I asked you to read this article on the lottery (
see here) for class but you can get a headstart if you like. This is an example of a regressive tax. Note the use of the lottery as a wealth-building scheme. How often do you play the lottery? Do you expect to win?
I did not know that the lottery is a $70 billion dollar industry and that the most frequent players were usually in poorer demographics. It is really interesting to look at it as a regressive tax.I would see why because the lottery holds a very elusive promise of prosperity. I'm sure some individuals may even see buying lottery tickets as a very low returning investment. Myself, I bought a lottery ticket when I turned $18, spent $10 won nothing and that has been the end of my lottery career.
ReplyDeleteSince I enjoy gambling (Dave knows and joins me sometimes), I have bought my share of tickets. I try and keep my gambling to a game where there are better odds, but, as the article says, sometimes you just think like today is your lucky day. I would 100% agree that the main buyers of tickets are in the poorer demographic. If you want to venture 30 miles east to the casino in Battle Creek, the average person gambling there looks like they are gambling their paycheck. That minuscule sense of improbable fortune is the biggest draw. The lottery is a huge source of money, for any state, partially because you need cash to buy one. It helps stimulate cash flow. I was told, if I must buy one, only do so when the odds of winning are less than the payout; that seems logical in some economic / math way. So basically I play a couple times a month. No I do not expect to win. Those people who play to win never win big. Read some stories of past winners of the main jackpot...they are usually people who always buy tickets and got lucky, but really are indifferent about winning. If you really want to win, don't play the lottery.
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ReplyDeleteName dropping, Brooks?? Come on. Looking forward to commenting on this one but I'm going to wait until tomorrow :)
ReplyDeleteMy mom, having grown up in the projects of Boston, always said that the lottery is the poor man's tax.
ReplyDeleteI have bought a couple of scratch tickets in my day but never expect to win.
As for the two casino's I have been in... they are depressing to say the least. People who have no money sit in front of slot machines hoping the symbols will line up for them.
I've never bought a lotto ticket for the simple reason that I know I would get hooked immediately. I do frequent the casino quite often though (only if Brooks wants to go). As Brooks said, I also only play games which I feel I have better odds of winning (better than other games not better than the house). At the end of the day though, knowing basic strategy in black jack and even simple card counting techniques will still leave you with a slight disadvantage against the house (obviously). The problem is when you start winning you begin to feel it's because of something you're doing. Most of the time as soon as this happens, your luck turns around rather quickly. Gambling is very illogical when you look at it rationally, but the rush of winning gets in the way of people thinking rationally.
ReplyDeleteIt makes sense that poorer people are buying a large portion of lotto tickets. Rich people don't need to, they have enough money to invest. As far as casinos go, Firekeepers definitely has many people taking their paycheck straight to the casino but I wouldn't make a generalization and say that all casinos are like this. Much of this is due to the location in my opinion. Larger and more well known casinos see high rollers all the time and that's where they make a large portion of their money.
Also, while on the topic, I won big at Monte Carlo :)
ReplyDeleteHaving an actual Atlantis casino player's card got me some extra chips!
I never really thought about who actually tends to play the lottery more often than others; but, after reading the article, it definitely makes sense that lower income individuals tend to take a gamble on the lottery more than higher income people. This definitely makes sense to me. The lottery can pose as a symbol of hope for many people, even though they probably don't even win most of the time. Also, I agree with what many of you mentioned above: casinos do seem to be a place for people to cash in their pay checks in hopes of coming out with more at the end of the day. I've been to the casino in Windsor as well as Greek Town and MGM in downtown Detroit and Soaring Eagle in Mt. Pleasant. I've seen these types of people at all of the casinos I've been to, and it really is a sad sight to see.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very interesting topic to me.. Not only do I enjoy gambling as an entertaining activity (not a means to generate revenue), but I work in a huge retail store in lansing (like a big 7/11) where 90% or more of the customers are on welfare programs and pay for groceries with ebt cards. these same customers spend a consistant amount of money on lotto tickets as well which I find somewhat annoying, but undeniable that this lacks a certain base of educational soundness... buying into a game who only repays one/tenth the number it takes in in sales? what kind of sense does that make?
ReplyDeleteI will admit though, whenever the mega-millions reaches a certain amount (usually anywhere over $200 million) I can't help but spend a couple dollars on a couple random draws! I understand these chances of hitting the jackpot are comical, but people hit these weekly draws fairly often, and one can never expect to win if they never try, right?
imagine... winnin a couple hundred million dollars! how would that change your life and the lives of those around you?? This reach for hope is worth it for me, but these $1-$20 scratchoffs? no thank you
You have abetter chance of getting hit by lightning when the sun is out than you do winning the lottery.......but you MIGHT win. We make a big deal about rags to riches stories in this country, and the lure of winning millions when you are poor is almost too great to ignore. If you are poor, you dont really have much to lose, and you feel like you have to give yourself every chance to change your circumstance. I play the lottery when people buy me tickets :) I also like the little signs the gas stations put up listing all the winners that they have sold tickets to like they have the magic machine that only spits out winners. The sad thing is that it probably works quite well.
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