The Lottery Was Not Created For Poor People To PlayPrev Topic Next Topic

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jjtheprince

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Dec 3, 2014, 7:40 pm

Even if one is poor, there are still ways they can easily afford a few MM or PB tickets here and there.

An older guy I know collects aluminum cans and other scrap metal and sells it to buy some lottery tickets. He's not really losing anything by doing that.
RJOh

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Dec 3, 2014, 8:14 pm

Lottery tickets are as affordable as a six pack, a pack of cigarettes or a bottle of wine and yet nobody says they weren't created for poor people.

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

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Chief Bottle Washer

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Dec 3, 2014, 8:57 pm

Lots of great commentary here. Just goes to show that any thread has the opportunity to become great.

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onlymoney

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Dec 3, 2014, 11:22 pm

Quote: Originally posted by RJOh on Dec 3, 2014
Lottery tickets are as affordable as a six pack, a pack of cigarettes or a bottle of wine and yet nobody says they weren't created for poor people.

True, but when I pay for cigs, beer, weed and/or wine, I IMMEDIATELY get what I paid for, but when I spend money on tickets with a mindset filled with unrealistic expectations, I just spent hard earned money on a chance, and not a very good one to say the least.

I feel more gratified when I purchase tangible things, as opposed to pieces of paper that most likely will never benefit me because of the high odds against me winning the JP.

Unless I have a system that is grounded in success, it's futile to consistently throw money away.
RJOh

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Dec 4, 2014, 12:53 am

Quote: Originally posted by onlymoney on Dec 3, 2014
True, but when I pay for cigs, beer, weed and/or wine, I IMMEDIATELY get what I paid for, but when I spend money on tickets with a mindset filled with unrealistic expectations, I just spent hard earned money on a chance, and not a very good one to say the least.

I feel more gratified when I purchase tangible things, as opposed to pieces of paper that most likely will never benefit me because of the high odds against me winning the JP.

Unless I have a system that is grounded in success, it's futile to consistently throw money away.

"when I pay for cigs, beer, weed and/or wine, I IMMEDIATELY get what I paid for"

When you buy a lottery ticket you're only buying a chance to win a prize, most players know that.

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

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Dec 4, 2014, 1:03 am

Quote: Originally posted by LottoMetro on Dec 3, 2014
Interesting thread going here......lol

Less than 30% of lottery players are low income (<$30,000). The presumption that poor people spend more on the lottery is flat-out wrong, but don't take my word for it, ask your lottery for their demographic study. Popular media likes to say so, but statistically-speaking, it just isn't all that true. Judging by percent of income is a tricky subject....you could also say poor people spend a larger percent of income on rent, alcohol, video games, food, ink pens, diapers, yada-yada. They spend a higher percentage of income on everything.

Lottery expenditures aren't related to income, but education. Those who didn't graduate high school spend about 4-5 times more than any other education group. The median wager decreases as education increases, which isn't much of surprise. Income is also linked to education*, but education is the higher correlation to lottery spending (logically, you can still get higher education with low income). So instead of saying poor people spend more, we should be saying stupid/uneducated people spend more. But that ruffles too many feathers. I think most people would prefer to be called poor than stupid

As far as people playing games that cost $X, they all can make their own choices. Those who spend recklessly will go broke no matter what games they play.

*I grew up in a below-poverty household, was homeless for a time, but now have 2 college degrees. So income has very little to do with education.

LM, hey i gotta agree with you on this one. I can see you are being assertive and not overly aggressive. Sure you may be right that it is the uneducated class that has a higher percentage of lottery players.The educated class does not play as much because they have higher incomes.Middle class and working class people are the bulk of frequent players i am sure, because i am one of them and i see a lot more like me play the lotteries. The poor are a step down from the working poor, who may actually be the working class. Their earning power varies across the board and it tells them how much they can afford to gamble or not. I don't believe much of the working class poor would do things to drive them bankrupt. i know many well to do folks say they don't need to gamble. But then again some do but in small amounts.

And LM i didn't get selected for the game show but thats ok i just keep on truckin til i get lucky and strike it big.
Coin Toss

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Dec 4, 2014, 2:41 am

What is now the Pick 3 run by the states started out as 'policy' in the poorer sections of towns and the bet was 5 cents.

Gambling appeals to the poor and the working class because it's really the only hope they have of ever making a really big score.

Those who run the lotteries love it when players look for consistency in something that's designed not to have any. So many systems, so many theories, so few jackpot winners.

There is one and only one 'proven' system, and that is to book the action. No matter the game, let the players pick their own losers.
Tialuvslotto

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Dec 4, 2014, 8:47 am

Poor people have the same right to choose as people with more money. Their choices may be more limited, but they still have the right to make them. If they want to eat rice & beans every day and enjoy a beer or buy a lottery ticket once in a while, that is their choice.

Even if they are on benefits. Once they have qualified for assistance that money is theirs and they can spend it however they see fit.

"There is no such thing as luck; only adequate or inadequate preparation to cope with a statistical universe."

~Robert A. Heinlein
jjtheprince

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Dec 4, 2014, 9:18 am

I would say the spending is probably spread out evenly among all income groups. The rich can certainly buy way more tickets, but buying more tickets really doesn't help.

A person could buy $2,500 worth of Mega Millions tickets each drawing for the next 25 years and never win anything significant.
rcbbuckeye

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Dec 4, 2014, 9:19 am

I've heard that phrase for years that poor people play more. I'm about as middle class as you can get, my wife and I make good money. But we are like most other middle class people in that we're stuck with just trying to pay off bills, get kids through college and wondering if we will ever get to retire and live comfortably.

I play because it's fun for me, and....it really is the only way I will ever have a shot at retiring comfortably. Having said that, I am fully aware of the odds and reality of winning a jackpot.

CAN'T WIN IF YOU'RE NOT IN

A DOLLAR AND A DREAM (OR $2)
Lucky4Life

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Dec 4, 2014, 10:35 am

Quote: Originally posted by onlymoney on Dec 3, 2014
True, but when I pay for cigs, beer, weed and/or wine, I IMMEDIATELY get what I paid for, but when I spend money on tickets with a mindset filled with unrealistic expectations, I just spent hard earned money on a chance, and not a very good one to say the least.

I feel more gratified when I purchase tangible things, as opposed to pieces of paper that most likely will never benefit me because of the high odds against me winning the JP.

Unless I have a system that is grounded in success, it's futile to consistently throw money away.

Just curious, if you feel so strongly (also as indicated in your signature) that the lottery is a waste why even come here? You probably won't change anyone's mind here and cause them to stop playing.
bigguy5

charlotte.n.c
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Dec 4, 2014, 10:47 am

Quote: Originally posted by music* on Dec 3, 2014
THRIFTY , I like your avatar. Darth Vader , very impressive . "Luke I am your Father".

I agree that the poor spend less on the lottery then the higher wage earners. Thanks for setting us straight.

both of you are wrong ;; i am seventy nine , poor people were playing numbers when there were no lottery, right now in some state , they spend wefare checks on lottery and that a fact, you go by what state you live in, i use be a truck driver i know.
onlymoney

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Dec 4, 2014, 12:05 pm

Quote: Originally posted by Lucky4Life on Dec 4, 2014
Just curious, if you feel so strongly (also as indicated in your signature) that the lottery is a waste why even come here? You probably won't change anyone's mind here and cause them to stop playing.

I enjoy coming here to share ideas about the p-3 game.

The other reason, being that based on the time I've spent here, there seems to be a lot more people than I thought who don't fully grasp the odds against them winning a major JP in their lifetime. So maybe, just maybe I can save some people from financial ruin by enlightening them.

I'm willing to bet there are thousands who waste 20-30 dollars, or more a week on the PB and MM, and barely can afford it on such a futile effort, when they can bank that money instead.

One can only throw the facts out there, and it's up to the reader to decide whether they care about FACTS, or not. I never told anyone they should stop playing, I only point out that it's futile. No one is putting a gun to anyone's head. If they want to waste their money, let them.

I have a co-worker who spends about 50 dollars a week. Even after I told her about the FACTS, she still doesn't care. She's another one of those multitudes who KNOWS FOR SURE she will win the PB one day.
haymaker

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Dec 4, 2014, 5:21 pm

Quote: Originally posted by Coin Toss on Dec 4, 2014
What is now the Pick 3 run by the states started out as 'policy' in the poorer sections of towns and the bet was 5 cents.

Gambling appeals to the poor and the working class because it's really the only hope they have of ever making a really big score.

Called Policy B/C it was "mandatory" in some towns ?

or was that a takeoff on insurance policy ?

Extraordinary Popular Delusions & the Madness of Crowds -- Charles Mackay LL.D.
Stack47

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Dec 4, 2014, 5:39 pm

Quote: Originally posted by haymaker on Dec 4, 2014
Called Policy B/C it was "mandatory" in some towns ?

or was that a takeoff on insurance policy ?

That was the game for the poor because players could bet a dime to win $60 or a nickel to win $30. But it just wasn't for the poor because other players were betting hundreds. When the pick-3 games started, the bookies offered the same bets and same odds using the state lottery's pick-3 drawing results. There was no problems paying winners and I personally watched a runner paying $12,000 at 7:00 AM.

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