Earlier quoted context omitted.
You are offended by what, exactly? That lotteries are a tax on the poor (who often cite gambling as a legitamit retirement investment option!)? And you actually DON'T raise your chances, at all. The odds are actually in favor of you lowering your standard of living by whatever you are spending on lottery tickets. Look at the statistics on where the bulk of the money comes from for lotteries -- the poor, often people…
I'd be very curious about what kind of statistics you have that show a significant decrease in standard of living for $2 lottery tickets.
For people who make 100k a year they spend about $300 a year on lotteries.
Many states generate more revenue from lotteries than by taxes, so this is a regressive hidden tax effectively.
States also tax ticket sales for lotteries at close to 40% so it's also the worst investment tax around.
Lotteries are used by states to generate money from vulnerable poor populations and move that money back up to support other programs that wealthier folks enjoy.
Here is an indepth article outlining more. Unfortunately some of the links are broken, but I will update you if I find the base research studies mentioned.
http://www.alternet.org/hard-times-usa/disturbing-facts-abou...