Yes, but I think the point of his lottery article was that it was a bad deal for the individual player, and not just because it had a negative expected value; he was making the point that the actual existence of the (slim) possibility of riches was itself harmful. And he was not focusing on whether one actually won the lotto, he was focusing on the utility of actually having the chance of winning (as opposed to the utility of actually winning).
Yes, but I think the point of his lottery article was that it was a bad deal for the individual player, and not just because it had a negative expected value; he was making the point that the actual existence of the (slim) possibility of riches was itself harmful. And he was not focusing on whether one actually won the lotto, he was focusing on the utility of actually having the chance of winning (as opposed to the utility of actually winning).