Powerball predators

Ka-ching! Powerball's get-rich-quick mania seized America this week. And the biggest winner of the multistate numbers game was — drumroll, please — Uncle Sam. Powerball is a government-sponsored gambling racket in 44 states, plus Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. The feds automatically skim 25 percent off the top of a lump-sum cash award. Additional state withholding taxes vary depending on residency status. Mega-winners are taxed at the highest federal income tax bracket (n

Ka-ching! Powerball's get-rich-quick mania seized America this week. And the biggest winner of the multistate numbers game was — drumroll, please — Uncle Sam. Powerball is a government-sponsored gambling racket in 44 states, plus Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. The feds automatically skim 25 percent off the top of a lump-sum cash award. Additional state withholding taxes vary depending on residency status. Mega-winners are taxed at the highest federal income tax bracket (n…