Luck runs out for lottery winners in Illinois, as cash becomes equally scarce.
Play the Lotto and become a millionaire. That’s the pitch Illinois uses to make people rush to the liquor store and buy a stack of dreams. As if the odds of a winning ticket weren’t astronomical enough, you now have to hope that the State of Illinois finds some money to pay you. Because they’ve just announced they will no longer be paying winnings in excess of $25,000, until the State completes the budget process. And with the Governor and Legislature at a complete stalemate, that prospect is looking slimmer by the day.
Not really a good selling point. Play the Lotto and win a share of the State’s debt. It was visionary that the commission chose the logo for the Illinois Lottery as a giant crock. You’d think the winners would gather together and stage a huge protest over this fraud. Unfortunately the number of potential protesters is a sad indication of how seldom people actually win.
Personally, I don’t play the lottery very often. I thank Mrs. Cormick in 5th grade for teaching me Statistics. As Ambrose Bierce once said, the lottery is “A tax on people who are bad at math”. The odds of actually winning the Lottery are so ridiculous, purchasing a ticket only increases your odds marginally. A much safer bet is Life Insurance. Despite our fondest hopes and healthiest habits, that one is guaranteed to pay out eventually.
The Press doesn’t seem likely to give it much attention either. The Media Research Center is asking a great question: “Why Is the Press So Quiet About Illinois Lottery Winners Not Getting Paid?”
If the number of bettors and the amounts they bet start to decline significantly over the long haul, several states already on the brink — Illinois is certainly one of them — would be right up against the bankruptcy wall. Additionally, several states now thought to be in decent fiscal condition no longer would be.
It’s an interesting take. State Budgets are so dependent on lotteries now, that even a slight decrease in sales could push their budgets into the red. Remember when lottery revenues supposed to increase education budgets? Ironically, lotteries today are an incentive for States to keep children uneducated, as math is bad for business.
Of course, I think the reason for the media blackout is pure capitalism on the part of the media. If Newspapers started running stories about the fraud that exists in the name of the State Lotteries, there is a good chance that State Lottery Commissions would no longer be purchasing those full page ads to run pictures of gold coins and big stacks of money. Which would push the newspapers into the red along with them.
There’s really nothing wrong with Newspapers profiting from lotteries. Non profits have long used raffles to keep the coffers loaded, and newspapers haven’t been making profits for years. But at least when you win a church raffle, their allegiance with God insures that you get paid.
The State of Illinois has no such incentive.
Cartoon used courtesy Eric Allie