Around 2008 I saw a young girl with little money spend her last dollar on the lottery. I wanted to explain that her return on investment would be negative, however it seemed my advice would be ignored....so I kept quite. Recently I saw a gentleman wanted an algorithm to pick numbers to maximize the probability of winning. I explained the best algorithm is to not play. The expected return on simple lottery games is negative 50 cents per dollar, and it decreases as the games add layers of complexity. Which means you lose at least half the money you invest long term. I can not understand how/why local governments allow a problem like this for the people they serve. Only play the lottery if you have a special intuitive feeling....otherwise spend your money wisely.