What is the Washington State Lottery trying to hide?
The other day I wrote a piece attacking the Lottery for cynically targeting our state’s youth: “Lottery’s new market: hooking teens.” The basis for my criticism was an official document I downloaded from the Office of Financial Management’s web site entitled, “Washington Lottery Business Plan, 2005-2007 Biennium,” which described teens as “the players of the future” and designated 18-20 year-olds as part of “a key market the lottery intends to pursue.”
So how did the Lottery respond to the revelation that the primary focus of their marketing plan is promoting teen gambling? Did they issue an apology or an explanation, or a promise to at least study and reconsider their objectives?
No… apparently, all they did was remove the offending document from the OFM web site.
This morning I received an email from a journalist informing me that the link I provided no longer worked, and sure enough, the document is gone. I’ve since uploaded a copy to my own server and updated the link — you can download a copy here — but a fingerprint of the missing document can still be found on Google.
Search on a quote from the document — such as “this age group represents the players of the future” — and you find a broken link to the document, plus a cached HTML translation, courtesy of Google.
No doubt the Lottery was embarrassed to have this document publicly scrutinized, knowing what they know about the risks of teen gambling addiction. As I wrote the other day:
The Lottery’s own 1998 study revealed that as much as 18 percent of the state’s problem gamblers are under the age of 18, and that instant lottery tickets often serve as a gateway activity to more serious gambling. The study also corroborates other studies that show that at risk and addicted teen gamblers have a significantly higher rate of alcohol, tobacco, marijuana and other addictions.
The Business Plan had resided in a directory labeled “strategic,” and apparently it was just too strategic to share with members of the Legislature who are considering raising the gambling age to 21. Companion bills recently passed out of committee in both houses, but were weakened to exempt the Lottery.
Yet I wonder… if the full membership truly understood the Lottery’s marketing strategy — which now includes hiding such strategy from legislators — if they might not vote to raise the age on lottery tickets as well?
I suppose that might explain this mysterious, disappearing document.
Goldy,
I have no idea why you want to hold the youth of this state from winning money in the lottery.
You need to be in it to win it….
As I’ve said before in your previous thread, raising the gambling age to 21 would help prevent lawsuits against the state. At age 21, you’re deemed to be an adult, and if you gamble your money away in the lottery then it’s your problems and not the state’s.
Libertarian,
Two questions.
1) Do you feel the same way concerning the use of alcohol or the ownership of a weapon?
2) If we do not allow someone to gamble at age 18, should they be liable for the death penalty in a capital case? Or is this apples and oranges?
Your thoughts?
Libertarian-2
..’At age 21, you’re deemed to be an adult..’
The state considers people to be adults at 18 years, unless abortion is the topic. Then 12 or 13 years is the age of “responsibility”.
@4
EXCELLENT point
Commader Ogg asked:
1) Do you feel the same way concerning the use of alcohol or the ownership of a weapon?
Answer: I personally don’t have a problem with the drinking age at 21 or at 18, for that matter. I grew up in a state where beer and wine were age 18, and hard liquor was age 21. As for weapons, I’ve owned guns since I was 11 or 12, so 18 OR 21 would work for me.
2) If we do not allow someone to gamble at age 18, should they be liable for the death penalty in a capital case? Or is this apples and oranges?
Answer: My only beef with the death penalty is that it’s not carried out fast enough. If the court sentences someone to death at 9:00 AM, then that person should be dead by noon. Every now and then we’re gonna do the wrong guy. Well, if ya run a big operation, you’re gonna have a few losses along the way. As for age limit, 18 will work for me, and even younger in extrement circumstances.
yearight @ 4: Thanks for correcting me. What I should have said in my first post was that most people are defnitely deemed to be adults when they reach 21 at the latest. Of course, I know people in the sixties who haven’t gronw up yet!
My only prolem with abortion is that they don’t occurr often enough. Poor girls getting knocked-up is an almost guaranteed path to poverty. Heck, I think Bill cosby offended black leadership by suggesting just that, but Cosby is right. Abortion is a way to avoid the cycle of poverty.
If those comments don’t get any responses, I’ll definitely be surprised!
“Every now and then we’re gonna do the wrong guy. Well, if ya run a big operation, you’re gonna have a few losses along the way. As for age limit, 18 will work for me, and even younger in extrement circumstances.”
what a horrible sentiment. I really can’t accept someone shrugging and saying ‘well, these things happen’ when an innocent person is Put to death on accident.
“Starship Troopers” criminal code, Libertarian. Harsh.
I am not quite ready to shrug off the execution of one or two innocents, although i do feel that our present system takes too long.
Libertarian-6
‘Abortion is a way to avoid the cycle of poverty.’
Would it not be quicker to knock off the poor women instead? How about poor youngsters before age five?
On the other hand, DNA technology has reafirmed many a guilty person beyond a reasonable doubt:
DNA Tests Confirm Guilt of Virginia Man Executed in 1992
@8
As opposed to just killing an innocent child instead….
I knew those comments would get everybody going!
But, Goldy, I thought that the Government — or at least the Government run by Dems (as it is in WA) — is our friend! I thought a Dem administration ONLY had the interests of the Proletariat at heart. How can what you say be true??!! Perhaps that NoGoodnik Sharkansky hacked into the Lottery website and took down the document. Maybe it is a Vast Right Wing Conspiracy!
It almost sounds like you want to hold someone in Government a… a… a- ccountable!
Mark @14,
I believe in government. So of course that means it is in my interest that government be efficient and accountable.
Mark – I’m for holding people accountable for their actions. The topic here is the lottery and whether or not the age should be raised to 21 from 18. The idea is that a significant portion of problem gamblers are 18 to 20 years old.
Normally a Libertarian would NOT support such a move, but I have another agenda of avoiding lawsuits for the state. I support raising the age to 21 to gamble because a problem gambler at that age or above has definitely no recourse against the state and the lottery.
In a roundabout way, I support 21 for gambling because I want to give the trial lawyers one less opportunity to bring class action lawsuits against the state (and thus the taxpayers) alleging people got hooked on gambling at the tender age of 18 vs. 21.
Usual suspects.
Liberidiot @6
“If the court sentences someone to death at 9:00 AM, then that person should be dead by noon. Every now and then we’re gonna do the wrong guy. Well, if ya run a big operation, you’re gonna have a few losses along the way.”
Pretty fucking cavalier attitude you have toward innocent human life, pardner. You just resigned from the human race.
16
Well Lib, if you think the state is contributing to gambling addiction, why not just get the state out of the gambling business? Exploiting the weak and gullible is hardly a moral way to raise public revenues.
GOLDY — You should send a Public Disclosure Act request to Lottery for a copy of the document. They have five (5) days to respond. If they don’t you can file a lawsuit against the state and ask for up to $100 a day in monetary penalties, plus attorney fees and costs. Hell, you could even set up a “legal action fund” on your blog to raise money for legal fees — then keep all the proceeds for yourself! Why not, Stefan does it.
Is it somehow more moral for the state to take an elderly widow’s Social Security money than it is to take a 17-year-old’s allowance?
Roger – See Libertarian’s commnet @ 13 and stop being such a fucking self-centered iditotic asshole.
Hava a nice weekend, cocksucker!
Mark @14,
I believe in government. So of course that means it is in my interest that government be efficient and accountable.
Comment by Goldy — 2/3/06 @ 3:38 pm [Wrong. Dems just want BIGGER guvment to buy more votes. Libs have never given a shit about
efficiency and accountablity. More votes equal Democrat power equals more votes.
what a horrible sentiment. I really can’t accept someone shrugging and saying ‘well, these things happen’ when an innocent person is Put to death on accident.
Comment by windie — 2/3/06 @ 2:43 pm [Windie, This kind of reminds me of Senator Teddy and Mary Jo. How about you? [hehe]]
8, Windie, “SAVE TOOKIE!!!!!” [hehe]
RE: JCH
Just an emotional sentiment here:
Shudder
I think that about sums it up for everyone…
When is Goldy going to call for the resignation of the CLOWN who appointed the state lottery director?
26. Yawn. I think THAT about sums you up!
Obituaries:
marks has succumbed to the virulent form of trollitis, a horrid form of eczema based on proximity to infected trolls. marks scratched himself to death. JCH insists he has nothing to do with marks’ passing…
Grieve for marks!
Again, Old enough to go to war, old enough to be sentenced to death, and old enough to be executed EQUALS old enough to play a game of cards, or a lottery scratcher! saying theyre advertising to teens is misleading, they are advertising to legal adults.
23
“Dems just want BIGGER guvment to buy more votes”
Hey JCH, tell me again how guvmint is getting SMALLER under Bush, and how Bush is spending LESS money!!! I could use a good laugh.