A lottery is a form of gambling which is present in United States and in Europe. It really is guided by the government and that is why some countries do not have such a form of gambling since the government outlawed it, while in other countries it became a national lottery.

Ahead of the World War II this type of gambling was illegal, but in 1960 casinos and lotteries began to appear in United States of America and Europe and they were used as a means to raise revenue as well as taxes.

Sometimes the lottery is described as a regressive tax. It’s referred to as a “tax on stupidity” because of the minimal chances to win the big prize. Even if it’s used to describe this type of gambling, the word “tax” is not strictly correct as these descriptions are used to make people know that these games are government-sanctioned operations and they attract only individuals who do not know that buying a lottery ticket is a simple economic decision.

Lotteries come in lots of formats. Some lotteries can provide a prize which is determined by money and some of them on goods.

Lottery tickets tend to be checked on the computer using mark sense-technology, which can check in less than one second if a mix of numbers was chosen by anyone.

Don’t think that the lottery was invented in 1960, after the World War II. Romans were first to play this game – this was a way to relax and amuse at dinner parties. The truth is that it was different from these days lottery, because, even when guests were receiving some tickets (the prize often consisted of fancy items), those who were unlucky received prizes, too. Therefore, this kind of lottery was a kind of distribution of gifts by wealthy noblemen.