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A comment on Here’s $100. Can you win $800M at Powerball?. Parent comment

Re:Here’s $100. Can you win $800M at Powerball? by wdr1 on Friday January 08, 2016 @10:53PM (#10870019)
> A lottery ticket doesn't buy a chance, it buys a pleasant daydream. It buys a mental escape hatch. It buys the 'what would I do' game for another week.

Maybe for someone making six figures in the bay area.

In high school, I worked as a stock boy in a convenience/liquor store in a blue collar midwest town. It was obvious a large percentage of the buyers of lotto tickets really couldn't afford to do so.

It's not a popular opinion, but imho, the lottery is little more an government-sponsored exploration of the economically disadvantaged.

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Re:Here’s $100. Can you win $800M at Powerball? by PhantomGremlin on Saturday January 09, 2016 @03:22AM (#10870526)
the lottery is little more an government-sponsored exploration of the economically disadvantaged

You probably meant "exploitation" rather than "exploration".

I've heard it phrased a little differently: The lottery is a voluntary tax on the stupid.

A slightly different phrasing: The lottery is a voluntary tax on the innumerate.

BTW I did purchase two Powerball tickets a few hours ago. Wish me luck!

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