THE BLACK KNIGHT
TOLD YOU SO
BY GEORGE HARRIS

Democrats proposed that the state of Nevada get in the gaming business by instituting a lottery with the proceeds to help Nevada’s children. As much as Titus, Perkins, Buckley, et al. constantly yammer on about providing essential services to Nevada’s poor, it’s surprising they would champion a funding source for government that preys upon the underprivileged and uneducated. 

Poor people overwhelmingly play the lottery in greater numbers than the rich; given to higher time preferences, being attracted by the low price to play and being oblivious to the overwhelming odds against them. 

Computer science professor A.K. Dewdney, author of 200% of Nothing, contends that the chances of winning a substantial prize in a lottery are so close to zero as to be just about indistinguishable from nothing.

You have almost as much chance of winning by playing the lottery as not playing the lottery.

Besides, past experience shows that the lottery revenue stream may not be as lucrative as the Democratic leadership believes. A New York State School Boards Association pamphlet points out; “in most states, as in New York, lottery proceeds are far less a boon to education than most people think.”

The lottery proposal is essentially a passive-aggressive move by Democrats toward the gaming industry. Instead of committing political hari cari by clearly articulating a proposal to take more money from the casinos via an increase in the gaming tax, the D’s (especially those considering running for governor) want to siphon off some of the gamers’ cash flow to benefit the swollen, dysfunctional school districts by having the state compete with them for the public’s gaming dollar. 

Of course state government is rolling in dough these days. The new money available for spending is reportedly $2 billion. Why weren’t Democrats fighting for a bigger piece of the existing pie for their friends at Ed Shed and the teacher’s union? Instead they held news conferences displaying outdated text books and bemoaning the fact that there are not enough of these outdated text books for kids to take home to do homework, problems that would be fixed lickety-split with a lottery. 

Titus and Company should work on legislation requiring that the education budget be spent in the classroom, on books, supplies and teachers. Problem is they don’t really care about education: they just care about mo’ money, mo’ money, mo’ money for education — where it goes nobody knows (or cares). 

So as predicted, the chances that the lottery bill had in the Senate were, well, about as likely as winning the lottery itself. LW