I find it amusing at times how much Massachusetts has changed since I was a kid. Remember the “Blue Laws?” They dictated a number of things, such as whether or not stores could be open on Sundays and when alcohol could be bought.

As a comic book-loving kid it was distressing to find out you weren’t allowed to buy a comic book on a Sunday from the drug store that was allowed to be open.

Many of these laws seemed to be in the spirit of the uptight, narrow-minded Protestants who came here to live centuries ago.

If the Puritans could see the state today, they would undoubtedly be aghast. The major vices seem now to be part of both our culture and our economy.

Of course, no one is forcing a person to participate in them, but I’m sure the Puritans would see some sort of religious comeuppance with the following news: the state lottery, which raises a billion dollars a year for cities and towns, is having some trouble.

How often do you play the state lottery? The twice-weekly trip to Buckeye Brothers in Springfield’s South End to buy a Powerball ticket and perhaps a scratch ticket is part of my schedule.

I’m not much of a gambler – so far I’ve spent $20 in a single slot machine encounter at MGM – but the idea of hitting Powerball is appealing.

I’m doing my limited part to support what has been one of the most successful state lotteries in the nation, however it would seem that many Bay Staters are shifting their priorities gaming-wise.

A recent State House News Service story by Colin A. Young has some potentially distressing news: lottery sales are seeing a decrease, and there seems to be several reasons.

A decrease is indeed very bad news for every mayor and select board in the commonwealth. The sky is not falling as yet, but the decreases do have some people worried.

The lottery’s interim Executive Director Mark William Bracken told Young, “It is concerning that our sales are decreasing, especially given the type and quality of products we’re putting out in the market. But I will say that this is a trend that the entire country is seeing with the lottery. I think everyone is aware of what’s going on in the world financially with inflation and stuff, and so we’re going to be looking at some ways to see if we can make some changes to adjust to the current market structure.”

State Treasurer Deborah Goldberg has said she wants to the lottery products to be available online to compete with sports gaming going online.

According to Goldberg, the lottery generated $1.1 billion in local aid. Young noted in his report Goldberg said to the Gaming Commission, “We already are facing mounting headwinds. In fact, we’re actively monitoring a concerning trend – sales of the Lottery’s top two product categories, scratch tickets and Keno, which together make up nearly 88 percent of all Lottery sales, were down six and five percent respectively last month.” She added, “Combined with new entertainment options soon to be available to consumers who have increasingly limited resources, I’m concerned that this trend will negatively impact the Lottery’s ability to deliver the levels of unrestricted local aid that it has grown to do so.”

It’s time for the Legislature to act on this development and do what Goldberg sees as a solution.
The normally glacial pace of the General Court needs to be upgraded. Let’s do what we need to do to ensure our bad habit of gambling continues to pay off in state aid.

I’m sure the Puritans would be grossly offended to see the state government they helped found rely so heavily on tax revenue from alcohol, tobacco, gambling and now cannabis. The fact is, from a guy who smokes cigars, uses cannabis gummies, likes a drink and buys lottery tickets, making money that can assist the state’s services and programs is the sensible thing to do.

G. Michael Dobbs has worked for Reminder Publishing for 22 years of his nearly 50-year-career in the Western Mass. media scene, and previously served as the executive editor. He has spent his time with the publisher covering local politics, interesting people and events.