Re:I am a statistician and I buy lottery tickets
by mturmon on Monday May 07, 2012 @05:35PM
(#3941075)
Actually, I did not call it a "tax".
I was just responding to your statement:
"No government agency was involved in making you spend the money."
and I was careful to make the distinction between "encouraging" and "forcing" people to spend.
I would rather the government get out of the lottery business, because it seems like a basically useless activity. If we need money, let's ask for money. But it's not a high priority for me. Living in CA, there are plenty of other, much bigger problems than lotto.
You are not obligated by law to buy lottery tickets, therefore, it cannot, by any stretch of the imagination, be called a tax. Period. They can advertise all they want. You can still say "no".
In fact, you can stand in front of a government lottery official, extend your arm out, point a finger at them and laugh out hysterically while loudly proclaiming that you will not buy their tickets. Try telling the IRS that you will not pay taxes because, well, you don't want to.