$1.35 Billion Mega Millions jackpot generates lottery talk in Alabama

IN. ALL RIGHT. SO IN THE COMING HOURS, WE SHOULD KNOW IF THERE’S A WINNER IN TONIGHT’S. $1.35 BILLION MEGA MILLIONS JACKPOT. YEAH, SOME IN THE AREA MADE THE TRIP LIKELY TO THE STATE LINE TO TRY THEIR LUCK AT STRIKING IT. RICH WVTM 13, CHIP SCARBOROUGH JOINING US LIVE IN BIRMINGHAM TONIGHT WHERE HE ASKED FOLKS IF THEY WOULD PLAY THE LOTTERY ON A REGULAR BASIS IF WE HAD ONE HERE IN ALABAMA. CHIP, WOULD THEY SAY. WELL, IAN, SO MANY PEOPLE IN OUR AREA EITHER MAKE THE TRIP TO THE GEORGIA STATE LINE OR THE MISSISSIPPI STATE LINE DURING BIG JACKPOTS LIKE THE ONE TONIGHT. AND CERTAINLY MANY PEOPLE IN ALABAMA WOULD PLAY THE LOTTERY IF WE HAD WON DURING BIG JACKPOTS. BUT WHAT ABOUT THE REST OF THE TIME? IT’S YOUR CHOICE TO BUY A TICKET OR NOT BUY A TICKET. GAS STATIONS ALONG I-20 AND TALLAPOOSA, GEORGIA, ARE A PRIME SPOT FOR ALABAMIANS TO BUY LOTTERY TICKETS. BUT NOT EVERYONE FEELS THE NEED TO RUSH TO THE STATE LINE. YOU KNOW, IT’S HILARIOUS, BUT I PERSONALLY THINK THAT AS THE THE SIZE OF THE POT GROWS, THE MORE PEOPLE ARE TEMPTED TO BUY A TICKET AND YOUR PROBABILITY OF WINNING GOES DOWN AND DOWN AND DOWN. ALL OF ALABAMA’S NEIGHBORING STATES HAVE A LOTTERY BEGGING THE QUESTION, SHOULD ALABAMA HAVE ONE? TWO, THEY SHOULD. I THINK IT WOULD BENEFIT THE STATE OF ALABAMA MORE. YOU KNOW, ALL THAT. ALL THE PROCEEDS GO TO, YOU KNOW, FUNDING FOR SCHOOLS AND AND AND ROADS AND SUCH LIKE THAT. I’M SURE THERE’S LOTS OF POSITIVE WAYS THAT WE COULD USE THAT MONEY. SO, FOR EXAMPLE, FUNDING LIBRARIES, I DON’T KNOW IF YOU’VE BEEN TO THE DOWNTOWN LIBRARY, BUT THEY’VE GOT A LOT OF REPAIRS THAT NEED TO BE MADE. THERE HAVE BEEN BILLS IN THE STATE LEGISLATURE OVER THE YEARS PROPOSING A LOTTERY, BUT THEY’VE ALL FAILED. IF A LOTTERY DID END UP IN ALABAMA, WOULD PEOPLE PLAY ON A REGULAR BASIS? AND NOT JUST DURING BIG JACKPOTS? YEAH, I WOULD. I THINK IT COULD GO TO A GREAT CAUSE. I AM A RISK AVERSE INDIVIDUAL. WELL, I FEEL LIKE IF I’VE GOT $3 IN MY POCKET, I’D RATHER GO TO THE COFFEE SHOP BACK THERE AND GET MYSELF A LATTE. AND I WILL TELL YOU, I SPOKE TO ANOTHER WOMAN OFF CAMERA WHO SAID SHE DIDN’T WANT TO BE INTERVIEWED, BUT TOLD ME SHE WOULD NOT SUPPORT A LOTTERY BECAUSE SHE SAYS IT’S JUST NOT HER THING. AS FOR LEGISLATION, STATE REPRESENTATIVE JOHN ROGERS TELLS ME HE DOES PLAN TO INTRODUCE ANOTHER LOTTERY PROPOSAL IN THE NEAR FUTURE. LIVE IN BIRMINGHAM TONIGHT, CHIP