If the government really cared about you, it would encourage football betting rather than the lottery. 
Bush sacks on-line gambling
By Drew Voros
CONTRA COSTA TIMES
Article Launched: 07/22/2007 03:00:15 AM PDT
One recent morning on my way to work -- I needed gas and was in a hurry -- I was slowed by a man buying $250 worth of lottery tickets at my favorite AM/PM ARCO Casino in Brentwood.
First, he gave the clerk $150 worth of "quick picks," and while those were printing, he ordered an array of scratcher tickets. In total, it was $250. He bought no gas, newspapers, cigarettes or candy -- just placed $250 on a bet that is astronomically difficult to win.
That got me thinking about the upcoming football season.
The connection?
Anybody can wander into a store selling lottery tickets and dump hundreds of dollars on this government-run racket, but in this state, I cannot legally wager $50 that my beloved Pittsburgh Steelers will beat the Cleveland Browns in the season opener on Sept. 9.
The government's message is clear: Go ahead and bet on something with 100-million-to-1 odds, but don't you dare bet on a 50-50 proposition.
For the last few years, my football betting life has been glorious. Online gambling filled the void. Click on a site, provide a credit card number, authorize funds to an account and you're good to go.
Times have changed. The Bush administration, taking a break from its big gamble in Iraq, recently enacted a law forbidding credit card companies from funding this type of transaction.
This season will remind betting football folks of the pre-Internet days, when you hoped to find a bookie, and you hoped you would get paid if you won.
But back to probability and a government that supposedly is looking out for you.
If the government really cared about you, it would encourage football betting rather than the lottery.
Imagine you had the AM/PM guy's $250. Would you bet on something that had a probability of 1 in 100 million (lottery), or a 1 in 2 chance (football)?
Football bets, and basketball, too, feature a "spread" that is the neutralizer against a heavy favorite. That favorite "gives" points to the underdog. This provides the 50-50 formula.
It can be eerie how accurate that spread often is. Oddsmakers who make spreads are good or they would be sleeping with the fishes. Sportsbooks make their money on "juice" (10 percent of the bet) charged to losers. Having an equal number of bettors on both teams is the goal.
A football bet is like betting on a coin flip. A government-sanctioned lottery bet is like betting on where lightning will strike.
But as it stands today, I and others have to drive to Tahoe or Reno to get bets down before kickoff.
But until our fearless government leaders reverse themselves over online gambling, we'll see you at the AM/PM ARCO Casinos.
By Drew Voros
CONTRA COSTA TIMES
Article Launched: 07/22/2007 03:00:15 AM PDT
One recent morning on my way to work -- I needed gas and was in a hurry -- I was slowed by a man buying $250 worth of lottery tickets at my favorite AM/PM ARCO Casino in Brentwood.
First, he gave the clerk $150 worth of "quick picks," and while those were printing, he ordered an array of scratcher tickets. In total, it was $250. He bought no gas, newspapers, cigarettes or candy -- just placed $250 on a bet that is astronomically difficult to win.
That got me thinking about the upcoming football season.
The connection?
Anybody can wander into a store selling lottery tickets and dump hundreds of dollars on this government-run racket, but in this state, I cannot legally wager $50 that my beloved Pittsburgh Steelers will beat the Cleveland Browns in the season opener on Sept. 9.
The government's message is clear: Go ahead and bet on something with 100-million-to-1 odds, but don't you dare bet on a 50-50 proposition.
For the last few years, my football betting life has been glorious. Online gambling filled the void. Click on a site, provide a credit card number, authorize funds to an account and you're good to go.
Times have changed. The Bush administration, taking a break from its big gamble in Iraq, recently enacted a law forbidding credit card companies from funding this type of transaction.
This season will remind betting football folks of the pre-Internet days, when you hoped to find a bookie, and you hoped you would get paid if you won.
But back to probability and a government that supposedly is looking out for you.
If the government really cared about you, it would encourage football betting rather than the lottery.
Imagine you had the AM/PM guy's $250. Would you bet on something that had a probability of 1 in 100 million (lottery), or a 1 in 2 chance (football)?
Football bets, and basketball, too, feature a "spread" that is the neutralizer against a heavy favorite. That favorite "gives" points to the underdog. This provides the 50-50 formula.
It can be eerie how accurate that spread often is. Oddsmakers who make spreads are good or they would be sleeping with the fishes. Sportsbooks make their money on "juice" (10 percent of the bet) charged to losers. Having an equal number of bettors on both teams is the goal.
A football bet is like betting on a coin flip. A government-sanctioned lottery bet is like betting on where lightning will strike.
But as it stands today, I and others have to drive to Tahoe or Reno to get bets down before kickoff.
But until our fearless government leaders reverse themselves over online gambling, we'll see you at the AM/PM ARCO Casinos.
