Lotto culture filth.

They should totally eliminate taxes and fund the government with a lottery. They could give away stuff like obsolete fighter jets as prizes. Here's your three million dollar prize!

reply to post by tadaman

Wow that sure was a goodly rant,tadaman

I very seldom play one or 2 lines of lotto or Powerball-i am a very unluky person when it comes to anything of a financial nature.I was adopted by very poor people,had to leave school after 10th grade to go work,when my adoptive father passed away,leaving us completely crippled financially,with no savings-and has always been poor,up to the present day-i honestly cannot even imagine a life where I don't live paycheck to paycheck+being unable to save.
I don't see lines of greedy people queueing up-i see people like myself,who maybe have a very bright daughter they would love to send to college,or a family who would love to have a nice sum of money in case of emergencies,to help out during those months when the salary is finished,payday is 10 days away+there are things urgently needed.Or like us,maybe some poor sap who has not been able to take his family on a one-week holiday by the sea for 10 years,and would love for his little son to experience the magic of the ocean while he is still a kid.In my country,South Africa,there are millions of seriously poor people-for whom a Lotto win is not a matter of greed,but a chance at a better life for their children,or a nest egg for their old age,or a once in a lifetime(literally) holiday.So yeah,here I see hope,not greed.

Well seeing there's a better chance of the Pope turning into a pink umbrella than me or the hubby winning anything from Lotto or Powerball-and we Do have a very smart daughter we'd love to send to university(she wants a career as a marine biologist,we are trying to fulfill that dream in a way more likely to yield results-taking out an education policy-and cutting back even further on already meagre spending habits,eating habits,everything.

I would say,try having a bit more mercy for the ones who play Lotto-most often the reason for playing is need,not greed.Well in my country that would apply,anyway.I have to say,I have never witnessed the undignified scenes here,that you describe,eg the 2 old ladies,queue-jumping+arguments,etc.

reply to post by Raxoxane


Thanks for the response.

I have to admit that when I wrote this thread I was a little over worked and dealing with the addicted players. The people that play that are WAY too into lotto.

I have nothing against a regular lotto player. I do play some lotto every now and again when I make a mistake on the lotto machine and cant cancel it, or when I just feel like it.

I was referring more to those that have a gambling habit that they express with EXCESSIVE lotto playing.

I do understand the rational behind throwing a dollar into a pot for the hell of it, or letting a few bucks you won ride.

What has sickened me, more so with society then the actual people I meet, is the mentality of less fortunate people spending what money they have and COULD save on things like lotto or scratch tickets.

I think its because it depresses me to think about their situation and how they just throw away money they NEED to pay an electricity bill or rent on dreams. I am not against dreams. I am against perpetuating suffering.

I have come to know lotto as a poor tax. It is essentially a perfect system of taxation on people that no government would dare publicly tax.

Besides that, I read into people a little too much and neurotic people send me into an abyss of their mind.

I dont always feel like this, but on particularly big jack pot days it can be pretty tiresome.

The neurotic players have all sorts of rituals and playing habits that just make attending to them unbearable.

Like you could be REALLY busy and one person will keep you hovering around them as they spend one dollar at a time until they run out of money....which could be a hundred dollars...or what ever.

Or someone who is VERY complicated with their numbers will come in ALL DAY over and over again...asking you to do complex game plays for as far as a week ahead of time, morning, evening, different wager amounts, for like 50 numbers, and in between ask you for a scratch ticket here and there, a print out for the results to this or that game from a month ago...ect. And maybe...just maybe you will upset them when you instinctively say "good luck" and somehow if they lose its your fault for saying that and jinxing them...

or if they tell you 50 numbers, and say them wrong because their minds are ALL OVER THE PLACE, they will then blame you if their numbers came out the way they MEANT to play them and NEVER let you live it down...for years. Maybe they request certain people to sell them their numbers because some give more luck....apparently I am really lucky......AGHH! lol

It is REALLY tiresome when they show up, and being NYC, they come in droves.

So I am not against lotto. I am against gambling culture I guess. I dont have anything against a person trying their luck. I do it myself every now and again.

I guess I am just tired of people NOT being easy going.

I am not the type of person to be picky with restaurants. I dont make special requests when I go out. I dont ask for special prices or items or services not already listed. I dont complain. I dont ask for managers, or tell people how I rate their work. I dont blame every little thing in life on the first person I see.

I have trouble understanding people who go out of their way to be different with spending habits. From a lotto player that needs to live it, to a shopper in mall that needs to have a moment buying a swimsuit.

I have grown to resent consumerism. I like commerce. I like public relations. I like people. I hate plastic personalities.

I may be a little jaded. I have probably served over a million people in my lifetime in all forms of retail, bars, restaurants, cafes, hotels, supermarkets, butcher shops....I have been working since before I could legally do so. I got my working papers as a minor and had my parents sign my little green permission slip for early employment. I have had so many jobs in so many areas of employment I realistically couldnt even list them all. So many jobs, lol...and I liked them and was pretty good at them. I do like people. They have taught me SO MUCH..

I know good customers and bad customers. Neurotic gamblers arent good customers, no matter how much they spend.

So again. I am not some anti lotto hater. I just get burnt out every now and again from complicated people is all. I do understand where you are coming from.

Thanks for your response and be well.

P.S.
I pray that your daughter makes her dreams come true, even if they arent fulfilled in the form of a lotto ticket. A will makes a way.

Hold it down.

reply to post by tadaman

Thank you tadaman,for your well-wishes for my daughter,and we will be working very hard towards that goal.She has 2 years to go in high school,plus she said she may take a gap year after graduating,working at whatever she can find+ is realistically suited for,casual jobs for a bit of extra savings+to give us more time to fund her university expenses from our side-she would love to be an au pair overseas for a while first,for the money and travel experience+because she loves small children-that is one of her other possible choices aside from marine biologist,possibly paediatrician or veterinary surgeon-she has a real way with animals too-animals adore her,I call her my little "animal whisperer"-they propably just sense her deep love,respect and empathy with them-she feels Much more comfortable with animals than among people:-)

Aside from some one poor playing one or 2 lines of Lotto which I have no problem with,seeing it only amounts to about 7 bucks locally,less than a dollar in your currency-i really Hate the way people throw away large sums in the casino's-casino's are "Mayhem and foolishness" as Niecy Nash would say:-)

Again,if you earn a comfortable salary,and with all your family's needs covered,and you still have some left for saving,nothing wrong with occasionally budgeting a few bucks for a fun evening in the casino,most usually have a restaurant(s) attached,so yeah then it all amounts to a nice evening out for parents who needs a "date/nice eve out" as a couple".As long as they don't spend money they cannot really afford,and has budgeted for the few bucks they gamble+maybe a dinner.However these are dangerous places for many-Especially those with addictive personalities-and I have heard of so many folks having one lucky fair-sized win-and then ever after they try+try+try to win again-till their household start feeling the pinch-or worse,starts going into poverty because of one of the family breadwinners'(or worse,the sole breadwinner's) compulsion.

Because gambling does Very easily become a compulsion.A dangerous horse to mount,unless you are one of those fabulously lucky folks,we have all lnown at least one such person,I am sure,money seems determimed to flow to them-BUT these fortunate blessed lucky ones are very much the exception and not the rule,so for most regular folks.I would suggest entering a casino only if you are extremely lucky,or you have put an amount away,designated as your "fun money",left over AFTER meeting your obligations- and then only for an occasional evening out.

About family breadwinners who let their families go through hardship,because of their gambling compulsion,I can only say: "Grow a brain,and while you're at it,grow some responsiblity,genuine concern for your loved ones's quality of life+shed the illusion of overnight wealth-it Extremely seldomly happens,the house almost always wins-that is a stone cold fact"
I don't like casino's for another reason-i am an empath-and its in casino's where I feel uncomfortable+unsettled by the vibe-i feel there,what you see+feel in the lotto queues-the greed,and the Need,the addiction+compulsion,and I think:"How many of these folks can Really afford to lose the money they're gambling+usually losing,here?"

Because in my country you don't find the Very poor in casino's,they are the ones playing one or 2 lines at the lotto once a week or 2/3 times a month.In the casino's here you find either the big rollers-who I am not including because they can afford to lose(though it would've been nice if they would occasionally donate half of those large amounts of cash to a charity) but most of the SA gambling industry is frequented by the regular Joes and Jills-in whose family a gambling compulsion by one of the parents could wreak havoc with said family's welfare-i have to say,the very few I know that gambles at casino's do so very seldom,and only if they happen to have a few bucks of "mad money" that they budgeted for this specifically.Casino's can provide a bit of fun if you budget a few bucks,play the cheaper slot machines+make a fun evening of it-but in general they are dangerous places,imo,and best avoided.