John Oliver Slams State Lotteries for Claiming to Benefit Education

John Oliver ripped state lotteries apart on Sunday’s episode of Last Week Tonight, criticizing the suggestion that lotteries are a huge boost to education.

Though people in the U.S. spent $68 billion on the lottery in 2013, Oliver stresses that the money does less for schools than states advertise.

Oliver also criticizes states for false optimism regarding the chances of winning big.

“The lottery is in the business of selling people hope, and they do a great job at that,” he says, before showing a family-oriented commercial that feel more like “an ad for a mutual fund” than for the Mega Millions jackpot.

But Oliver’s most convincing argument comes at the end of his segment, in which he addresses the issue of gambling addiction and the state lottery’s role in encouraging reckless spending.

“Gambling is a little like alcohol,” he begins. “Most people like it, some are addicted to it, and it’s not like the state can or should outlaw it all together, but it would be a little strange if the state was in the liquor business, advertising it by claiming that every shot of vodka you drink helps school children learn.”

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