North Carolina to Kick Off Lottery
Thursday, March 30th, 2006
By Chris Fitzsimon
By TIM WHITMIREThe Associated Press
LINCOLNTON, N.C. — North Carolina is becoming the last state on the East Coast to get its own lottery. But in a day when legalized gambling has become relatively commonplace, some wonder whether there can be much zing to the launch of yet another numbers game.
"North Carolina is obviously coming late to the dance," said the Rev. Richard McGowan, a professor at Boston College and author of "State Lotteries and Legalized Gambling: Painless Revenue or Painful Mirage."
The North Carolina Education Lottery is set to debut at 6 a.m. Thursday, making it the 42nd state with a lottery.
Officials expect it to raise $400 million in its first year for education, with the money targeted for class-size reduction, school construction and need-based college scholarships.
For leading proponents such as Gov. Mike Easley, who made starting a lottery a key initiative after his 2000 election, the game has long been depicted as a way of recapturing money players are spending in other states.
But some experts say the novelty of playing the lottery could be lost on many in North Carolina, where many already drive to other nearby states to buy tickets. (more…)
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