Full disclosure: I have never played the lottery. To me, it has always been the ultimate suckers’ bet and one that state governments take advantage of the most financially challenged, most of who have no concept of just what a bad bet it is. But for the states, ignorance is bliss and easy money. (Must be nice to have a monopoly in such a lucrative gambling enterprise.)
This fact was borne out yesterday as I walked into a local grocery store and there was a line twenty deep at customer service, when the rest of the store was basically empty. I wondered what was going on and then remembered hearing something on the news about a Powerball carryover jackpot of over a half-billion dollars. It always amazes me that we mere mortals — individuals who have never come close to even having a million dollars — are tepid about 25 or 50-million dollars, when there is much less competition. But that’s the gambler/investor in me which weighs risk and reward.
Lucky for the Powerball operators, the jackpot wasn’t hit again today, so business will boom again. At least another 100-million dollars is expected to be added to the jackpot and all the media will provide even more free advertising for one of the biggest ripoffs ever put forward by states, and that’s saying quite a bit. Thank God the states have used their windfall so wisely on things like education of our children and infrastructure. Yes, indeed. Thank God.
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