Well, okay, that would be the story in a just universe. Instead it’s about Scott Hoover, a Washington and Lee professor who filed his intention to sue the State of Virginia over their policies and procedures in handling scratch-off lottery tickets. Here’s the money quote from the Washington Post article:
Hoover, who teaches business courses, including statistics, alleges that he had no chance of winning the grand prize with his ticket.
The reason it’s the money quote is because what Hoover means isn’t what all of us who have taken statistics know about the lottery: that you have effectively no chance of winning. No, he’s torqued that the State supposedly didn’t effectively recall scratch-off tickets once the big prizes had been won. Apparently Virginia has a stated policy of recalling the scratch-offs once all the grand prizes have been awarded, which Hoover says they did not do.
In a just universe W&L would can him for failing to understand his own lessons and the jury would award him the 26.5 million he’s asking… if he successfully rolls 1,000,000 dice and gets a 6 on every one.
Picture courtesy of Jeffrey Beall
This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs
Well I used to say something in my profile about not quite being a “tinker, tailor, soldier, or spy” but Tom stole that for our about us page, so I guess I’ll have to find another way to express that I am a man of many interests.
Hmm, guess I just did.
My tastes run the gamut from sophomoric to Shakespeare and in my “professional” life I’ve sold things, served beer, written software, and carried heavy objects… sometimes at the same place. It’s that range of loves and activities that makes it so easy for me to love DC – we’ve got it all.
