Yeah, tough one. When I was around twenty, a friend called the state lottery a tax on stupidity. At that time his comment seemed kind of amusing due its abrasiveness but I couldn't think of a serious retort that wouldn't come across as "we should protect people from themselves".

I'm not sure I still have an answer for that. And I now view the subject to include other forms of gambling (where you statistically stand to lose), helmet laws.... Why require seat belts?

I think you can defend laws, like speed limits, that serve to protect others from the would-be transgressor. Maybe you could make a case for the former if there are family involved that depend on the income of the person who might be fritting it away on Lotto tickets.

I have a friend who "gambled" on the stock market with his disposable income (and that there is an obvious distinction between the former cases, FWIW) because, he explained, he was never going to cross that next threshold and become "rich" just from stashing his gains away.

So, I don't know. I'm 40 years older now and still on the fence as to whether we should allow someone to wreck their life.