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Old 01-18-2016, 12:38 AM
 
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Someone here - probably in one of the Powerball threads - mentioned that poor people spend a lot of money on lotteries. I recall seeing an average over $500 per year.

And other people have mentioned they spend disproportionately on other vices like smoking and drinking.

I don't smoke and I don't play lotteries and I have an occasional beer with friends when I'm away from home; I figure I spent not quite $20 on alcoholic beverages last year.

So I didn't exactly blow any significant sum on these vices, but I don't feel any better off for not spending in these areas. And there are undoubtedly a lot of poor people who don't smoke, drink, or play lotteries; they probably don't feel any better off for it either.

Which leads me to believe that the spenders are spending a lot more than the 'averages' suggest, and that perhaps these people are prone to blow money on other things as well, e.g. a new Prohibition won't fix their spending problems.

So I'm guessing that dissolute wastrels will always find ways to blow their money, while frugal living doesn't make the poor wealthy.
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Old 01-18-2016, 07:06 AM
 
Location: southwestern PA
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The stat I heard on the radio today was that people making $10,000 annually or less spend on average $600 on the lottery (and mainly scratch-offs).
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Old 01-18-2016, 07:33 AM
 
Location: NC
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It's human nature that the less money you have, the more willing you are to do something wild and desperate to improve your condition. At least lottery tickets are legal and there is a chance of winning something. Unfortunately there is a much better chance of losing. Once you have some money, for example lower middle class and up, you do it for the fun and entertainment value of it. Personally, I prefer to use my money otherwise.
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Old 01-18-2016, 07:44 AM
 
Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
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A quote from Ronnie Hawkins, the rock and roll legend, about how he spent his money.....



Most of it went on women and booze....the rest I just wasted...


True story, he went into the only Rolls Royce dealership in Toronto, with $24,000 in a paper bag, looking to buy a new car. The salesman wouldn't even talk to him........Later Ronnie came back with his lawyer, and had HIM buy the car, for cash. The salesman was fired.


JiM B.
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Old 01-18-2016, 08:19 AM
 
18,481 posts, read 15,433,869 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Pitt Chick View Post
The stat I heard on the radio today was that people making $10,000 annually or less spend on average $600 on the lottery (and mainly scratch-offs).
It actually can be semi-rational. If you have too much money you can lose the benefits, so gambling at least gives you a chance of escaping the poverty trap, however slim. Or at least that's one possible thought they might have, I dunno.

Strict asset limits encourage gambling. Think about it.
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Old 01-18-2016, 08:30 AM
 
Location: Concord, CA
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As Bob Dylan said, "When you ain't got nothing, you got nothing to lose."

Lottery ticket buyers mostly have nothing.
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Old 01-18-2016, 08:38 AM
 
Location: Berwick, Penna.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ncole1 View Post
It actually can be semi-rational. If you have too much money you can lose the benefits, so gambling at least gives you a chance of escaping the poverty trap, however slim. Or at least that's one possible thought they might have.
"Disempowerment" is a central component of the "Great Korporate Game" that we know as life in a post-industrial society. The recent college graduate with a teaching job hasn't got that many more options than the guy or gal with a union card and a job on a production line, or the $25K "administrative assistant"

If you have a skill, and credentials, and the ability (and some would say "lack of character") to manipulate and use other people, you can get somewhere, but you will have to jump through plenty of hoops to do it, and by that time, you're likely to be too old to take full advantage of the rewards which were your original goal.

One way or another -- life always turns into a crapshoot.

Last edited by 2nd trick op; 01-18-2016 at 08:52 AM..
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Old 01-18-2016, 11:02 AM
 
Location: Chicago
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I've always said that the "curse of the lottery" is mainly a thing because the poor and uneducated are more likely to win. If you consider the fact that those in the lower 1/5 of socioeconomic status buy 61% of the tickets it shows that the poor are more likely to buy, thus more likely to win.

Since these people are so uneducated and presumably bad with money, it means they are more likely to fail at managing their new found fortune. That is why you hear so many stories of lottery winners blowing through the money or unable to emotionally cope with such a windfall.


Who plays the lottery, and why: Research review - Journalist's Resource Journalist's Resource
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Old 01-18-2016, 11:30 AM
 
6,326 posts, read 6,543,879 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ChiGuy2.5 View Post
I've always said that the "curse of the lottery" is mainly a thing because the poor and uneducated are more likely to win. If you consider the fact that those in the lower 1/5 of socioeconomic status buy 61% of the tickets it shows that the poor are more likely to buy, thus more likely to win.

Since these people are so uneducated and presumably bad with money, it means they are more likely to fail at managing their new found fortune. That is why you hear so many stories of lottery winners blowing through the money or unable to emotionally cope with such a windfall.


Who plays the lottery, and why: Research review - Journalist's Resource Journalist's Resource
Can you be poor and educated? Can you be educated and bad with money? Life is a beatch, most of the lottery winners are not poor, some are quite well off. Money and "luck" tend to favor some than the others even when playing lottery.
27-Year-Old Hedge Fund Manager Wins Powerball Jackpot

Of course buying 15,000 tickets helped, but against all the statistical odds rock bottom poor rarely win anything.
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Old 01-18-2016, 11:45 AM
 
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when it feels as though there is no hope....
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