Shitbag Gov. Corbett Privatizes Lottery Sends $ Overseas

[Pryderi]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/pa-awards-contract-to-british-firm-to-manage-35b-pennsylvania-lottery/2013/01/11/d8677698-5c52-11e2-b8b2-0d18a64c8dfa_story.html

HARRISBURG, Pa. — Camelot Global Services, the British national lottery operator, is poised to take over management of the Pennsylvania Lottery after Gov. Tom Corbett’s administration said Friday that it had awarded a contract to the company in a deal that pledges $34 billion in profits to the state over the next 20 years.

Pennsylvania, whose lottery is among the country’s largest with $3.5 billion in sales last year, is on track to become the third state, after Indiana and Illinois, to hire a private lottery manager.

https://twitter.com/GovernorCorbett

[badhair77]

1. I think this corrupt gov realizes there's no way he's getting re-elected so

he's covering his bases for the future, preparing to land in a nice comfy job with those who owe him.

And how classless that he'd have his people send out the announcement on a Fri afternoon after the lottery employees left their workplace. What a bunch of cowards, the lot of them. He can't leave office soon enough. Worst governor ever.

People are talking about boycotting the lottery. That means even less funds for needy seniors, people who depend on meals, energy funds, etc - just basic needs. Someday he will face his maker for his actions against the citizens of the commonwealth. I am so disgusted by this administration.

[Pryderi]

2. This decision doesn't have to go through the legislature? What if the company

doesn't meet its obligations?


I think we need to amend our Constitution and put more power back into the hand os the people.

[badhair77]

3. "What if the company doesn't meet its obligation?"

I believe that's an issue in Illinois.

http://www.pennlive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2012/12/rushing_pa_lottery_privatization_is_not_a_good_game_plan.html

The verdict is still out on whether privatization is a good idea. Illinois’ private manager promised lofty profits to the state — much like Pennsylvania’s bidder has — but it fell $99 million short in the first year and instead of paying up it took Illinois to court.

Nothing would surprise me anymore. Perhaps we have to head to Harrisburg with pitchforks and torches.

[Pryderi]

6. Name a time and day and I'll be there. n/t

[blue neen]

4. I was thinking the same thing...

a boycott will hurt the seniors. With that being said, it's not a good idea to mess with senior citizens in Pennsylvania. Maybe this will wake everybody up to contact their local representatives to STOP CORBETT!

Gawd, how despicable can one man be?

[Freddie]

5. Shitbag is a kind word for him

While he destroys public education and of course allowed Jerry Sandusky a few years more time to destroy kids. Sadly PA has a long "tradition" of automatically allowed governors 2 terms. We Dems have to have a good candidate in 2014!!

[Pryderi]

7. Can the union take this to court?

[Divernan]

8. Lottery players are the nation's biggest suckers,according to conservative leaning Bloomberg News

Does anyone seriously believe that Corbett or wealthy Republicans play the lottery? The lottery is the desperate dream of people at the bottom of the economic ladder, or those afraid of ending up there. They're mathematically challenged to begin with, and often end up as gambling addicts. Of course, Corbett is going to rip them off - they're not his donors/lobbyists. I worked with a lot of politicians and lobbyists - none of them played the lottery, although some did enjoy getting comped for trips to Vegas. The same thing for siphoning off lottery benefits for senior citizens. The elderly wealthy don't worry about nursing homes - they have live-in care/help 24/7.

I have to agree with the conservatives on this issue. I've never bought a lottery ticket, and consider it statistically a game for suckers. Here's some links/facts to back me up.
"Winning the lottery represents the most practical way [for me] to accumulate several hundred thousand dollars." Seriously? The "most practical"? Crazy as that may sound, a few years back, the Consumer Federation of America and the Financial Planning Association published a joint survey revealing that yes, indeed, 21% of American adults agreed with the statement.

Admittedly, in a nation plagued by high and rising public debt, 8% unemployment, and inflation hitting food costs and gas prices, it's understandable that people might believe winning the lottery was their only chance at an "out."

It's understandable ... but wrong. The truth is that getting rich from winning the lottery isn't just unlikely. It's (statistically) impossible.
According to Bloomberg's study, state-run lotteries "have the worst odds of any form of legal gambling" in America. They're so bad that when you play the lottery in Louisiana, over time you're going to average $0.51 in "winnings" for every dollar you pay to play. The best odds in the nation can be found in Massachusetts, but even up there you're looking at a $0.72 payback on each $1 lottery ticket. And the average payout is just $0.60.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-03-14/georgia-lottery-players-suckers-spending-most-for-least.html
Now, let's compare the odds of taking home one of those big jackpots to the odds of some other activities:
Getting pregnant from a one-night stand: 1 in 20
Getting struck by lightning: 1 in 10,000
Dying in an airplane crash: 1 in 355,318
Being dealt a royal flush in a given hand of poker: 1 in 655,750
Dying from a flesh-eating bacteria: 1 in 1 million.
Winning the California Super Lotto Jackpot: 1 in 18 million.

http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/03/27/who-are-the-nations-biggest-suckers-lottery-players/