Powerball Math Meme Goes Viral Hours Before Tonight’s Mega $1.5 Billion Lottery Drawing


Just hours before tonight’s $1.5 billion lottery drawing, a Powerball math meme is going viral and its ridiculous claim is causing social media users to get a good laugh at the meme’s horrible math. As reported by ABC News, the Powerball math meme claims that splitting the now more than $1 billion jackpot could end poverty in the U.S.

The meme suggests that since there are approximately 300 million people currently living in the states, the $1.3 billion jackpot divided by the U.S. population would leave everyone with $4.33 million in their bank accounts. However, as you might have already figured out, the meme’s math is way off and everyone would actually only get a paltry $4.33.

The Powerball math meme was posted by a Facebook user who goes by the name Livesosa. The Arkansas-based R&B musician posted the meme with the following caption alongside it.

“Clearly the lady that created this post picture was off.. But the point she was trying to make.. Spot on my people. Shed a tear like normal lol have a laugh for once! Duhhhh the math doesn’t equal out..you guys want a correction award….Point she was attempting to make is simple.. There’s enough money to feed the people… Why is the world like it is. Her math was incorrect but I get it.”

The Powerball math meme quickly went viral and, as of the time of this writing, has been shared nearly 1.5 million times and has received almost a million “likes.”

As ABC 6 Action News pointed out, many Facebook users commented on the post and laughed at its incorrect math, and there were mixed reactions ranging from funny ones to borderline anger.

“You motherf***ers should’ve stayed in school. Thats $4.33. Everyone gets a Big Mac,” Brent Romeo wrote.

Justin Fields said, “this is why aliens won’t talk to us.”

Denton Stusek commented, “$4.33 / person, BEFORE taxes. Poverty isn’t our problem here.”

“ummm, guys? That meme you posted? Actually the math is just a little off. Everyone wouldnt get 4.33 million. Everyone would get $4.33. Sorry dude,” Bill Gilman explained

Action News wrote in their report that Livesosa later shared another image of the equation, this time on an image of Steve Harvey, stating that the post wasn’t meant to be taken seriously and it was just a joke. Livesosa also made it clear that he wasn’t the one who came up with the Powerball math meme, and explained via Twitter that the meme’s original creator was an Instagram user with the handle @esteyban.

Tonight’s drawing is the biggest in history, and according to the Detroit Free Press, at the moment the bouncing balls pick a Powerball winner at 10:59 p.m., the pot will be at least $1.5 billion. Although the chances of winning are slim to none, if there is a single winner they could opt for a 30-year payout of the entire jackpot or a $930 million lump sum.

If a winner chooses to get the full jackpot through the annuity option, the winner will receive that amount in a series of 30 payments over the next three decades. According to the official Powerball website, the annual payment may differ slightly year-to-year based on the payouts from the securities investments that the lottery (in this case Powerball) chooses to invest in. The winner will get at least the annual prize payment “no matter what happens to the securities,” a statement on the site reads.

[Image via Twitter]

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