One of the banes of my existence is people buying lottery tickets either at the checkout line of the customer service counter. I was at the customer service counter of my local grocery store (overcharged for an item) and got stuck behind a guy who spent $96.00 on various lottery tickets. All different kinds, of course.

I wonder if people like that ever actually win anything or if it's just an addiction problem?

Even worse is (with "scratchers") when they scratch off every damn one while still in the line. If any of them are lucky enough to win anything, even if just another ticket, they have to redeem them in the line as well.

quote:

... stuck behind a guy who spent $96.00 on various lottery tickets.

If I'm going to spend that, I'd sooner spend it on beer and ammo. (I don't think $96 would go very far for hookers and blow.) At least those give me some pleasure, however temporary. A losing lottery ticket gives me nothing. I haven't bought one for several years.

I had to swear off my local convenience store for that very reason...there was always some person involved in a lengthy and complicated lottery transaction.

Around here most of the grocery stores and larger gas stations have lottery vending machines now. You can even redeem winning tickets there. For more tickets of course.

They’ve made a noticeable difference in the people waiting in line.

I usually get a couple a week, but if the compulsive gamblers are ahead of me in line, I just move along. They're easy to spot-they often have body odor, don't shave, dress like bums and buy 135 lottery tickets and two scratch offs. I really find them irritating. The worst was one I saw in Louisville. I had to go to Customer Service, and this guy was ahead of me. I'm looking down when I smell something, and I see a greenish-brown stain spreading across the seat of his white shorts. He appeared not to notice.

A friend of mine, a local vet, who is money savvy, and I were talking about those folks one day.

He said, you could give them $250,000 smackers, and they would spend that much on loterry tickets trying to win more.

I buy the occasional ticket or two when the jackpot gets up to buy Nicaragua or your own judge kinda money but that’s about it.

I would say spending a couple of bucks here and there is okay since you cannot win if you do not play. But some people have made the lottery their religion. They need help.

I live in the only state with no lottery. It is nice to not have this problem.

Sorry but Alabama doesn’t have a lottery either.

My wife’s grandad won 1 million bucks a few years back.

Now he’s obsessed with winning again....not investing the money....

They piss me off too but I try to think of them as voluntary tax payers.

quote:

Originally posted by sigcrazy7:
I live in the only state with no lottery. It is nice to not have this problem.

quote:

Originally posted by dwright1951:
Sorry but Alabama doesn’t have a lottery either.

Nor does Nevada.

quote:

quote:
Originally posted by sigcrazy7:
I live in the only state with no lottery. It is nice to not have this problem.

quote:
Originally posted by dwright1951:
Sorry but Alabama doesn’t have a lottery either.


Nor does Nevada.

quote:

quote:
Originally posted by sigcrazy7:
I live in the only state with no lottery. It is nice to not have this problem.

quote:
Originally posted by dwright1951:
Sorry but Alabama doesn’t have a lottery either.


Nor does Nevada.

quote:

quote:
Originally posted by sigcrazy7:
I live in the only state with no lottery. It is nice to not have this problem.

quote:
Originally posted by dwright1951:
Sorry but Alabama doesn’t have a lottery either.


Nor does Nevada.

Not to pile on. Mississippi does not have one YET.

quote:

Originally posted by ZSMICHAEL:

quote:

quote:
Originally posted by sigcrazy7:
I live in the only state with no lottery. It is nice to not have this problem.

quote:
Originally posted by dwright1951:
Sorry but Alabama doesn’t have a lottery either.


Nor does Nevada.

quote:

quote:
Originally posted by sigcrazy7:
I live in the only state with no lottery. It is nice to not have this problem.

quote:
Originally posted by dwright1951:
Sorry but Alabama doesn’t have a lottery either.


Nor does Nevada.

quote:

quote:
Originally posted by sigcrazy7:
I live in the only state with no lottery. It is nice to not have this problem.

quote:
Originally posted by dwright1951:
Sorry but Alabama doesn’t have a lottery either.


Nor does Nevada.

Not to pile on. Mississippi does not have one YET.

Well, ok. Good for Alabama. I don't think NV and MS have avoided lotteries on principle. I suppose at least it keeps the gambling in casinos, which saves us the problem of waiting behind the scratch-n-win crowd.

quote:

Originally posted by Krazeehorse:
They piss me off too but I try to think of them as voluntary tax payers.

I do also. It's a very regressive tax and we recover a bit of that welfare money. They kinda give me the warm fuzzies.

The politics of a lottery here in Mississippi is interesting. The Baptists upstate fear that the video lottery machines that are being proposed will lead to gambling in their area. At present the casinos are confined to two coastal counties, a few counties on the Mississippi river and some near Memphis. On board with the Baptists are the casino execs who fear that video lottery machines will drain off those that travel to the Coast to gamble in the casinos and bet on Sports.

Sadly the compromise may mean standing in line to get lottery tickets. Yuck.

My ex is addicted to the lottery. She got fired from a convenience store job for taking lottery tickets and paying for them out of the winnings. She eventually took more than she won money to cover.
My son was staying with her for a while, and when I went to visit there was stacks of scratched off tickets laying around. Hundreds, if not thousands of tickets. Makes me glad she's an ex.

Mississippi just approved a lottery.

I don’t have a problem with anybody buying scratchers or lottery tickets. Not very often, but every now and then, I will buy $10 worth of scratchers or something. I think the problem is more with inconsiderate assholes that think they are the only person in the world. 99% of the time I only buy scratchers from the machines, but if I’m buying them from the cashier I better be the only person in line... if there’s a large line, or any line, I get my drink and get out..

And people that only buy lottery tickets when the prize is 400+million make me laugh... why? Because spending $2 to win 50milliom isn’t good enough? I VERY rarely buy regular lottery tickets, but it doesn’t make me any more or less likely to buy a lottery ticket because the prize is 400 million or 50 million.