3 ms·

If it were any one other than the government doing it the lottery would be illegal. And in fact it is illegal for anyone other than the government to run a lot

by somat 4y ago

If it were any one other than the government doing it the lottery would be illegal. And in fact it is illegal for anyone other than the government to run a lottery. in a sarcastic tone I like the lottery, it is a tax on the stupid.

gwbrooks 4y ago
I want to be pedantic about this, because words matter. No one is forcing anyone to buy a lottery ticket. No one's being threatened with jail time if they don't buy a lottery ticket. No one's being dragged into a legal process where they are presumed guilty until proven innocent if they don't buy a lottery ticket. There are not tens of thousands of enforcers out there looking for people who didn't buy their lottery ticket. There are no hotlines to anonymously report those who didn't buy a lottery ticket. Politicians do not regularly buy voter approval by messing around at the margins with lottery ticket payouts. There is no organized industry - hundreds of thousands of people - lobbying Congress to keep the purchase of lottery tickets as complicated as possible so they can keep their jobs. You may not like the lottery. You may never play the lottery. But don't mistake it for a tax. That makes it too easy to forget the sheer tonnage of force, coercion and political strongarming a real tax involves.
- vineyardmike 4y ago
  People regularly call gambling and especially the lottery a tax on the stupid because the odds are so bad it’s like paying a tax for being stupid enough to play. It’s just a saying people have, you don’t have to be pedantic, it’s not literal. The OPs point is that it’s gross the government participates in taking money from people through the lottery, many of whom likely have a gambling addiction.
  - browningstreet 4y ago
    How else will we add to school coffers? /s
quickthrowman 4y ago
Would you rather have organized crime run the lotteries and reap the profits? That was the de facto situation before state lotteries.
- somat 4y ago
  I would bet the payout and the odds would be better... What is organized crime but another alternate government(small g government), no no wait, hear me out. You pay them and they make sure your business operates without trouble, exactly the same set of services the government offers, organized crime is illegal because the government(big G government) hates the competition. Joking aside, organized crime sucks for the same reason that all dictatorships suck. The other point to note, where private owned gambling exist(nevada etc) it regulates(self and government oversight) to make about the same profit margin as the insurance industry. The margin on the lottery is unethical.

by somat 4y ago

gwbrooks 4y ago

I want to be pedantic about this, because words matter. No one is forcing anyone to buy a lottery ticket. No one's being threatened with jail time if they don't buy a lottery ticket. No one's being dragged into a legal process where they are presumed guilty until proven innocent if they don't buy a lottery ticket. There are not tens of thousands of enforcers out there looking for people who didn't buy their lottery ticket. There are no hotlines to anonymously report those who didn't buy a lottery ticket. Politicians do not regularly buy voter approval by messing around at the margins with lottery ticket payouts. There is no organized industry - hundreds of thousands of people - lobbying Congress to keep the purchase of lottery tickets as complicated as possible so they can keep their jobs. You may not like the lottery. You may never play the lottery. But don't mistake it for a tax. That makes it too easy to forget the sheer tonnage of force, coercion and political strongarming a real tax involves.

vineyardmike 4y ago
People regularly call gambling and especially the lottery a tax on the stupid because the odds are so bad it’s like paying a tax for being stupid enough to play. It’s just a saying people have, you don’t have to be pedantic, it’s not literal. The OPs point is that it’s gross the government participates in taking money from people through the lottery, many of whom likely have a gambling addiction.
- browningstreet 4y ago
  How else will we add to school coffers? /s

quickthrowman 4y ago

Would you rather have organized crime run the lotteries and reap the profits? That was the de facto situation before state lotteries.

somat 4y ago
I would bet the payout and the odds would be better... What is organized crime but another alternate government(small g government), no no wait, hear me out. You pay them and they make sure your business operates without trouble, exactly the same set of services the government offers, organized crime is illegal because the government(big G government) hates the competition. Joking aside, organized crime sucks for the same reason that all dictatorships suck. The other point to note, where private owned gambling exist(nevada etc) it regulates(self and government oversight) to make about the same profit margin as the insurance industry. The margin on the lottery is unethical.