For a Dollar and a Dream: State Lotteries in Modern America
by Jonathan D. Cohen
View on GoodreadsState lotteries let politicians raise money without raising your taxes. That said, Jonathan Cohen's history finds they brought in little revenue and leaned hardest on lower-income players. States kept expanding them anyway, as stalled mobility sent people to play and strained budgets kept governments selling.
Core ideas
- The anti-tax workaround: Anti-tax politics made lotteries attractive as a way for states to fund government without asking voters for more.
- Selling the dream: Lottery advertising targeted low-income and nonwhite communities, and scratch-off tickets were sold as a way to pay for education.
- Bigger than you think: About one in eight Americans play weekly, spending more on tickets each year than on streaming, concerts, books and movies combined.
Published2022
Pages288
ISBN9780197604885
ReadDec 2022
