Lottery is the world’s most popular form of gambling. People spend upwards of $100 billion a year playing. It’s a major source of revenue for state coffers, but if you look at the data, it shows that most of the money comes from low-income households and minorities. In a society where economic inequality is growing, these lottery tickets seem like a bad idea.

While states may need the money, they should reconsider the logic behind their decision to enact these games. Lottery games attract players from all walks of life, including those with a history of addiction or mental illness. They lure them with the promise of instant riches, and they create new generations of gamblers, who continue to play the games for years to come.

When you buy a ticket, you’re basically buying the right to be disappointed. The odds of winning are extremely slim, so don’t get too excited when you see a huge jackpot. It’s more likely that you’ll win a smaller prize, such as a free gas card or a t-shirt.

If the entertainment value (or other non-monetary benefit) is high enough for a person, then the purchase of a ticket might make sense. In that case, the disutility of a monetary loss is outweighed by the combined expected utility from both a chance at a large sum and the gratification of knowing that you’ve contributed to your community.

The problem is that, while the average lottery prize is relatively small ($1,000 or less), some prizes are very large – such as those that require matching all six numbers in a draw or the top prize of $390 million in Powerball. This is where the irrationality of the lottery really kicks in.

It’s also important to keep in mind that your odds of winning the lottery are not only slim, but that they are disproportionately concentrated among low-income households and minorities. According to one study, lottery proceeds are disproportionately concentrated in neighborhoods with lower incomes and higher rates of addiction and mental illness. The reason is that most state-sponsored lotteries are run by private corporations that profit from the exploitation of vulnerable people.

There are seven states that don’t have a lottery: Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Mississippi, Nevada (weird, right?), and Utah. The reasons vary from religious concerns to the fact that these states already have other forms of gambling and don’t want competition to cut into profits. But no matter the reason, it is clear that most states have a vested interest in promoting these types of games. And they’re not doing a very good job of it.