Game Show Wednesday-Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?

*****Sorry about the missing post last week. You know I had to deal with life and I just didn't get around to writing a post. I'll make it up to you. Post today, tomorrow (national holiday) and Friday.*****

With that out the way, this week's post is Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?

This is how the game works if you've been under a rock and never seen the show. A contestant is asked increasingly difficult general knowledge questions by Regis Feldman. Questions are multiple choice: four possible answers are given (labeled A, B, C and D), and the contestant must choose the correct one. There is no time limit to answer a question; a contestant may (and often does) take as long as they need to answer. By the way I hate when the contestant takes a long time. After the first few questions, the host will ask the contestant if that is their "final answer." Upon making the answer the final answer, it cannot be changed. On the first few questions, some choices often have joke answers. The complete sequence of prizes of the show is as follows:

• $100
• $200
• $300
• $500
• $1,000
• $2,000
• $4,000
• $8,000
• $16,000
• $32,000
• $64,000
• $125,000
• $250,000
• $500,000
• $1,000,000

After viewing a question, the contestant can quit with the money he/she has already won rather than attempting an answer. If the contestant answers a question incorrectly, then they lose all the money they have won, except that the $1,000 and $32,000 prizes are guaranteed: if a player gets a question wrong above these levels, then he drops down only to the previous guaranteed prize. The game ends when the contestant answers a question incorrectly, decides not to answer a question, or answers all questions correctly.

I actually like this show because during the first couple of questions I feel like a genius. Like me taking 5th grade arithmetic right now. Then around the $32,000 questions I start to feel less and less intelligent. I always said that if I went on the show I would stop at $32,000. That's all I need right now. I'm a low risk kind of guy. Why leave with anything less than that? But then I know what would happen if I actually made it on the show. I would think to myself: "Self, think of all the things you could do with a million dollars.

Here's what I would do with a million dollars:

Pay 40% to the IRS (eff Uncle Sam)

Buy my mom a house

Put $100,000 into a Roth IRA

Invest in my future business

What would you do if you won a million dollars? Is a million what it used to be in today's economy? How would winning a large sum of money change your life?