SONGSOPTOK: Do you buy
lottery tickets? If yes, then how frequently? What is your motivation for
buying them?
PHILLIP: I'd rather burn my own money than
purchase a lottery ticket.
SONGSOPTOK: Have you ever won a lottery? If yes, then can
you describe what your feelings were? If not, do you feel disappointed every
time you lose?
PHILLIP: No, I've never won a lottery nor have
I ever lost at one either and furthermore, I do not feel bad for never having
purchased a chance at this game, especially when the odds of winning are nearly
the same as surviving a lightening strike three or four times.
SONGSOPTOK: Why, according to you, people buy lottery
tickets, especially where the probability of winning is infinitely small? Is it
lust or is it more of an adventure?
PHILLIP: My only guess is that people believe
that their problems will be solved by a huge monetary increase which
ironically, is typically not true according to studies done about people who've
won tremendous amounts in lottery winnings.
SONGSOPTOK: Do you think that buying lottery tickets is
rational? If so, what is the rationality behind it?
PHILLIP: I personally think it's a criminal
act perpetrated by states and local governments as a way to win tax free cash
off a duped and often uneducated public.
SONGSOPTOK: Can buying lottery tickets be compared to
other forms of betting and gambling? Please explain your answer.
PHILLIP: Indeed, I don't think comparisons are
in order, it is an act of gambling and betting no different than playing
roulette or betting on a horse, except in those two offered examples your odds
of winning are much greater.
SONGSOPTOK: Do you think lotteries are immoral in the
sense that they tempt people to ‘waste’ money? Do you personally look at it as
wastage?
PHILLIP: I see no reason to bring morality
into this assessment. People are more
than capable of tempting themselves and frequently do so and the only person
responsible is the autonomous agent that makes the decision to play or not to
play.
SONGSOPTOK: Recent studies designate buying lottery
tickets as compulsive buying. Do you agree with this view? Have you witnessed
this in your own life? Would you consider it to be a form of addiction?
PHILLIP: I certainly think it can become an
addiction but have no current insight into this matter as I'd have to collect
data from studies that include things like MRI's and FMRI's that can
objectively point and elucidate how the brain reacts to a lottery. My guess is that yes, it certainly is an
addiction.
SONGSOPTOK: All over the world the mega lotteries have
become important social phenomena, surrounded by a lot of hype. What is your
opinion about that?
PHILLIP: That, much like Solomon would
suggest, there's nothing new under the sun.
SONGSOPTOK: Do you watch the live draws on the
television? Do you ever speculate on the number that will roll out next? How do
you feel when you get it right? Have you ever guessed all the numbers and
regretted not buying a ticket?
PHILLIP: I haven't watched television for
nearly 15 years and have been much happier since. And the only large numbers I speculate about can
be found in examples offered by Graham's Number as designated by the
mathematician, Ronald Graham or, to offer another example, the distinct
difference between countable and uncountable infinity as initially speculated
by the mathematician, Georg Cantor.
SONGSOPTOK: What would you do if you won the Powerball or
the EuroMillions tomorrow? We would like to know everything you would like to
do
PHILLIP: More than likely I'd share a
substantial percentage with trustworthy charities, put the rest in savings and
bonds and buy a little book cluttered home and live out my remaining days
anonymously.
PHILLIP
MATTHEWS ROBERTS A 42 YEAR OLD WRITITERS WHO RESIDES IN THE SMALL COMMUNITY OF
LEXINGTON, KENTUCKY AND SPENDS MOST OF
HIS DAYS READING AND REVISING POEMS, SHORT STORIES AND NOVELS THAT HE HAS BEEN
WORKING ON FOR THE PAST TWO DECADES OR LONGER.
We sincerely thank you for your time and hope we
shall have your continued support.
Aparajita Sen
(Editor: Songsoptok)
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