There's no free lunch...

I read a story online on CNN.com about Publishers Clearing House declaring bankruptcy ("Publishers Clearing House's bankruptcy means ‘forever’ winners will no longer get paid").  They apparently declared bankruptcy last April (see the Wall Street Journal article from April 9, 2025, "Sweepstakes Company Publishers Clearing House Files for Bankruptcy").  The story triggered a memory of my early days watching television commercials in which Ed McMahon knocked on the door and gave the unsuspecting home owner a large check for $1 million.  As it turns out, my memory failed me in a major way!  Ed McMahon never served as a spokesperson for Publishers Clearing House.  It was actually a rival company called American Family Publishers (see an old commercial with McMahon advertising American Family Publishers here versus a commercial for Publishers Clearing House here).

I was once again led astray by the so-called "Mandela Effect" (see my post, "I once knew a gold robot with a silver leg").  Basically, the "Mandela Effect" is a kind of false memory, in which an individual recalls something that either did not happen or at the very least happened in a different way.  What makes the "Mandela Effect" different from the typical "false memory" is that a number of people share the false memory - the "Mandela Effect" is an entirely different scale of false memory!  The effect is so-named because during the 1980's, a large percentage of the public believed that Nelson Mandela had already died (he, in fact, did not die until 2013).  A number of individuals even claimed that they remembered watching his funeral on television!

But I didn't want to write another post on the "Mandela Effect".  What caught my attention in the CNN article was the statement that ARB Interactive, a mobile gaming company that bought Publishers Clearing House's remaining assets, said that under the terms of the sales agreement it was not going to honor payouts for those who won their prizes before July 15, 2025.  In other words, even if the prize money was promised in perpetuity, they were no longer going to honor that agreement.  

Some individuals quit their jobs after winning the prize, believing that they would never have to work again.  Now, they are worried about being able to pay their bills.  One of the prize winners who was interviewed for the story said, "This feels like a nightmare. I thought this was going to go on for the rest of my life, so I didn’t really have to worry about money."  He was receiving $5,000 per week, but that money will soon stop.  The prize winner is doubtful that he will be able to find a job, as he hasn't worked in over 10 years.

I've often wondered what I would do if I ever was lucky enough to win the lottery.  I used to think that I would continue to work, albeit likely part-time.  After reading this story, I think I that I would work. I am once again reminded of the well-known theorem in economics that says "There's no such thing as a free lunch"...