West Side Rag
  • TOP NEWS
  • OPEN/CLOSED
  • FOOD
  • SCHOOLS
  • OUTDOORS
  • REAL ESTATE
  • ART & CULTURE
  • POLITICS
  • COLUMNS
  • CRIME
  • HISTORY
  • ABSURDITY
  • ABOUT US
    • OUR STORY
    • CONTRIBUTORS
    • CONTACT
West Side Rag
No Result
View All Result
SUPPORT THE RAG

Search the site

No Result
View All Result
Get WSR FREE in your inbox
SUPPORT THE RAG

Photo of the Day: The Lottery Line

October 20, 2018 | 9:07 AM
in NEWS
6

Trader Joe’s on 72nd Street usually has the longest lines in the neighborhood. But on Friday, an even longer line stretched down Broadway between 71st and 72nd. This one was to buy Megamillions — now worth over $1 billion — from a local tobacco shop.

Photo by Bette Kerr.

Share this article:
SUPPORT THE RAG
guest

guest

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

6 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Upperwestsidewally
Upperwestsidewally
6 years ago

Lotteries are a special tax on people who failed basic math tests.

0
Reply
Sally F
Sally F
6 years ago
Reply to  Upperwestsidewally

Haha!

0
Reply
BillyNYC
BillyNYC
6 years ago
Reply to  Upperwestsidewally

LOL

0
Reply
JeffS
JeffS
6 years ago

Such a snarky comment. Quite a few of your seemingly mathematically challenged purchasers of lottery tickets are fairly well heeled folks who dream of a lifetime of travel and leisure. You could have mentioned that many of the lowest wage earners in the country do this out of a sense of hope for a better and more beautiful life, and that government preys on that hope.

Now that the Lottery has been made mathematically even more difficult to win, it raises hopes (and state revenues) even higher. In their latest financial statement, it was revealed that in fiscal 2018, New York State netted over 9 billion dollars in revenue from the lottery of which about 3 billion was shared with education. That fixes a lot of rail track, paves lots of streets and buys a whole lot of books and supplies for schools. So, you could think of purchasing a Lottery ticket as a self-imposed tax intended to help the state, with a side, improbable benefit of some kind of financial rainbow lingering in the distance.

0
Reply
BillyNYC
BillyNYC
6 years ago
Reply to  JeffS

So very true, but the lower income lotto people don’t think of what they’re really doing, do they? And playing is a win-win.

0
Reply
Jeff Segall
Jeff Segall
6 years ago

An unnecessarily debasing comment. Quite a few of your seemingly mathematically challenged purchasers of lottery tickets are fairly well heeled folks who dream of a lifetime of travel and leisure. They have the right to have those dreams. Now, you could have mentioned that many of the lowest wage earners in the country do this out of a sense of hope for a better and more beautiful life, and that government preys on that hope.

To your point: Now that the Lottery has been made mathematically even more difficult to win, it raises hopes (and state revenues) even higher.

I read the latest financial statement posted by the New York State government. Right at the outset, it is clearly stated that in fiscal 2018, New York State netted over 9 billion dollars in revenue from the lottery of which about 3 billion was shared with education. That revenue fixes a lot of rail track, paves lots of streets and buys a whole lot of books and supplies for schools. So, you could think of purchasing a Lottery ticket as a self-imposed tax intended to help the state, with a side, improbable benefit of some kind of financial rainbow lingering on the oh, so distant, horizon.

0
Reply

YOU MIGHT LIKE...

Warrant Issued for the Arrest of UWS Pit Bulls Owner; Dogs Still Not Turned In
NEWS

Warrant Issued for the Arrest of UWS Pit Bulls Owner; Dogs Still Not Turned In

June 13, 2025 | 5:09 PM
The Race to Represent UWS and Morningside Heights District 7: Abreu Announces Endorsements, Okporo Prepares Challenge
NEWS

Upper West Side Election Guide 2025: Early Voting, Polling Sites, Local Races, Candidates

June 13, 2025 | 10:41 AM
Previous Post

Stop Work Order Issued for 200 Amsterdam Avenue

Next Post

Upper West Side Woman Found Dead in Her Apartment With ‘Laceration to Her Neck’

this week's events image
Next Post
Upper West Side Woman Found Dead in Her Apartment With ‘Laceration to Her Neck’

Upper West Side Woman Found Dead in Her Apartment With ‘Laceration to Her Neck’

On Henry’s Last Night, A Proclamation for ‘Henry Rinehart Appreciation Day’

On Henry's Last Night, A Proclamation for 'Henry Rinehart Appreciation Day'

JCC Has a Wide Range of 60+ Programming; Learn More Now!

JCC Has a Wide Range of 60+ Programming; Learn More Now!

  • ABOUT US
  • CONTACT US
  • NEWSLETTER
  • WSR MERCH!
  • ADVERTISE
  • EVENTS
  • PRIVACY POLICY
  • TERMS OF USE
  • SITE MAP
Site design by RLDGROUP

© 2025 West Side Rag | All rights reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • TOP NEWS
  • THIS WEEK’S EVENTS
  • OPEN/CLOSED
  • FOOD
  • SCHOOLS
  • OUTDOORS
  • REAL ESTATE
  • ART & CULTURE
  • POLITICS
  • COLUMNS
  • CRIME
  • HISTORY
  • ABSURDITY
  • ABOUT
    • OUR STORY
    • CONTRIBUTORS
    • CONTACT US
  • WSR SHOP

© 2025 West Side Rag | All rights reserved.