Odd thoughts while camping this weekend, spending lazy days talking about how we woulda, coulda spent the $640 Million...
I'll preface the question by admitting that the missus and I daydream about lottery riches quite a lot, though our chances are likely injured somewhat by our lack of actually ponying up the buck to play.
Over the years, our patter has fallen into a familiar rhythm - how many branches on the family tree would we try to 'help', what charities or research projects could we underwrite, how much would we reserve for our own two-person economic stimulus plan, etc.
But when the numbers start to grow to those seen last week, the conversation changes a bit. Instead of talking about what we'd try to help cure/endow/discover, the numbers were large enough that one could actually see doing something of lightning-bolt significance. As my better half said, a few hundred million focused on the right thing in the right way with the right people handling it could truly reshape the landscape.
'Course when she used the word 'landscape', my attention started to drift.
So here's the question (and it'll require you to swallow the impulse to do some 'real' good): given access to a few hundred million dollars and a directive to use a hefty chunk of it for GCA purposes, what would you do?
Raze a half century of development and resurrect a historic NLE? Bankroll some restorations? Build something akin to CommonGround for your favorite population center(s) - bequeathing golf courses like Carnegie did libraries? Hire your favorite GCA to turn your lower 40 into your own playground?
Again - just dream. No one is going to judge you for not saying you'd give the $$ to blepharospasm research; in this exercise you -must- use it for the good of the game. Or your game. Whatever.