Saving that $300 a year at a highly unlikely 10% interest ends up being $36k after 25 years. It's not solving any problems. To even save up that $500 minimum would take 2 years. We can't just blame it on a single straw-man.
I was just responding to the often cited claim that average Americans would be devastated by an unexpected $500 expense. They're spending $300+ on lottery tickets, and yet can't cover a $500 expense. It seems a rather simple solution to me.. don't throw away your money on lottery tickets.
500>300 so it's not really gonna help without a multi year plan. That would be an ideal move if humans were emotionless automatons but that point people need some amount of entertainment or hope to keep on going day after day. If you took away everyone's vices _and_ subjected them to the reality of life as an average American you'd have riots on your hands