My understanding is that state lotteries were initially justified as means of putting criminal numbers rackets out of business. People were going to play one way or the other, so give them an honest game and stop funding hoodlums. That makes sense.

But there is no justification for state lotteries as revenue raising streams, nor for behavior maximizing those revenues. They shouldn't advertise and shouldn't be creating new games to increase their take. These are just taxes on mathematical illiteracy and risk factors for people with gambling problems.

Of course, the revenues are more important to the politicians than the general interest, so here we are.