We moan about taxes like pros—until the jackpot hits $826 million. Then we happily hand our last five bucks to the very system we just cursed, all for a one-in-292-million chance to retire with a model and a margarita. Meet Tony and Ken, the working-class dreamers funding the nation’s most glittery silent tax.
We humans are a strange lot. We’ll complain about taxes and even get angry when the government increases our tax rate. Ten minutes after we finish our angry rant about the increase in taxes, we hurry down to the local store and buy 10 lottery tickets sponsored by the government. We know our chances of winning are astronomical, yet, we plopped down money without a complaint. It is a silent tax the government gives us. They figured out by giving some hope we will be happy to do to pay a voluntary tax. Here is a conversation between two blue-collar workers who barely make enough to get by each week as they talk about this week’s lottery prize.
Tony: “The lottery is now $826 million. I already bought 22 tickets. And, I put $20 into a pool with 10 other truck drivers and we have 400 chances to win.”
Ken: “I used my last five dollars to buy tickets. I could really use the money. If I win, I’m going to give you $1 million, Tony.. Then, I’m going to walk into work and tell my boss he can take my job and shove it where the sun doesn’t shine.”
Tony: Iff I win it, Ken, I’ll give you $1 million. I won’t walk in and quit my job. I think I’ll buy the whole damn company. Then I’ll fire the boss. After I fire the boss I’ll hire a good assistant and tell him to run the company while I travel around the world with some 22-year-old model. I’ll make sure she signs one of those agreements.”
Ken: “That’s the life, Tony. I think I’ll retire to some island in the Caribbean and have beautiful women wait on me and bring me drinks.”
The government sells dreams when they operate the lottery. Every time the lottery gets over $500 million Tony and Ken start dreaming again and they’ll spend it all before the lottery takes place. I hope they don’t quit their jobs or tell the boss off until they win.
🤔 Speculative & Engaging Questions:
- Is the lottery a clever game of hope or just a polished scheme to tax the desperate?
- What does our obsession with winning big say about how we view work, wealth, and happiness?
- If Tony and Ken won tomorrow, would they actually follow through—or just buy more scratch-offs and a Jet Ski?