Should Continue State Lottery Essay, Research Paper

Now that the Texas State Lottery has been in existence for some time, we are better able to understand if the Lottery is having a positive or negative effect on our state. Should we continue the Texas State Lottery or discontinue it? I believe we don’t need the Texas Lottery, and we should end it.

First of all, should not continue the Lottery because gambling leads to addiction and abuse. Once you start playing the Lottery, you could get lucky. If you were lucky, that could give you the tendency to buy more tickets because you won last time. Winning becomes a high which must be sought after again and again. The Lottery addict begins to spend more and more of his money on his addiction. This growing addiction can become abusive not only to the addict, but also to his family and friends. He might lose his job, his marriage, and even his place to live. He might even get so into debt that he ends up in prison or subject to physical violence.

Also, the Lottery should be discontinued because it fosters false hopes. The odds of winning are extremely small. In fact, I have heard that one has a greater chance of getting struck by lightning than winning the Lottery. Too many people look to the Lottery, some to the point of depending on it, to solve their problems. They are having trouble paying rent, or their car is old and breaking down, or maybe they hate their low-paying job. They imagine that if they win the Lottery all their troubles will be over. In particular, people who have low incomes will tend to buy more Lottery tickets in hopes of the Lottery solving all their financial worries. I have seen one man who I know is a day laborer who must not make that much money purchase $ 100 worth of Lottery tickets. These hopes are false, and it is cruel of the Lottery to take advantage of people in the way.

Finally, I believe that the Texas State Lottery should come to an end because it introduces more crime. Lottery tickets can be stolen or forged. Someone addicted to the Lottery might even be driven do rob houses or convenience stores to get more money for his habit. If someone had a winning ticket, he might be assaulted or even killed by someone trying to get his ticket.

Therefore, I support closing down the Texas State Lottery. It brings us addiction, false hopes, and crime that we don t need.