I have a beef with the deceptive ads being run by the Tri-State lottery. They promote a scenario where everybody seems to know somebody who just won the lottery, and they make it sound like a regular occurrence.
When the Maine State Lottery first began years ago, that may have been true until the bureaucrats in the state figured out that if they added a number the amount won would go up and, conversely, the number of winners would go down. One’s odds of winning go down exponentially with the addition of just one number.
I would rather see the lottery run as it was originally, when more players had a real chance of winning small amounts — $50,000, $100,000, $250,000, and up. What an impact that could have on more people. Then, maybe the ads would be more appropriate.
Presently there are 19 and up ways for people to gamble with the lottery, some drawn daily.
Can people guess who the real winners are?
I’ll give a hint: it’s all Mainers in the form of revenue to the state’s General Fund.
John Reeder, Lewiston
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