NO WAY!!! my life is more valuable than the money......at least i think it is!

LeviticusMky · 10-02-2004, 08:47 PM

Just goes to show that most people still value their life over money.

I wonder if I could resist if I were ACTUALLY presented with this option. I think I could. I'm getting married, I wouldn't miss myself, but a few other people would.

livingfossil · 10-02-2004, 09:27 PM

Yes, but only if I had to pay some gangster 100M to not be killed.

mo42 · 10-06-2004, 06:23 AM

I've rolled enough "1"s playing D&D to know not to risk my life even on a 99:1 shot at getting all that cash.

Although... anybody know what the death rate in Iraq is for soldiers? It might be like 1 in 100. Of course, I really wouldn't want to go to Iraq, either, not even for $100 million.

Mr. Skillman · 10-06-2004, 06:28 AM

What your asking is if we would trade money for our lives. What have we become when money is absolutly all we focus on. We are no longer people but some lesser being. I know i can't be bought.
Anyway, you can't even buy a small tropical country with $100 million. What's the point...

Redlemon · 10-06-2004, 07:34 AM

No at 99.999%.

tiberry · 10-08-2004, 12:33 AM

This is clearly a values question - Do you value your life more than money? Any assignment of $ figures is almost irrelevant.

EnviousElitist · 10-14-2004, 12:09 PM

the thing is if you don't, the amount of money you have right now will be worthless because of all the people that are winning.

i propose a boycott...

who wants to go live in a utopia?

10-14-2004, 03:53 PM

What if you had to keep playing every week or give the money back? What odds would people go for then?

pinkie · 10-16-2004, 09:18 AM

Hell no!!!!!

Master_Shake · 10-16-2004, 09:26 AM

As long as the death isn't a painful one.

beta18 · 10-16-2004, 09:48 AM

at 75% odds? sure why not....lottery tickets = pocket money...you swear that a couple bucks will deplete your bank account....now with saying that...i'd play only if i knew i had that 75% chance of winning...its not like an everyday thing mind you

EmotivE · 10-16-2004, 10:03 AM

I said yes at 50%, and it's not because I don't value my current life, my current life rules. It's just that I know after university I'm going to have to work, and I'm not so great at working, and the thought of having 100 million dollars would seriously make life unfathomablly more enjoyable....so the pros so outweigh the cons! lol. Besides, I'm gonna die eventually, I might as well die "for a good cause", lol.

The Magic · 10-16-2004, 11:45 PM

If there's one thing I've learned considering luck or chance, it's that I will always lose. Some powerful, mystical, deity out there does not want me to win at anything involving luck (note Yahtzee). I would not wager my life at any percent.

Suave · 10-17-2004, 10:04 AM

HELL NO. Maybe once it got to 99% odds in my favour, but I'd rather not risk certain death for some quick cash.

fuhrerhat · 10-17-2004, 03:22 PM

Sure, why not. If I lose, I won't be around to care anyway

MSD · 10-18-2004, 07:21 PM

There's too much I haven't done yet to risk not being able to do any of it.

Grancey · 10-19-2004, 01:07 PM

No way. Absolutely not. I have horrible luck.

jenjen · 10-19-2004, 11:08 PM

I voted no. I think entering a lottery like this would be a selfish choice. I would like to think that if I lost, it wouldn't just be me that would be losing but everyone that loves me such as my parents and it wouldn't be right to do that to them (plus I like my life).

Debil · 10-19-2004, 11:51 PM

I'd only do it if I was comfortable with ending my life.

CatharticWeek · 10-20-2004, 12:16 AM

Aack, definitely not. Perhaps if I was in dire straights I'd take the 99% option but really, living poorly for a while beats being killed any day.

View Poll Results: Would you play the lottery (read first post before answering)
No way!	45	53.57%
Yes - at 50% odds	11	13.10%
Yes - at 75% odds	6	7.14%
Yes - but not until the odds reached at least 99%	22	26.19%
Voters: 84. You may not vote on this poll

10-01-2004, 11:53 AM	#1 (permalink)
hokieian Crazy Location: Saratoga Springs, NY	Another "Would You?" Thread The scenario is this: There is a lottery where you have a 50% chance of winning $100,000,000. However, if you don't win the money you will be killed immediately. Would you play? How about if the odds are 75% in your favor? Last edited by hokieian; 10-01-2004 at 11:57 AM..

10-01-2004, 05:26 PM	#3 (permalink)
CoachAlan Psycho Location: Las Vegas	That's essentially the same idea I had, lost. A vote to play the lottery would be like saying that your life's not worth living if you don't have $100M. __________________ "If I cannot smoke cigars in heaven, I shall not go!" - Mark Twain

10-01-2004, 06:40 PM	#4 (permalink)
pan6467 Lennonite Priest Location: Mansfield, Ohio USA	The lottery is such a waste. The people I see play most are those that really can't afford it. I'm not against gambling but the odds in the lotteries are so one sided in the state's favor it's sad, yet they get the people to play. It's like here in Ohio if the state wants to allow gambling let in the casinos at least the odds are better. __________________ I just love people who use the excuse "I use/do this because I LOVE the feeling/joy/happiness it brings me" and expect you to be ok with that as you watch them destroy their life blindly following. My response is, "I like to put forks in an eletrical socket, just LOVE that feeling, can't ever get enough of it, so will you let me put this copper fork in that electric socket?"

10-01-2004, 07:22 PM	#5 (permalink)
inharmony Psycho Location: happy place	voted no...living is way better even during hard times __________________ "You can't shake hands with a clenched fist." Ghandi "Things do not change: We change" Henry David Thoreau

10-01-2004, 02:03 PM	#2 (permalink)
lost22coast Upright	i voted no. i have enough money to live on right now and i live in a beautiful place already. but if i was starving and living in a bad place i might do it at 99 percent. more money would be cool but i'm not too concerned about it.

10-01-2004, 07:27 PM	#6 (permalink)
Baldrick We are everywhere... Location: Barrie, Ontario	Ten years ago before my wife and girls, yup I'd play. Today, not a chance. Not just for myself, but I am very much looking forward to growing old with my girls. __________________ You can be young only once, but you can be immature for the rest of your life...

10-01-2004, 07:36 PM	#7 (permalink)
gondath Insane Location: Alton, IL	I'd go for it even at 50% but only if the damned government didn't get to take out a share.

10-01-2004, 08:02 PM	#8 (permalink)
Willravel ... a sort of licensed troubleshooter.	$100 mil is a big chunk of change, but it's not worth such a gamble, even at 99% possibility of success. The only way I would accept is if a family member needed the money that wasn't available otherwise. Example: brother needs heart surgery and insurance bailed, or daughter is kidnapped by terrorists. Of course such occasions are obviously not the norm, so I'll stick with no thanks overall.

10-01-2004, 08:57 PM	#9 (permalink)
Meier_Link Psycho Location: in a state of confusion	99% is an acceptable level of risk. 50 or 75% still leaves a good chance of losing, but 99% is close enough to a sure bet for me.

10-02-2004, 10:11 AM	#10 (permalink)
radioguy Registered User Location: Texas	NO WAY!!! my life is more valuable than the money......at least i think it is!

10-02-2004, 08:47 PM	#11 (permalink)
LeviticusMky Crazy Location: Minnesota	Just goes to show that most people still value their life over money. I wonder if I could resist if I were ACTUALLY presented with this option. I think I could. I'm getting married, I wouldn't miss myself, but a few other people would.

10-02-2004, 09:27 PM	#12 (permalink)
livingfossil Tilted Location: Chicago	Yes, but only if I had to pay some gangster 100M to not be killed. __________________ Never anything witty.

10-06-2004, 06:23 AM	#13 (permalink)
mo42 Insane Location: California	I've rolled enough "1"s playing D&D to know not to risk my life even on a 99:1 shot at getting all that cash. Although... anybody know what the death rate in Iraq is for soldiers? It might be like 1 in 100. Of course, I really wouldn't want to go to Iraq, either, not even for $100 million.

10-06-2004, 06:28 AM	#14 (permalink)
Mr. Skillman Upright Location: Lexington, KY & Hanover College	What your asking is if we would trade money for our lives. What have we become when money is absolutly all we focus on. We are no longer people but some lesser being. I know i can't be bought. Anyway, you can't even buy a small tropical country with $100 million. What's the point... __________________ There is something to be learned from a rainstorm. When meeting with a sudden shower, you try not to pet wet and run quickly along the road. But doing such things as passing under the eaves of houses, you still get wet. When you are resolved from the beginning, you will not be perplexed, though you still get the same soaking. This understanding extends to everything. -(Hagakure, book 2)

10-06-2004, 07:34 AM	#15 (permalink)
Redlemon Devoted Donor Location: New England	No at 99.999%.

10-16-2004, 09:18 AM	#19 (permalink)
pinkie Helplessly hoping Location: Above the stars	Hell no!!!!!

10-19-2004, 01:07 PM	#27 (permalink)
Grancey Life's short, gotta hurry... Location: land of pit vipers	No way. Absolutely not. I have horrible luck. __________________ Quiet, mild-mannered souls might just turn out to be roaring lions of two-fisted cool.

10-08-2004, 12:33 AM	#16 (permalink)
tiberry Insane Location: Location, Location!	This is clearly a values question - Do you value your life more than money? Any assignment of $ figures is almost irrelevant. __________________ My life's work is to bridge the gap between that which is perceived by the mind and that which is quantifiable by words and numbers.

10-14-2004, 12:09 PM	#17 (permalink)
EnviousElitist Upright	the thing is if you don't, the amount of money you have right now will be worthless because of all the people that are winning. i propose a boycott... who wants to go live in a utopia?

10-14-2004, 03:53 PM	#18 (permalink)
zen_tom Guest	What if you had to keep playing every week or give the money back? What odds would people go for then?

10-16-2004, 09:26 AM	#20 (permalink)
Master_Shake Addict Location: Pennsylvania, USA	As long as the death isn't a painful one. __________________ ------------- You know something, I don't think the sun even... exists... in this place. 'Cause I've been up for hours, and hours, and hours, and the night never ends here.

10-16-2004, 09:48 AM	#21 (permalink)
beta18 Upright	at 75% odds? sure why not....lottery tickets = pocket money...you swear that a couple bucks will deplete your bank account....now with saying that...i'd play only if i knew i had that 75% chance of winning...its not like an everyday thing mind you

10-16-2004, 10:03 AM	#22 (permalink)
EmotivE Upright Location: Antigonish, NS, Canada	I said yes at 50%, and it's not because I don't value my current life, my current life rules. It's just that I know after university I'm going to have to work, and I'm not so great at working, and the thought of having 100 million dollars would seriously make life unfathomablly more enjoyable....so the pros so outweigh the cons! lol. Besides, I'm gonna die eventually, I might as well die "for a good cause", lol.

10-16-2004, 11:45 PM	#23 (permalink)
The Magic Crazy Location: Reality	If there's one thing I've learned considering luck or chance, it's that I will always lose. Some powerful, mystical, deity out there does not want me to win at anything involving luck (note Yahtzee). I would not wager my life at any percent.

10-17-2004, 10:04 AM	#24 (permalink)
Suave Twitterpated Location: My own little world (also Canada)	HELL NO. Maybe once it got to 99% odds in my favour, but I'd rather not risk certain death for some quick cash.

10-17-2004, 03:22 PM	#25 (permalink)
fuhrerhat Tilted	Sure, why not. If I lose, I won't be around to care anyway __________________ Shazbot

10-18-2004, 07:21 PM	#26 (permalink)
MSD The sky calls to us ... Super Moderator Location: CT	There's too much I haven't done yet to risk not being able to do any of it.

10-19-2004, 11:08 PM	#28 (permalink)
jenjen Tilted Location: Oregon	I voted no. I think entering a lottery like this would be a selfish choice. I would like to think that if I lost, it wouldn't just be me that would be losing but everyone that loves me such as my parents and it wouldn't be right to do that to them (plus I like my life).

10-19-2004, 11:51 PM	#29 (permalink)
Debil Upright Location: Florida	I'd only do it if I was comfortable with ending my life.

10-20-2004, 12:16 AM	#30 (permalink)
CatharticWeek Upright Location: South Australia	Aack, definitely not. Perhaps if I was in dire straights I'd take the 99% option but really, living poorly for a while beats being killed any day.