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Whether you call it the poor man’s dream, a casino without walls, or a tax on the stupid, the lottery has deep and widespread roots. Here’s a look at five stories about the numbers game.
1. Lotteries of Yore
Lotteries have been around as long as arithmetic. According to the Bible, God ordered Moses to use a lottery to divvy up land along the River Jordan (it’s in the Book of Numbers, naturally). And that ain’t all the “good book” has to say about it: lotteries are also mentioned in Joshua, Leviticus, and Proverbs. The lottery can also be traced back to China, where a warlord named Cheung Leung came up with a numbers game to persuade citizens to help pay for his army. Today, it’s known as keno. Other famous lotteries? The Chinese used one to help finance the Great Wall; Augustus Caesar authorized one to raise money for public works projects in Rome. And in 1466, in what is now the Belgian town of Bruges, a lottery was created to help the poor—which lotteries supposedly have been doing ever since.
2. The Founding Fathers Took Their Chances
Displaying the astute politicians’ aversion to direct taxation, early American leaders often turned to lotteries to raise a buck or two. John Hancock organized several lotteries, including one to rebuild Boston’s Faneuil Hall. Ben Franklin used them during the Revolutionary War to purchase a cannon for the Continental Army. George Washington ran a lottery to pay for a road into the wilds of western Virginia. And Thomas Jefferson wrote of lotteries, “Far from being immoral, they are indispensable to the existence of Man.” Of course, when he wrote it, he was trying to convince the Virginia legislature to let him hold a lottery to pay off his debts.
3. Louisiana: A Whole Lotto Love
By the end of the Civil War, lotteries in America had such bad reputations, they were banned in most states. But not in Louisiana, where a well bribed legislature in 1869 gave an exclusive charter to a private firm called the Louisiana Lottery Company. The company sold tickets throughout the country, and for 25 years, it raked in millions of dollars while paying out relatively small prizes and contributing chump change to a few New Orleans charities. Finally, in 1890, Congress passed a law banning the sale of lottery tickets through the mail, and eventually all multistate lottery sales were banned. What’s a corrupt U.S. company to do? Move offshore, of course! The Louisiana Lottery moved its operations to Honduras, and America was lottery free until 1963, when New Hampshire started the lottery cycle anew.
4. “Inaction” Jackson: Lottery’s Biggest Loser
Clarence Jackson’s luck began to run out on Friday, the 13th of October, 1995, when the Connecticut Lottery picked the numbers on Jackson’s lotto ticket, making his family the winners of $5.8 million. Only he didn’t know it—and he didn’t find out until 15 minutes before the one year deadline to claim the prize, despite a whole slew of lottery ads seeking the winner. Jackson, a 23-year-old who’d taken over the family’s struggling office cleaning business from his ailing father, didn’t make it in time, and lottery officials rejected the claim. In 1997, the Connecticut General Assembly voted to award Jackson the prize, but the state senate refused to go along. Jackson is still trying to convince the legislature. And still losing.
5. And Some Other Jackson: Its Biggest “Winner”
Andrew Jackson “Jack” Whittaker was already wealthy when he won the multistate Powerball lottery in December 2002. A millionaire contractor from West Virginia, Whittaker became the biggest single lottery winner in history after snagging a $314.9 million jack pot. But the dough seemed to carry more curses than the Hope Diamond. And when Jack decided to take a $170.5 million lump sum instead of payments over 20 years, it wasn’t the only lump coming his way. Whittaker was robbed three times, once of more than $500,000 at a strip club. He was also sued for assault, arrested for drunk driving, booked for getting into a bar fight, and even accused of bouncing checks at Atlantic City casinos. In September 2004, three burglars broke into his house and found the body of a friend of Whittaker’s granddaughter, whose death may have been drug related. The following year, the granddaughter was also found dead. The sad truth? Simply that money doesn’t guarantee peace of mind.
* * * * *
So, have you or anyone you know ever won big in the lottery? How’d that work out?
Ed. Note: This list was pulled from Forbidden Knowledge.
My mom got five out six numbers back in the day… one number away from a better life. Sigh.
She did get 2Gs and I got a purple mountain bike (I had a banana seat before that, so you can imagine how thrilled I was).
posted by Mari on 3-18-2008 at 4:30 pm
My mom got five out six numbers back in the day… one number away from a better life. Sigh.
She did get 2Gs and I got a purple mountain bike (I had a banana seat before that, so you can imagine how thrilled I was).
posted by Mari on 3-18-2008 at 4:30 pm
Okay, so I have an unrelated question that I hope doesn’t make me sound like an ass. What is going on with the hands that are holding the lottery tickets in your first picture? What causes that kind of uneven discoloration like that? I’ve seen a lot of customers whose hands look like that and I’ve never had any idea what causes that or what it’s called and whether it’s common. Can anyone answer this?
Oh yeah, and good article :)
posted by Fruppi on 3-18-2008 at 4:36 pm
@ Fruppi: It’s called vitiligo, and it’s a loss of pigment-producing cells in the skin.
posted by Ohne Hosen on 3-18-2008 at 4:46 pm
Not exactly a lottery, but Nevada has a MegaBucks slot machine on a statewide network that has a lottery-sized payout. And much like the tragedy that followed the PowerBall winner listed above, a record-breaking MegaBucks winner was a casino worker who met tragedy just a few months after her retirement play. She was sitting at a stoplight in broad daylight when a drunk driver plowed into the back of her car, paralyzing her and killing her sister.
posted by Debi on 3-18-2008 at 4:49 pm
I’m pretty sure the spotty hands in the pic are caused by vitiligo (sp?), that disease that Micheal Jackson claims to have that causes some of his skin to get white spots like that.
posted by Melissa on 3-18-2008 at 4:53 pm
I have a friend whose relative won about $15 million. Not sure if the family was looking for hand outs, but they were immediately labelled snobs.
posted by Jamie on 3-18-2008 at 4:58 pm
Looks like playing the lottery can give you some kind of skin condition. Maybe that is what happened to Michael Jackson.
posted by Sasme on 3-18-2008 at 5:58 pm
I do not like the lottery. It’s indeed a “tax on the poor”, “tax on the uneducated”, “tax on the stupid”, etc. It plays on natural human compulsion, and slowly and consistently sucks income from those most in need.
The lottery is in the business of selling false hope.
posted by PD on 3-18-2008 at 6:42 pm
best advice I’ve heard (in case I would ever win the lottery) - stay anonymous! I value my privacy and there would be only a few worse things (ie death) than my name to be plastered all over the media telling the world just how rich I’ve recently become. But that just me.
posted by micx on 3-18-2008 at 6:44 pm
best advice I’ve heard (in case I would ever win the lottery) - stay anonymous! I value my privacy and there would be only a few worse things (ie death) than my name to be plastered all over the media telling the world just how rich I’ve recently become. But that just me.
posted by micx on 3-18-2008 at 6:44 pm
The lottery is in the business of selling false hope.
posted by PD on 3-18-2008 at 6:42 pm
So is religion, and neither it nor the lottery are going away anytime soon.
posted by marcus on 3-18-2008 at 7:23 pm
My mom got five out six numbers back in the day… one number away from a better life. Sigh.
She did get 2Gs and I got a purple mountain bike (I had a banana seat before that, so you can imagine how thrilled I was).
posted by Mari on 3-18-2008 at 9:49 pm
I’m with PD; the lottery sells false hope. I’ve never won anything in any lottery, and never will. “You can’t win if you don’t play” is what they say, but not playing can also keep you from losing.
I’ll pay my taxes in the traditional way.
posted by Dave on 3-18-2008 at 9:59 pm
My dad won $1 million on a MA scratch ticket… he works for a bank so he knows what to do with it :).
posted by Andrew on 3-18-2008 at 9:59 pm
“and slowly and consistently sucks income from those most in need.”
No, they slowly and consistently hand over the income when it is most in need.
The lottery is not to blame for peoples’ compulsive behavior.
posted by Jeff on 3-18-2008 at 10:01 pm
This is one of the web’s most interesting stories on Wed 19th Mar 2008
These are the web’s most talked about URLs on Wed 19th Mar 2008. The current winner is ..
posted by purrl.net |** urls that purr **| on 3-18-2008 at 10:07 pm
Well, I do believe that the lottery is in the business of selling false hopes - but I also think that you have to be in it to win it.
Whenever I play (which isn’t that often to be honest) I’ll buy the cheapest ticket, it’s usually about $5-$6. I see people spending literally hundreds a week and I think that kind of spending is disturbing.
I remember seeing in December of last year, there was a big jackpot towards New Years Eve that people were spending like mad to win. One lady I specifically remember spent just over $600 in lotto tickets at the one outlet. I’m not sure if she purchased any more at other places.
I spent my $6 and won $600 in that particular draw (actually it was just over $1200 I won, but I split it with my mother)
As for track record? I’ve played a total of 6 times since December last year and won twice, totaling about just over $700 - not that big a win in hindsight, but will more than likely pay for 2 or so years worth of playing whenever I feel like it.
posted by M on 3-18-2008 at 10:31 pm
There’s always “The Lottery”, the short story that had a not so happy ending. Whenever anyone talks about the state lotteries, I always think of that story.
posted by amanda on 3-18-2008 at 11:13 pm
I work customer service for a grocery store, and there are several customers who come in and spend $50-100 a *day* on lottery tickets. I always want to tell them, “if you don’t have anything better to do with it, give me just half, I will pay back my parents for my college tuition faster, then start saving for when I go to university, or I will get my car fixed, or about a hundred other things.”
posted by peacefulvalley on 3-18-2008 at 11:23 pm
I work customer service for a grocery store, and there are several customers who come in and spend $50-100 a *day* on lottery tickets. I always want to tell them, “if you don’t have anything better to do with it, give me just half, I will pay back my parents for my college tuition faster, then start saving for when I go to university, or I will get my car fixed, or about a hundred other things.”
posted by peacefulvalley on 3-18-2008 at 11:24 pm
There is of course the story of Voltaire becoming rich off of a financially ineffective lottery given by the French government. I read about it in some magazine recently. It had a sperm on the cover or something…
posted by Josiah on 3-19-2008 at 12:44 am
I’m a good-for-nothing 21-year-old guido who, along with my second-rate girlfriend, won $20,000 in the lottery. We plan to split it evenly and continue to be the douche bags that we are.
posted by Guido Italian on 3-19-2008 at 1:12 am
PD: the lottery isn’t a tax on the poor… It is just a tax on those who are bad at math!
posted by Someotherguy on 3-19-2008 at 6:16 am
Anyone remember the early 80’s TV show “Lottery!”?…classic.
posted by Bwest on 3-19-2008 at 9:26 am
Everybody says the odds for winning the lottery are worse than the chance of you being struck by lightning….
Then, does this explain why everybody heads inside when it thunders?
Seriously, isn’t an occasional buck or two worth the few minutes you get to play “What if?”
posted by Dave on 3-19-2008 at 9:53 am
Good article. Thanks for sharing this.
posted by CFA Level 1 on 3-19-2008 at 12:07 pm
The $1 I spend a few times a year on the lottery is worth the fantasy of thinking of what I could do for myself, my family, and my friends if I won.
posted by alba on 3-19-2008 at 12:19 pm
My next door neighbor won 1 million in a contest (not the lotto). It was back when they’d have those boxes in the supermarket with the little info cards to fill out. He just entered everything and won something every 3-6 months. Of course, he probably had more junk mail then the rest of the block combined, but he also won a car and other prizes in other contests.
posted by Sarah on 3-19-2008 at 12:22 pm
Lottery isn’t really about the winning, it’s about the fun of playing. The excitement of buying a ticket and imagining what you’d buy with your fortune. Normal people know that they aren’t likely to win. It’s just a little cheap thrill. As for the folks that play compulsively or spend too much on it, that’s their problem. They should get treatment for being compulsive gamblers and not ruin the fun for the rest of us. Arkansas, where I live, doesn’t allow lottery and it’s absolutely ridiculous.
posted by Melissa on 3-19-2008 at 12:41 pm
I play it safe and stick to the customer experience surveys on receipts for goods I’ve already purchased. My bank does one, Quiznos does one, Starbucks does one, and I’m sure lot of other places do it too. Usually you’re entered into a drawing to win some money or gift cards. I haven’t won yet, but like I said, it’s stuff I’m going to buy anyway, so I feel like it’s better than the lotto (and with better odds).
posted by Ira on 3-19-2008 at 12:49 pm
Wow peacefulvalley, I can’t believe anyone would spend a hundred bucks every day on the lottery! I recommend being extra nice to them… and putting up a sign to remind people it’s customary to tip the staff 10% of your winnings :-)
posted by Lottery Syndicate World on 3-20-2008 at 4:59 am
A fun little fact: You are more likely to die in a car accident driving to buy a lottery ticket than you are to actually win the lottery…
posted by Leon Freyermuth on 3-20-2008 at 3:30 pm