The Lottery is a Tax on …

Constantly on the lookout for and with a vested interest in Canadian mathematics education matters, because if Canadian mathematics education matters then Canadian mathematics education matters, this article is an investigation into the Canadian lottery landscape. With apologies to the Atlantic Lottery, Loto-Québec and Ontario Lottery and Gaming, this article, based on where I live and have lived in Canada, is a deep dive into the British Columbia Lottery Corporation and the Western Canada Lottery Corporation (which includes Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, and where Yukon, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut participate as associate members). By detailing the chances of winning Lotto 6/49, Western 649, Lotto Max and Western Max, I attempt to call into question the aphorism that the lottery is a tax on the mathematically challenged. A cursory look into the psychology of one player of the Canadian lottery (read: me), including an analysis of former lottery slogans, pushes against the notion (read: aphorism) that the lottery is a tax on the stupid. Lastly, a nouveau comparison between Canadian income tax rate brackets and lottery tax rates and brackets reveals, without a doubt, that the lottery, in the grand scheme of taxes, is a regressive tax. As a result, and still recognizing you are (probably) not going to win the lottery, it is time, I contend, for a new Canadian-lottery-based aphorism: the lottery is a tax on the willing.

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