A lottery is a game in which people pay for a chance to win a prize, sometimes a very large one. Lotteries are a form of gambling, but are typically regulated and subsidized by government. The purpose of a lottery is to generate public revenue and distribute wealth in a fair manner. A lottery can also be used to select winners for public services such as school admissions or housing units in subsidized apartment complexes.

Although the concept of a lottery has been around for thousands of years, modern lotteries are relatively new. In the 17th century, European countries began to hold regular lotteries to raise money for various purposes, including building warships and fortifications. In the United States, the first state-run lottery was introduced in Massachusetts in 1745. Its success inspired other states to adopt the practice. By the nineteenth century, a number of public lotteries were in operation, and many private companies offered their own versions.

Cohen explains how the lottery evolved from a rare chance to win a small sum of money to its current form, which provides state governments with a constant stream of funds that can be used for almost anything. He also demonstrates how the popularity of the lottery coincided with a decline in financial security for most Americans. As income inequality widened, pensions and job security diminished, health-care costs rose, and our national promise that hard work would bring prosperity waned, the lottery became a symbol of unimaginable wealth and a way to get there.

The book has two main messages: Lotteries are regressive, and they should be discouraged. In America, lottery tickets are bought by a majority of the population and contribute to billions in lost tax revenue each year. In addition, most lottery winners go bankrupt within a few years. The book suggests that instead of playing the lottery, citizens should invest in savings and build emergency funds.

Lottery has a long history, beginning in ancient Rome with the distribution of prizes during Saturnalia festivities. The Romans also used it as a way to give away fine dinnerware and other objects. In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, it was common in England, where it helped finance colonial settlement. It also spread to the American colonies, despite strict Protestant prohibitions on gambling.

During the Revolutionary War, the Continental Congress voted to use a lottery as a way to raise money for the military. In the nineteenth century, state-run lotteries became popular because they offered an alternative to raising taxes and cutting spending, both of which were unpopular with voters. Those fears have proved to be valid, but the lottery’s popularity continued into the twenty-first century as America became more and more disillusioned with our economic prospects. Lotteries are often promoted as a source of “budgetary miracles,” Cohen writes, which enable states to balance their budgets without raising taxes or cutting programs. However, those who win the lottery are often required to pay hefty taxes on their winnings.