Comments on: Question of the Day – The Lottery (Again)

By: Chad

Chad — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 16:57:53 +0000

I heard a quote once that really sums up the lottery thing… “Lotto is a Tax on the poor, Rich people don’t play it, because they know it doesn’t work. When you see a line for lottery ticket’s, who’s in it? Larry, Daryl and his other brother Daryl. You dont see a traffic jam of Mercedes, Jaguars, and Lexus’s Showing up to buy these lotto tickets”…
I like my good growth stock mutual funds better

By: nic

nic — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 21:14:21 +0000

This may be pretty sneaky, but I’ve made verbal pacts with all my friends and family. If anyone wins the lottery, we all agree to give some of our winnings to each other. This way, I’ll at least have all my debts paid off. I figure having this many people playing the lottery greatly increases my odds of getting something.

Now, here’s the sneaky part: I almost NEVER play the lottery myself.

Granted, I’m less likely to be the “BIG” winner, but at least I’ll get SOMETHING if anybody I know wins.

So far, however, nobody I’ve known has won millions. But there’s always the chance

By: kat

kat — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 14:29:06 +0000

While I feel as if it’s a waste of money to buy tickets for myself, I do purchase them as a present for older relatives that don’t need or want anything. The excitement for them is well worth the money and much more interesting than a fruit basket.

By: Steve

Steve — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 15:13:12 +0000

Paul stole my thunder – if lighting strikes, I do not want to be the only one showing up for work the next day. However, up here in Canada lottery winnings are tax free (like it will ever matter).

By: GLM

GLM — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 21:59:55 +0000

My husband occasionally plays the lottery – to the tune of $50-$100 per year. (Probably less than $600 lifetime – when we had less discretionary money we did not play) Just to dream. We know it’s silly but justify it as Entertainment. He plans on retiring early (We are saving aggressively the real way.) We rationalize that we have already won the lottery- in our state it paid for our Son’s entire college tuition and most of our Daughter’s.

By: Paul

Paul — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 21:14:48 +0000

If my office were to have a lottery pool, I’d participate for the sole reason that if all my coworkers won, and left for good, I wouldn’t want to be left behind.

By: EA

EA — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 18:36:58 +0000

I don’t do lotto by myself, though I’ve probably spent $50 (in my entire life) on scratch tickets just for entertainment. I have done lotto pools a few of times, more for the office spirit than anything else. I put in the minimum and figure it as a cost of my career, like office-appropriate clothes or commuting expenses. The total I’ve put in office pools is probably under $100.

By: sam

sam — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 17:12:17 +0000

Let me join the chorus. I don’t do lotto, although my wife will buy a scratch off card on occasion when she travels. Here in Utah there is no legal form of gambling, so people travel across the border to another state to indulge.

Having said that, I support the use of lotteries and such to raise government funds. My reasoning is that lottery customers are generally those persons that aren’t paying a lot in income or property taxes, so this is a way of evening out the tax rates. I don’t have any statistics to back up that belief, just a hunch.

By: Denise

Denise — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 15:26:15 +0000

Mega Millions: two dreams for a dollar!

When I buy a Mega Millions ticket, I focus on the jackpot and second prizes. And I imagine what I would do if I never had to work again (jackpot) or if I still had to work, but had some breathing room to make changes in what I do (second prize).

If I do it right (no more than twice a year), the results are enlightening. And can lead to real changes.

So yes, I will buy lottery tickets to the tune of one or two dollars a year. And they help me identify what I want so I can work toward it without on my own. (Although, I certainly wouldn’t complain if I actually, you know, won some money that way.)

As a self-awareness tool, the lottery has some value. As a wealth-building tool, not so much.

By: Matt

Matt — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 13:09:29 +0000

I don’t play the lottery. Office pools are just as stupid. The principle is precisely the same. It is still a waste of money except for the 0.0001% who win big. There are also certain moral reasons why one wouldn’t want to contribute to a state lottery. Let the ignorant be the ones who finance the public schools, I say.