I found that phrase to be a bit contradictory—if you don’t want something, why go for it? I suspect the answer is that the original poster assigns utility to winning a lottery regardless of the utility of the prize.
...which is why I wasn’t too impressed. What would make it more interesting is if the original poster made the normative claim that we should do so. That would generate a more intriguing debate.
Actually, what I found striking was this:
The expected utility for me of acquiring something I do not want or need is, at most, nothing.
Are you folding in “capable of selling for net gain” to your definition of “want”?
Only when the likely gain exceeds the trouble of entering, winning, collecting, and selling.
Hence “net”.
Then, yes, apparently.
I found that phrase to be a bit contradictory—if you don’t want something, why go for it? I suspect the answer is that the original poster assigns utility to winning a lottery regardless of the utility of the prize.
That’s certainly the implication—and the point relies on the reader sharing that utility, which I don’t believe I do.
...which is why I wasn’t too impressed. What would make it more interesting is if the original poster made the normative claim that we should do so. That would generate a more intriguing debate.