Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, February 23, 1992 TAG: 9202240210
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: D-2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
LOTS OF TICKETS
HOW DO YOU improve your chances of winning the Virginia Lottery, officially one in more than 7 million? You cover all bets - or try to.The commonwealth is still buzzing about a high roller who spent at least $2 million in an effort to buy a $1 ticket for every possible combination of six numbers in the drawing a couple of weekends ago. He stood to win as much as $27 million, or a share of it in any case. If he didn't it's only because there wasn't time for retail outlets to print up 7 million tickets for him.
Where does this leave the fabled "little guy" who's supposed to have some fun with the lottery while dreaming about an overnight trip to Easy Street? He - or she - still can win by lucking out with a winning number. A lot of ordinary folks buy more than one ticket, especially when the jackpot's big.
A lot of folks lose a lot of money this way. Even if you hold a fistful of tickets, the odds remain stacked tall against you.
And now it becomes evident that the only way to shorten those odds drastically is to be rich in the first place. Then you don't have to dream. Like the wealthy the world over, you can put your riches to work earning yet more riches.
If you do it at the expense of some little people's hopes, that's the way of the world. In this game, they still have a chance to win, and you'll share the booty if that happens. For the rich man or "conglomerate" buying all the combinations, the possibility of sharing is the only risk.
The lottery law refers vaguely to guarding against "abuses" and the role of "organized crime." But there seems nothing illegal per se about buying up millions of tickets in an effort to win. Indeed, by one line of argument the state ought to encourage such participation. Why discourage it? The more tickets sold, the bigger the take for the commonwealth.
Which, don't forget, is what this lottery is about. The lottery's effect may be to give people some excitement. But the purpose is to extract a voluntary tax by separating suckers from their money. The non-suckers can invest enough capital in tickets so as to minimize risk. Or they don't bet in the first place.