Some are just really smart. http://blogs.houstonpress.com/hairballs/2011/08/texas_lottery_winner_genius.php
My grandfather played the same numbers for 40 years, nothing. That's a real curse, curse of stupidity. Great guy and all, but you'd figure even a dope would give up after a decade.
Actually, sometimes its not about winning. There is a cheap high that many people get when playing the lottery. It actually makes people feel good to have purchased a ticket so they can dream for a while. I think its a little bit like smoking, but without ruining your health. They feel good when they do it, and its only a few bucks. I mean...its like one less starbucks coffee per week that they cant buy. No big deal. And hey...at least they are contributing to the education system when they buy a ticket and giving the rest of the money to some broke loser instead of a rich corporation.
I feel like I could turn this into a movie on Lifetime: "Eat, Pray, Lotto", ... featuring Susan Sarandon and Rick Moranis.
1. Not nearly as much goes to education as you think - there are copious accounting tricks and sleight-of-hand shell games going about to shore up broader State spending. Dumbass States have been selling their lotteries to private investors in exchange for a quick cash infusion. So, in essence, the proceeds go to paying off existing debt. Also, most States do not keep lottery proceeds segregated from other general education funds - so a shell game gets played with local property tax receipts and matching federal funds. Many States like Florida, Michigan, and Oklahoma are trying to eliminate the 35 % mandate altogether. 2. It has been said that lotteries are a tax on people who are bad at math. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/07/business/07lotto.html?pagewanted=all For years, those states have heard complaints that not enough of their lottery revenue is used for education. Now, a New York Times examination of lottery documents, as well as interviews with lottery administrators and analysts, finds that lotteries accounted for less than 1 percent to 5 percent of the total revenue for K-12 education last year in the states that use this money for schools.
================= 4x-R; WEll i asked one lottery winner if he ever won any??No, he said , but he came close, he said. And most gamblers dont have good work habits.[not to mention a rather low understanding of stats].LOL Its a stupid tax on people that can not do math.Also, Dr Stanley[Millionaire Mind book writer] noted all the time wasted , waiting in line.....so they lose more than money