We’ve all heard the headlines…”Recent $2M Jackpot Winner Leroy Fick Still Uses Food Stamps for Groceries”.   And in unison we all chant “What a horrible and despicable man this is!” and we’re on to the next headline.  But who are the real villains here? Let’s not act like Pavlov’s doggies every time the media throw us a bone.

The real evil doer here is the state and federal governments.  First, everything Leroy has done is legal and provided for by law.  Leroy didn’t make up the rules here.  His winnings are not considered income when calculating his eligibility for food stamps according to law, so he is still eligible, period.   Did Leroy write the law? No.

Second, the most egregious crime committed here is that this American citizen won (or arguably earned by investing in a lottery ticket) $2 million dollars and what did he get?  $850,000, less than half his winnings.    The media are still reporting Mr. Fick as a millionaire but 850K a millionaire doth not make last time a checked my calculator.  How then can it be ethical or just that the government claimed $1,150,000 of Mr. Fick’s money?  What did they do for this money?  Nothing.  This is the real crime that the media have ignored.   How much does Mr. Fick get per month in food stamps by comparison?  $200.

So the news media would have us focused on the $200 that Mr. Fick is getting legally rather than the $1,150,000 that our gluttonous government helped its self to by threat of force.