<p>Who wants to be a millionaire?</p>
<p>Well, I’m certainly willing to give it a shot!</p>
<p>But as it turns out, becoming a millionaire isn’t quite what it used to be.</p>
<p>You’ve probably heard of the game show. <em>Who Wants to Be a Millionaire</em> first aired in August 1999, starring Regis Philbin as the host. It was modeled off a British game show of the same name. Producers have tweaked the show over the years, but it’s still running today, with Jimmy Kimmel hosting.</p>
<p>This season features celebrity pairs competing to win $1 million for charity.</p>
<p>The game follows a quiz show format with contestants answering increasingly difficult multiple-choice questions. Competitors have the option to keep their current winnings or risk them on the next question. To help with difficult questions, contestants have a limited number of “lifelines,” including eliminating two choices, polling the audience, or calling a friend to help.</p>
<p>Get yourself on the show, answer enough questions correctly, and you too can be a millionaire.</p>
<p>Of course, in 1999, becoming a millionaire meant something. Today? Well, maybe not so much.</p>
<p>Interesting fact. When Who Wants to Be a Millionaire aired in 1999, there were roughly 7.64 millionaires in the U.S. based on total net worth.</p>
<p>In 2025, there were 23.6 million millionaires.</p>
<p>In other words, the number of millionaires has increased by 208.9 percent since <em>Who Wants to Be a Millionaire</em> debuted.</p>
<p>Now, you might look at this factoid and think, ‘Wow! Americans are doing a lot better today than they were 27 years ago!’ Unfortunately, that’s not really the case. It’s just that our money has become that much crappier.</p>
<p>How much crappier?</p>
<p>As it turns out, you need to win double the money to buy the same stuff that $1 million bought in August 1999, when <em>Who Wants to Be a Millionaire</em> debuted.</p>
<p>So, since the show first aired, there are three times as many millionaires in the U.S. buying half the stuff.</p>
<p>They probably need to just go ahead and change the name of the game to “<em>Who Wants to win $500,000</em>?”</p>
<p>That doesn’t quite have the same ring to it, does it?</p>
<p>But it reflects reality.</p>
<p>Your government has ruined your money. And it continues to ruin your money as a matter of policy.</p>
<p>Never forget: <a href="https://www.moneymetals.com/podcasts/2025/11/05/inflation-is-the-plan-004459">inflation is the plan</a>!</p>
<p>The best-case scenario is that the Federal Reserve and the government keep inflation “under control” at 2 percent. That means your purchasing power declines by a little more than 10 percent every five years, and by more than 20 percent in 10 years.</p>
<p>And inflation is rarely “under control.”</p>
<p>Sadly, in another 30 years or so, it will take $4 million or more to live a 1999 millionaire lifestyle.</p>
<p>So, sure, I want to be a millionaire.</p>
<p>But I’ll take my million in gold and silver. At least 30 years from now, it will still buy at least as much as it does today – maybe more! After all, the government can’t print gold or silver.</p>
