I woke up this morning to another fractured dream. I didn't win the Powerball lottery. Not only I am not rich, I'm not famous either. Man, I had plans for that cash. I did purchase three chances and so it cost me six dollars. I gave up a hamburger and fries for that dream. Probably a winner in that regard though. Of course the downside is I'll live in poverty a little longer not having eaten that burger. The next Powerball drawing starts at a paltry forty million dollars. How are you supposed to live on that ? I'm only buying two tickets next time !
Did you feel a little tinge of disappointment to discover you won nothing ? I didn't even match one number. I admit, I did feel a little disappointed even though I know I shouldn't. I am well aware of the odds. It does speak to the unflinching spirit of man that we buy the ticket. I want to take that chance, it is a little thrill. I hesitated to even look this morning because to know the answer is to kill the dream. I looked, it died ! The result was fairly certain but that tiny bit of hope was there. It still is. I'll just have to wait for the next time I guess.
Is this compulsion to gamble a bad thing ? Yes, it is. There is no other logical response to that question. Nothing is just a little wrong. Gambling is wrong. No matter how you try to justify it, it is morally wrong. I could and should use that money, no natter how small an amount, to the benefit of others. That is the morally responsible thing to do. The logic that it is alright as long as you don't spend too much is flawed logic. Again , you can't be just a little wrong. The goal should be to be " correct " in our actions all the time, not sometimes. That being said, I will buy more chances and make no delusion that I will not. The temptation for the reward of riches is strong. My justification for doing so is always the good I can do with the money should I win. Well as the words to the song say, " the road to hell is paved with good intentions. " I can always use the logic that my contribution does benefit someone, the winner. I do not get to decide who is deserving and that is the drawback there. But then again, it's not gambling if you get to decide who wins and loses.
I have checked the numbers on my ticket several times this morning. They haven't changed ! The news is reporting how many won the jackpot and there are reports on several millionaires also being made. I know the odds of matching all six numbers is 292 million to one. I wonder what the odds are of not matching any of the numbers , three times in a row ! Shouldn't I get an award for that ? Seems like you should at least get another chance. Does that sound fair to you ? How many tickets were sold that fell into that category ? Is it buyers regret that I am feeling ? No, it is disappointment. Well, I'll get it next time that is the mantra of the optimist. The optimist thinks they can see the future. Without my glasses I can barely see the computer screen, but it doesn't stop me. Even knowing that I am committing a moral indiscretion doesn't deter me. The twisted logic there being, it isn't all that bad if you admit that it is bad. I can handle bad and therefore it won't get worse. It's a slippery slope however. I could wind up being a " liberal ! " I do need to contemplate all the ramifications of this desire to buy lottery tickets. Could be there is more at stake here then I imagined. A last word of advice : play responsibly.
When the outcome stands to personally benefit ourselves we will justify the action and sometimes carry that to excess. That isn't the case so much when the benefit is for others. That is the distinction between addiction and philanthropy. Of course you don't hear about many poor philanthropists ! Isn't that ironic. Shouldn't the true philanthropist be poor ? I wanted to be poor ? Oh, wait a minute, I am.
Did you feel a little tinge of disappointment to discover you won nothing ? I didn't even match one number. I admit, I did feel a little disappointed even though I know I shouldn't. I am well aware of the odds. It does speak to the unflinching spirit of man that we buy the ticket. I want to take that chance, it is a little thrill. I hesitated to even look this morning because to know the answer is to kill the dream. I looked, it died ! The result was fairly certain but that tiny bit of hope was there. It still is. I'll just have to wait for the next time I guess.
Is this compulsion to gamble a bad thing ? Yes, it is. There is no other logical response to that question. Nothing is just a little wrong. Gambling is wrong. No matter how you try to justify it, it is morally wrong. I could and should use that money, no natter how small an amount, to the benefit of others. That is the morally responsible thing to do. The logic that it is alright as long as you don't spend too much is flawed logic. Again , you can't be just a little wrong. The goal should be to be " correct " in our actions all the time, not sometimes. That being said, I will buy more chances and make no delusion that I will not. The temptation for the reward of riches is strong. My justification for doing so is always the good I can do with the money should I win. Well as the words to the song say, " the road to hell is paved with good intentions. " I can always use the logic that my contribution does benefit someone, the winner. I do not get to decide who is deserving and that is the drawback there. But then again, it's not gambling if you get to decide who wins and loses.
I have checked the numbers on my ticket several times this morning. They haven't changed ! The news is reporting how many won the jackpot and there are reports on several millionaires also being made. I know the odds of matching all six numbers is 292 million to one. I wonder what the odds are of not matching any of the numbers , three times in a row ! Shouldn't I get an award for that ? Seems like you should at least get another chance. Does that sound fair to you ? How many tickets were sold that fell into that category ? Is it buyers regret that I am feeling ? No, it is disappointment. Well, I'll get it next time that is the mantra of the optimist. The optimist thinks they can see the future. Without my glasses I can barely see the computer screen, but it doesn't stop me. Even knowing that I am committing a moral indiscretion doesn't deter me. The twisted logic there being, it isn't all that bad if you admit that it is bad. I can handle bad and therefore it won't get worse. It's a slippery slope however. I could wind up being a " liberal ! " I do need to contemplate all the ramifications of this desire to buy lottery tickets. Could be there is more at stake here then I imagined. A last word of advice : play responsibly.
When the outcome stands to personally benefit ourselves we will justify the action and sometimes carry that to excess. That isn't the case so much when the benefit is for others. That is the distinction between addiction and philanthropy. Of course you don't hear about many poor philanthropists ! Isn't that ironic. Shouldn't the true philanthropist be poor ? I wanted to be poor ? Oh, wait a minute, I am.
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