State Lotteries

[detlef]

Why do states hire seedy outside agencies to run their lotteries? I know that here in NC the lottery commish is up on some charges for his association with some group involving our new lottery. I was driving home listening to the radio and caught an ad for the "new holiday scratchers" at it got me thinking.

 

Would it be the end of the world if they simply offered one scratcher and one lotto style game? No frills, no 25 choices of games to play, no money wasted on advertising.

 

Of course less people would play because basically people are stupid (especially the lottery's target audience) and only do what they're told. However, plenty would certainly still play and more money would stay in the state regardless of the level of sales. I mean, that is the goal of any sound business plan, to be sound at several sales levels.

 

As it is, some significant amount of money is getting skimmed off the top or there wouldn't be a lobby trying to promote lotteries in states. If you cut that out, a few things happen.

 

#1 Whomever is getting paid to actually manage the lottery is a state employee and thus pays taxes and spends money in the state.

 

#2 More money is either going to the schools or being paid out to the winners. Either keeps our money here.

 

#3 Even if sales go down because you're not promoting it or doing all the crazy things that lottery companies do to push this thing down the consumer's throats, those consumers will end up spending that money on something else, once again, more than likely in the state.

 

I suppose the companies that run these things could be in the state but they are still an uneeded drain on the local economies.

 

I don't know, just had the thought.

[Big Country]

But it is such sound financial planning strategy to play the lottery.