The Moral Superiority of The Lottery?

Shout Bits Blog ^ | 02/13/2010 | Shout Bits

[Shout Bits]

When politicians want more money, they rarely ask honestly. V.P. Biden called paying extra taxes a “patriotic duty.” Colorado passed a multi-billion dollar tax increase, Referendum C, by calling it the “Economic Recovery Act.” Sen. R. Dole and Pres. Reagan passed the “Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 1982.” Lotteries, a tax on stupidity, are no different. Colorado’s lottery features a green mountain in its logo and its profits are earmarked for parks and open spaces.

Politicians know that a ‘union handout’ tax or a ‘bureaucrat bonus fund’ lottery would not hold up. Politicians hope that voters will forget that money is fungible. If taxes are raised to fund education, existing education funds can then be siphoned off to support pork for solar panel manufacturers. Especially in the Byzanthia that is government financial control, it is impossible to link revenues to spending. . .

[TruthShallSetYouFree]

When the local bookie runs numbers, it’s a crime. When the government does it, it’s for the children. And the bookies’ payout is much higher.

[BenKenobi]

I’m all for lotteries as a way to raise taxation. I’d be thrilled if all taxes were lotteries. :)

[hinckley buzzard]

The problem is they promise you one and you get both. Ohio pulled this years ago when it started the lottery--"for education"-- and they credited all the lottery profits to the schools--and slashed regular school appropriations by the same amount, shifting that money to god knows what.

Guess what--nobody cared. That's why they can get away with it.

[cripplecreek]

Watching “Pawn Stars” on the history channel the other night and a guy brought in a lottery ticket signed by George Washington.

When an expert came in to authenticate in he gave a little history lesson about it. He said that lotteries were very common (and often very corrupt) in the colonies and later in the early nation but were a standard means of raising money for various civic projects.

[BenKenobi]

Granted, but lotteries are voluntary.

Now, if they forced everyone to buy a ticket I’d have a problem with them.

[cripplecreek]

Things were a lot simpler in some ways when there were only a couple million people in the country.

I’m not a big fan of lotteries simply because I don’t gamble. However I might take part if I knew the money went to good use where it was supposed to go.

Reminds me of a story from several months back here in Michigan.

‘Michigan Lottery sales, taxes on cigarettes and casino gambling plummet; Gov. Jennifer Granholm says revenue decline is ‘breathtaking’’

http://www.mlive.com/news/index.ssf/2009/03/michigan_lottery_sales_taxes_o.html