Question of the Day - 17 October 2018

Some sense in Utah not having a lottery but it seems the ultimate in hypocrisy that Nevada, of all states, doesn't have one. Someone spending $5 a week on tickets surely wouldn't affect the money that is gambled in casinos.

If handled properly, and the proceeds are guaranteed BY LAW to go exclusively toward a voter approved  fund, like education, it can be a good way to raise money for that use. 

If the proceeds goes into a general (politician-directed) slush fund, then I would say don't do it.  Last thing Nevada, or any state needs is to have politicians have a new "piggy bank" to exploit for pet projects.

Yes, as long as the law allows casinos to use lottery tickets in promotions: Casinos buy them in bulk, give them away to people checking in, or as part of some package. Stay with us, get 50 tickets! With casinos buying the tickets thousands at a time, the huge jackpots could be another enticement to come to Vegas.

When gambling was re-legalized in 1931, our constitution already prohibited lotteries.  If I've got my history right, the new law was challenged on the basis of that prohibition.  The Nevada Supreme Court ruled that the new law was constitutional, differentiating the evil of lotteries from the mere vice of gambling.  Some of us still feel that way:  Lotteries are an evil, while gambling is only a vice.

Just a reminder that comments here are supposed to be about the poll and not about the law. 

I think the poll should have a demographic element of whether the respondent is a Nevada resident, or not. And if not, if there is a lottery or not where they live. 

Also, if they currently play the lottery even if they have to cross state lines to do so. 

Lotteries are HOPE!  For a buck and a weeks wait for results is dream time for a better life, hope for an end to suffering, and planning for happiness.  No casino could ever offer that because for a buck, all hope is crushed within moments.  This hope is essential for the poor and down trodden who couldn't afford anything in any casino.  New York mobsters in the early 1900's knew this and made a fortune with their numbers games, same thing as todays lotteries but without the cheating (often winners got robbed).  Sorry, forgot that states rob winners too but with taxes on the winnings, they just don't get it all like the mobsters did.  So, if there is a Nevada lottery, winnings should be legislated Tax free and not screw winners over with taxes the way California does it's lottery winners.  After all, it's bad enough that our Federal Government has it's hands constantly in our wallets or purses.

Yes!  NV needs a lottery.  Have you been to Primm and seen the lines to buy tickets? (Never figured out why they don't just drive one exit to Nipton--no lines at the General Store); the casinos can't possibly compete with Powerball or Mega Millions with the size of the jackpots.  Agreed--the state is just supporting the dreams of players with the big payouts!  The way to make a lottery work, however, is to partner with the casino industry--have the casinos help sell tickets for a piece of the action--and encourage them to give away tickets as prizes!  Why should NV loose all of the revenue to California, Oregon, Idaho and Arizona that it could be keeping in the state?  

I think you should add a choice, "Yes, but the proceeds should be guaranteed to go towards education" or something similar so that the public knows where the lottery profits will go.

How about an answer such as:  Yes, but limited to allowing Powerball or Mega Millions tickets to be sold in Nevada.

Administration of a statewide lottery is complicated and should be an important consideration for Nevadans.  My state's lottery, the first director made a big mess of things in short order.  His starting salary was huge, six large figures.  The search committee had been hornswaggled by glowing recommendations.  After clearly mismanaging things (for his own benefit) he was let go with a nice severance pay.  A director or two later, I believe the jury is still out on whether lottery proceeds are all going to the stated purpose, higher education scholarships.  So, it isn't just a question of liking to play the lottery, but how is your money being spent for the stated good, e.g. general revenue or education or anything else.

That said, I buy a ticket or five now and then. 

Yes, but you should have to demonstrate that you have an IQ of 80 or lower to buy a ticket.

Yes, they should allow lotteries because small store owners benefit from the commission. That's probably why casinos are against it because the big guys want it all. They don't want to let the little guys even have the crumbs.

If you allow for multiple responses, it might lead to more interesting information. Based on the current suggested responses, I might select all of the yes responses and at least one of the no responses. Even if you limit multiple choices to 3, you may get some interesting choices.

I don't care because I don't come to Nevada to play the lottery. Not I don't play the lottery- a lot of the readers of LVA are from out of state.