Powerball Jackpot Bounces to $600 Million: Here's Your Lottery Lowdown

Here we go again: Saturday night's Powerball drawing could win somebody $600 million or more, the second-largest lottery jackpot ever. And before that, Friday's Mega Millions lottery will offer a shot at a not-too-shabby prize of at least $190 million. The odds of winning either of those amazing jackpots are less than 1 in 175 million, but the statistics will never discourage those who dream of instant wealth.

But maybe they should. Let's do a quick review of what we know about lotteries, and lottery winners.

It's Not the Jackpot You Think It Is: If you win the Powerball, you won't actually see the whole $550 million. Uncle Sam places heavy taxes on income that high, so a handsome chunk of your winnings will go to the government. Ironically, a majority of people -- even among the ones who say that the rich should be taxed more -- feel that those lucky souls who win the lottery shouldn't have to pay as much in taxes as people who make their money in more conventional ways.

It's a Bad Deal for the Biggest Players: The thought of winning millions is attractive to everyone, but especially attractive to lower classes, who spend up to 9 percent of their income on lottery tickets. With personal debt and unemployment rates at painful levels, who can blame people for being hopeful? But the statistics show that the lottery is a sucker bet. Saddest of all, though the odds are vastly better that you'll get struck by lighting or die from flesh-eating bacteria than win a big lottery payout, 21 percent of American adults agreed with this entirely false statement: "Winning the lottery represents the most practical way [for me] to accumulate several hundred thousand dollars."

A Useful Analogy: Winning the lottery is a lot like retiring: Suddenly, you have all this money and you don't have to work anymore. It's easy to make some impulsive splurges, but remember, the longer your wealth lasts, the longer you benefit from it. And be warned: Major windfalls can attract a large number of new "best friends."

You Won! Then You Lost!: Most of us believe that if we won the lottery, we'd be set for life. But the sudden gains of a lottery windfall can be fleeting. Consider the sad case of Sharon Tirabassi of Hamilton, Ontario, who won $10 million and had almost none of it left less than a decade later.

Check Out These Lottery-Related Articles from DailyFinance

• Who Are the Nation's Biggest Suckers? Lottery Players
• Lottery Winners Share Lessons, Risks of a Giant Powerball Prize
• The 10 States That Pay Out the Biggest Lottery Jackpots
• Six Tips on How to Avoid Squandering a Financial Windfall
• Why Poor People spend 9 Percent of Their Incomes on Lottery Tickets
• Lottery Logic: There Is None When It Comes to Paying Taxes
• Why Retirement Is Like Winning the Lottery

• States Where It Pays to Play
• 10. Michigan
• 9. New Jersey
• 8. Ohio
• 7. California
• 6. Pennsylvania
• 5. Georgia
• 4. Texas
• 3. Florida
• 2. Massachusetts
• 1. New York
• More Galleries at 24/7 Wall St.
• More Galleries from DailyFinance