Free Republic

Everyone has that spot in their house or car where they let the mail and receipts pile up. For 68-year old Jimmie Smith, it was an old shirt hanging in his closet. Stuffed in its pockets was a stack of unchecked lottery tickets. "I always told myself, 'I'll check them when I have the time,'" the New Jersey man said. It's a good thing he did. Because had he waited two days longer, he'd have lost out on $24.1 million. More than a year ago, Smith bought a ticket to the New York Lotto. The winning numbers for the May...

So now we come to a moment of truth. Finally the tripartite first round of primary season is upon us, Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina. Americans must make a choice. The choice, on the Republican side, is between anger and various flavors of seasoned professionalism. On the Democrat side, it is between transparent criminality and eclectic, wooly-headed socialism. So, what should the average voter do? First, like many others, I love the lessons taught by Ronald Reagan. He really was a beacon in the storm, and remains one now. By some happy accident, the "young me" worked in Ronald...

BALTIMORE — Maryland Lottery officials said the pastor of a struggling parish recently came across a generous donation in the collection plate — a $30,000 scratch-off ticket. Lottery officials didn't release the name of the church but did say the ticket had been scratched off when it was placed in the collection plate earlier this month. The pastor found the ticket when tallying that Sunday's contributions.

The man who was arrested went out for drinks and lap dances, they say. Finally hitting the Lotto may have cost Kalvin Stockford his life. The burly Orange County tree trimmer won $10,000 last month and had been bragging about it ever since. Employees found their crew boss dead on the floor with empty pockets Monday morning at Gator Tree Experts near West Fairbanks Avenue. Suspicions quickly focused on Dwayne Ricardo Smith, a missing co-worker with a history of violent crimes, according to Orange County sheriff's reports. Within hours, Smith's best friend began telling detectives about a night that began...