Powerball Jackpot Soars To $425 Million [VIDEO]

Lottery alert East Texas!

The "Powerball" jackpot will put some lucky folks on easy street, whereby opening the door for others to take a job that would not ordinarily be available.  Now, that's what I call stimulating the economy.

The total prize money is estimated to be $425 million, so after taxes, you're pocketing a cool "quarter mil".  I thought the feds grabbed only one-third of the winnings, but in doing basic math, getting $244.7 million out of $425 million is giving up approximately 41.7% of your new found wealth.  Where does the other 8.4% go?

This jackpot kicked off at $40 million on June 26, and is the result of 12 consecutive draws without a winner.  And, nailing the big pay day could not be easier (Ha!).  All you have to do is match five numbers from a field of 59, in addition to the Powerball number in a field of 35.  Nothing to it, right?  Even if you didn't pick the right Powerball numeral, you'll get $1 million just for matching the other five digits.

The odds are definitely stacked against us (one in 175,223,510), but if the Griswold's can make a killing in Vegas, then there is some hope for the rest of us: