Need a Last-Minute Gift this Holiday?

Finding the right holiday gift for someone can be difficult.

The Illinois Lottery encourages tickets as last-minute gifts which can be used as stocking stuffers or to replace gift cards and gift tags. I have a friend who shares my fantasy of winning the lottery jackpot. We take turns purchasing tickets every few months. We pinky swore that we would share the winnings. I can be entertained for hours with hopes of unrestricted spending and dreams of philanthropic giving. My mood and outlook are immediately improved with a one- or two-dollar lottery ticket. The rational part of me realizes that the odds are against me winning, but I enjoy the lift in mood. If you read the lottery fine print, they encourage players to play for fun, not funds, and to set a budget and stick to it. Players must be at least 18 years old.

Other people believe that giving a lottery ticket is the equivalent of giving a carton of cigarettes. It supports a bad habit. Approximately 1 percent of the adult population in the United States has a severe gambling problem. As many as ten million Americans live with a gambling addiction. You would be better off gifting your loved ones a sure thing, like a gift card with real value.

A bottle of wine is an easy gift. According to a survey, conducted by OnePoll, the average American consumes double the number of alcoholic drinks over the holidays than any other time of year. The holiday season is the most dangerous time of the year to be driving. The chances of being the victim of a DUI accident increase exponentially for those traveling by car. There are at least 45 DUI accidents per day in the U.S. during the three-day Christmas holiday period, according to BACtrack. 40% of all traffic fatalities between Christmas and New Year’s are caused by DUI drivers. The two-day New Year’s holiday sees an average of 31.7 DUI deaths per day and even more DUI arrests and DUI hit-and-runs accidents, according to ValuePenguin.

Iris Dorbian wrote a column Yuletide High: Cannabis Tops Christmas Gifts. Cannabis is the latest holiday trend. Most of the 630 respondents who were surveyed said they plan to replace alcohol consumption with cannabis during the holidays. 71.2 % plan to give cannabis gifts to friends; 65.2 % are giving them to family members; and 40.8 % are giving to significant others.

But let’s be clear. DUI’s, or Driving Under the Influence, account for impaired driving from multiple sources. And it’s not just from alcohol. Whether it is from alcohol, cannabis, and other substances, or even prescription medication, impaired driving can be deadly.

And, according to statistics, domestic abuse increases over the holidays. Abusers are more likely to be home alone with their victims than at other times of the year. Abusers are more likely to partake of alcohol or drugs when they don’t have to work. Let’s not increase the likelihood of their abuse by providing substances.

So, should we skip alcohol, cannabis, and lottery tickets altogether? I would say that unless you know the recipient well enough to know that they will use it responsibly, and would appreciate it, it is better to skip it. Some people are in addiction recovery. Other people prefer to avoid family conflict that comes with loose inhibitions. There may be people who are grieving a death and might become increasingly depressed with a substance. Consider all this, and maybe find another way of expressing your holiday cheer.