MegaMillions - Mega RippOff

MegaMillions – MegaRipOff

I was standing in line at the gas station the other day. The line was 6 or 7 people deep and was moving at a snail’s pace. I looked at out the gas pump island and I was the only car out there. What were all of these people doing? It was then that I noticed that the MegaMillion jackpot was estimated at $100 million. These people were in line to hit it big. They were going to win the jackpot!

There are few things that disturb me more than standing in line and watching people waste their hard earned money on the lottery. The very same people who struggle to make ends meet each month are willingly handing their money over to the government on the pipedream of hitting it big. They are desperate in their pursuit for happiness.

The arguments for and against the lottery have been around since the Revolutionary War, when it was used to raise money for the Continental Army. On one hand, I understand the argument that it is totally voluntary. Why stand in the way of a hard working citizen who wants to dream a little of untold riches and the pleasures all of that money would bring. I can respect that argument and from time to time, I too indulge in this fantasy. Unfortunately, these lottery players are not the ones that fund the multi-billion dollar lottery industry.

The lottery is financed by the working poor who spend a disproportionate share of their income on this government sanctioned revenue generation scheme. One could argue that if someone is foolish enough to voluntarily give the government money in the hopes that they will get rich, let them. Think of it as a voluntary tax. Whoever said the government was stupid. They have devised a way to raise billions without imposing a tax. The only problem is that this voluntary tax is the most regressive tax scheme out there. It exploits those who least can afford it. Where are the bleeding hearts on this issue?

The only reason the Georgia lottery is palatable is that the use of the ill gotten booty is good. Zell Miller should get credit for hard wiring this money to the Hope Scholarship and pre-K initiatives. These are noble initiatives. The only problem is their source of funding is repugnant. It is never justifiable to exploit the weak to benefit the strong.

In the government’s eyes the lottery and smoking are very similar. They are cash cows. Both are extremely harmful to their users but more importantly both raise tremendous sums of cash for the government on an allegedly voluntary basis. I say allegedly because anyone who smokes cigarettes knows that the drive to smoke is far from voluntary. The same is true for the habitual lottery players. They are addicted to the thrill of instant winnings just like the smoker is addicted to the hit of nicotine. For them, playing the lottery is no more voluntary than eating or sleeping.

Both smoking and the lottery are firmly entrenched in today’s society and both are harmful to the users long-term well being. Neither vice is going away. Society has recognized this for smoking. There are warning labels on every cigarette package.

I think the lottery should do the same. In my fantasy world the lottery program would behave like the cigarette company. They would have to have a warning label on every ticket. It could read: “Common sense has determined that playing the lottery is harmful to your financial well being.” Another warning could be “The odds of winning the MegaMillions jackpot are 176,000,000 to 1. Your odds are 60 times better to be elected to the United States Senate than winning this jackpot (as if you really wanted to be elected to the Senate).” Actually I think the best warning label would be “Thanks for sending my kid to college for free. What are you doing to send your child to college?” I think you get the idea.

Properly funding education is one of the most important responsibilities performed by our government. The desire to make college education affordable to all qualified students is just. In fact in today’s world it is an absolute necessity. It is a crying shame that the best the grownups can do to fund this imperative is to willingly exploit those who can least afford it and need the most help. What kind of example does that send to our children?

Publish LDN November 2006