In desperate times, people turn to ..... The Lottery

AP, via Yahoo!:



Many states' lottery sales are rising in recession
Consumers hope to get lucky using scratch-offs, daily lotteries as tickets to better finances

Juanita Cousins, Associated Press Writer
Sunday January 11, 2009, 7:51 pm EST


NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Even in these tough economic times, many people are feeling lucky.

More than half of all states with lotteries have reported rising sales over the past six months, and some researchers say financial insecurity might be driving people to risk more of their money than usual on $1 and $5 instant scratch-offs and other daily games in hopes of a big payoff.

"Someday somebody is going to win and I hope it is me," said Albert Atwood of Nashville, who spends $100 weekly playing the Pick 5 and Lotto Plus. "I imagine that I would be a heap better off if I saved this money, but everybody has dreams."

Driven by regulars like Atwood and a growing number of occasional players, 25 of 42 states with lotteries have experienced higher sales of scratch-off and daily lottery games since July, according to Scientific Games, a maker of scratch-offs.

-- In Washington, D.C., instant sales reached a record of $45 million in the 2008 fiscal year, representing an 11 percent year-over-year increase.

-- In Tennessee, sales of instant lottery games were up $8 million during the fiscal first quarter ending in October.

-- The Massachusetts lottery reached a record of $4.7 billion in sales during the last fiscal year, up from $4.4 billion in the previous year. .......(more)

The complete piece is at: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Many-states-lottery-sales-are-apf-14025453.html

As the economy has tanked the lines have gotten a hell of a lot longer when I go buy that ticket.
I've heard from friends of mine in Japan that the lines are longer.

What gets me is, people are buying 8-10 bucks worth of tickets.

One ticket is a buck -- one less bottle of Coke or Pepsi

But 10 bucks a pop is a lot of money (IMO)

figure 'why not?'. Life's a crap shoot?

were having a debate about which numbers to pick while I was at the service desk getting my usual California Combo (MegaMillions and SuperLotto.)
It was a HUGE deal for them. The husband got out an address book where he'd written down a few "important" lottery numbers, and they had to discuss which ones were the most important.

Am sure it meant a lot to them.

maybe that can ease some of the budget cuts coming from the legislatures.

I'm so tired of everything. Even with Obama coming in, and the elation that brings, I'm still so very tired of living on this planet. My lottery consists of hoping that on those nights when I stop breathing (bad case of sleep apnea), that I won't wake up desperately gasping for air. I'd rather just drift off from 'natural causes'.

BTW, on a much lighter note, I think someone from DU won something like 11 million in the FL lottery a few years back.

the other 2 i play the lottery.

i figure that way i cover the odds all week long.
dp

It's only a buck.