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Which lottery has the worst ethics?

[ 1 ]

[ 4.0% ]

Hoosier

[ 9 ]

[ 36.0% ]

[ 3 ]

[ 12.0% ]

[ 2 ]

[ 8.0% ]

Other

[ 3 ]

[ 12.0% ]

Don't know

[ 7 ]

[ 28.0% ]

Total valid votes

[ 25 ]

Discarded votes

[ 6 ]

CASH Only

United States
Member #379
June 5, 2002
11,296 Posts
Offline

Mar 14, 2006, 5:19 pm

A lot has been written on LP about the antics of the Hoosier Lottery. But other lotteries are corrupt too. MA and NY have numerous annuity-only scratch games; MA Megabucks also is annuity-only. GA just began Lose for Life; its lottery director used to run (ruin?) the NY lottery.
JimmySand9

United States
Member #1,826
July 11, 2003
2,645 Posts
Offline

Mar 14, 2006, 6:26 pm

You may think a lottery offering a prize you don't like is corrupt, but it's not. They're just marketing to the people who don't mind getting annuities. They aren't rigging draws, they aren't manipulating where scratch-offs are going. They aren't meeting the defintion of corrupt, which means depraved, immoral, and/or dishonest. Now IA, LA, and AZ's lotteries, they're corrupt because they're bigots. And the Hoosier Lottery is corrupt for obvious reasons. But NY, MA, or any state with a Win-For-Life prize aren't being depraved, immoral, or dishonest. They're just filling the niche of people who like receiving payments over time. You may not like the prize, but they do offer games you like too. I mean, isn't the Massachusetts Lottery the one who gave us your all-time favorite game, Cash Winfall? Sometimes businesses will offer things you love, and things you hate. I mean, I absolutely love Arby's Roast Beef sandwiches, but should I stop going there just because they also have those awful, awful Market Fresh Chicken Salad sandwiches (apples and grapes in mayo? that's just gross). Think about it.

(insert signature here)
CASH Only

United States
Member #379
June 5, 2002
11,296 Posts
Offline

Mar 14, 2006, 7:49 pm

Quote: Originally posted by JimmySand9 on March 14, 2006
You may think a lottery offering a prize you don't like is corrupt, but it's not. They're just marketing to the people who don't mind getting annuities. They aren't rigging draws, they aren't manipulating where scratch-offs are going. They aren't meeting the defintion of corrupt, which means depraved, immoral, and/or dishonest. Now IA, LA, and AZ's lotteries, they're corrupt because they're bigots. And the Hoosier Lottery is corrupt for obvious reasons. But NY, MA, or any state with a Win-For-Life prize aren't being depraved, immoral, or dishonest. They're just filling the niche of people who like receiving payments over time. You may not like the prize, but they do offer games you like too. I mean, isn't the Massachusetts Lottery the one who gave us your all-time favorite game, Cash Winfall? Sometimes businesses will offer things you love, and things you hate. I mean, I absolutely love Arby's Roast Beef sandwiches, but should I stop going there just because they also have those awful, awful Market Fresh Chicken Salad sandwiches (apples and grapes in mayo? that's just gross). Think about it.
OK, but why should MA Megabucks, Lose for Life, Unlucky for Life and various scratch games be annuity-only, thereby shooing away those who would rather collect in lump sum? Maybe in these cases "corrupt" is not the best word to use; how about "conspiracy"? IMO there is money to be made from forcing lottery (and non-gambling; ie Publisher's Clearing House) winners to receive periodic payments instead of allowing them to receive cash. We need to BOYCOTT lottery games that are annuity-only. Lotteries do not make money from forcing annuity payments.
BTW Waldorf salad mixes apples and mayo. Yuck!
RJOh

100

mid-Ohio
United States
Member #9
March 24, 2001
20,272 Posts
Offline

Mar 15, 2006, 12:04 am

CASH Only writes:
"We need to BOYCOTT lottery games that are annuity-only."
Who is we? You are the only one complaining , others are playing only the games they like.

* you don't need to buy every combination, just the winning ones *
emilyg

50

United States
Member #14
November 9, 2001
31,614 Posts
Offline

Mar 15, 2006, 12:11 am

Quote: Originally posted by RJOh on March 15, 2006
CASH Only writes:
"We need to BOYCOTT lottery games that are annuity-only."
Who is we? You are the only one complaining , others are playing only the games they like.

love to nibble those micey feet.
Coin Toss

Zeta Reticuli Star System
United States
Member #30,469
January 17, 2006
11,788 Posts
Offline

Mar 15, 2006, 12:30 am

I voted don't know. Seems like the Hoosier lotto gets a lot of "press" here but on any given board only 20% of the members post (if that many), and I'm not familiar with other lottery boards, though I'm sure they wouldn't be as prolific as this one is!
sirbrad

PA
United States
Member #22,982
October 6, 2005
2,229 Posts
Offline

Mar 15, 2006, 12:42 am

I won't boycott anything that has 'better odds' of making me richer than the higher odds games do. I will take $3,000 a month for life over 1,000 powerball losses any day. Also we are a small group among a vast majority of "whim gamblers," and I doubt we would even make a dent. I also will not boycott ANYTHING that gives me a chance to be much better off, and have more money than I have now.
four4me

MD
United States
Member #1,701
June 18, 2003
10,731 Posts
Offline

Mar 15, 2006, 3:57 am

Win for life is set up to pay out x dollars over the course of a winners lifetime because that's the way it's set up and the they way the game is structured.
It wouldn't be called win for life if it were a paid all at one time game.
There are other games that are paid cash only. While I understand your reasoning about getting paid cash only for games. Others might not see your point of view and would just be happy to win any amount regardless of the payment structure. You also have to realize that before they implement many games they run polls and ask people what games they like and or would like to have in their states. Many state lotteries have clubs and these questionnaires are sent to people. If the overwhelming majority says they would like a certain games, then overall it's the people choice.
The only thing I don't like about annuity only structured games is if some elderly person would buy a winning top tier annuity only prize ticket and happen to win then it's not likely they will live long enough to collect the complete payout structure of the game. Still even in that event they have an option to sell their annuity for cash.
Where I'm concerned your beating a dead horse with your complaints of how lottery games are structured.
LOTTOMIKE

Tennessee
United States
Member #7,853
October 15, 2004
11,352 Posts
Offline

Mar 15, 2006, 6:23 am

georgia is the best lottery in america besides maybe florida.....
jim695

Columbia City, Indiana
United States
Member #2,978
December 9, 2003
381 Posts
Offline

Mar 15, 2006, 6:57 am

There is no question that the states make a few extra bucks when they pay annuity prizes, but there's nothing evil about that. If the state invests the cash value of the prize in an annuity that pays 6%, and they can satisfy the annual prize payment using only 4%, the state makes and keeps the extra 2% of the interest generated. The prizewinner isn't out anything, as he still gets the full payment, but any superfluous interest amount helps to offset operating costs at the lottery or goes into the state's general fund, in most cases.
It's no different than buying a Certificate of Deposit at your local bank. If you buy a 13-month CD which pays 4.75%, the bank might sell that investment to an underwriter, or they'll lend it out to other customers at a higher rate of interest and keep the difference. It works the same way with mortgages. Just because you make your regular house payment at the bank who wrote your home loan does not necessarily mean that your mortgage hasn't been sold to another financial institution. That's how banks make money; it's how they stay in business.
While I understand Cash Only's loathing of annuity payments, we must accept the fact that state-run lotteries are not charitable organizations in the strictest sense; they're in business to make money, and many of the games which pay annuity prizes are designed specifically for that purpose.

Come, Pinky; we must prepare for tomorrow night...

Jim
sirbrad

PA
United States
Member #22,982
October 6, 2005
2,229 Posts
Offline

Mar 15, 2006, 7:24 am

You can't expect the lottery officials to care about the players, they care about making money, and making the game enticing enough to throw our money at. They are not sitting at home praying that someone will hit the jackpot soon, in fact thay are hoping for the opposite. They want record roll-overs and boosted sales from all the marketing hype.
Cash_Only speaks as if they are supposed to care about our payouts. They don't, they only care about structuring the game to keep the odds in their favor heavily, and do just the bare minimum to make it so we have at least a chance, even if it is a very minute one. That is why they raised the powerball matrix, not so more people who needed the money could have a chance, but so there would be more rolls, and less winners overall.
Lottery officials are evil.
Uncle Jim

Indiana
United States
Member #29,195
December 29, 2005
280 Posts
Offline

Mar 15, 2006, 7:58 am

With regard to sirbrad's remarks:
ding...ding...ding....ding...ding...ding....ding...ding...
Ladies and gentlemen we have a winner! The young man from Pennsylvania has hit the nail right on the head! Step right up here lad and have yourself a cigar!
Jim

Money frees you from doing things you dislike. Since I dislike doing nearly everything, money is handy. - Groucho Marx
sirbrad

PA
United States
Member #22,982
October 6, 2005
2,229 Posts
Offline

Mar 15, 2006, 11:03 pm

Thank you. I used to love carnival games...until I found out most of them were fixed also. Lots of money spent, very little prizes. Sound familiar?
sirbrad

PA
United States
Member #22,982
October 6, 2005
2,229 Posts
Offline

Mar 15, 2006, 11:06 pm

Ladies and gentlemen we have a winner!
Finally a win!!! Lol.
Tenaj

Charlotte NC
United States
Member #17,405
June 18, 2005
4,074 Posts
Offline

Mar 16, 2006, 9:30 pm

I think NC committed the ultimate lottery sin. Witholding the games from us decade after decade while other states had one in place. It couldn't be any uglier than that.

takeemtothebank

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