If you actually ask a lottery customer, you'll find that they have a basic grasp of the math. I prefer to think of the lottery as a tax on people willing to pay taxes, and that's as moral as taxation can get.

Anyway, the real motivations of the lottery customer are not as stupid as people think. Consider:

1. Odds of Joe Beercan getting rich through the usual methods (years of hard work, inheritance, rock stardom): Zero. And Joe knows this better than anyone.

2. Odds of Joe Beercan getting rich through the lottery: One in 600 billion. He knows this is a longshot, but that it's better than nothing.

If you want even the merest shot at getting rich, the lottery's not so bad. (Though hoping for 10 blackjacks in a row is probably still better.)