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the opening post states his view that he has faith and belief in, his own system for gambling, his system which he favors and prefers and actively uses in gambling, he describes his system as "playing the odds" and allocating $300 to lose per night and then he stops. those are what he describes in the opening post as "little gambling rituals." the opening post admonishes other systems and gives examples of other systems, and indicates why he has faith and belief in his own system. that IS taking the post at face value.
Also interesting to see how people who don't really know the subject they are commenting about will "lead with their chin" rather than perhaps ask the appropriate questions and learn something before making declarations like those made here...
Is it that we have "faith" that 2 + 2 = 4 or do we simply know 2 + 2 = 4? Most of us anyway.
What I have explained and how I gamble is per the instructions provided in any book about how to properly play these two games in order to maximize the odds. It's all about probabilities. Numbers. Simple as that...
Here is a typical example of someone who doesn't seem to understand anything I've explained, and somehow concludes I am "regularly losing $300 a night." Very funny. Almost reads like a "gotcha" as it is pointed out that I admit to being a gambler. Yes, true. When I am in a casino, I gamble. I noted the last two times I won. Many times over my many years of gambling I have won and lost. The possibility of either is part of the fun! Playing in such a way to maximize one's odds of winning is not a "system." Unless you want to call maximizing one's odds of winning a system. I also like to play basketball, and nobody calls it a "system" to try and make as many baskets as possible. This sort of misunderstanding of the basics or fundamentals is what I'm comparing to how some religious people come to believe the wide variety of things they do. Based on what I would similarly describe as more than a little confusion about the what should be better understood.
regarding bold above, to equate gambling at the craps table with engaging in a path of religion and spirituality, well that right there is a glaring example of what post above calls "misunderstanding of the basics." a path of religion and spirituality is not gambling nor is it a game of playing the odds. or in words of the post above "more than a little confusion" about what is not understood.
Last edited by Tzaphkiel; 03-13-2022 at 09:37 AM..
Also interesting to see how people who don't really know the subject they are commenting about will "lead with their chin" rather than perhaps ask the appropriate questions and learn something before making declarations like those made here...Is it that we have "faith" that 2 + 2 = 4 or do we simply know 2 + 2 = 4? Most of us anyway.What I have explained and how I gamble is per the instructions provided in any book about how to properly play these two games in order to maximize the odds. It's all about probabilities. Numbers. Simple as that...
ah, there is even a book he follows and turns to for guidance as part of his system which he has faith and belief in.
Last edited by Tzaphkiel; 03-13-2022 at 09:37 AM..
I don't think you have to wait for the afterlife to have ambiguous outcomes. You sometimes have to make decisions without as much certainty as you'd appreciate, since holy books cannot possibly cover every possible set of circumstances. Or you might make a decision with high degree of confidence in your dogma and still have bad outcomes, which might take some time to become obvious. You might even make a decision you regret which later turns out to be fortuitous. Life often just stubbornly refuses to follow nice clean scripts, holy or otherwise. But the religious often are biased to notice when good outcomes come from 'righteous' decisions, and equivocate or rationalize / discount when they don't.
I am as I now am largely because my 'rationalizer' broke down. I just don't have the energy anymore to force-fit lived experience to what is 'supposed' to happen when you do certain things. It's a very costly thing to always be doing.
Yes, back to the topic of this thread, or to put it another way...
I think we all judge as to the odds a god is watching over us, judging us, deciding whether we'll go to heaven or hell. Any of that or whatever it is you think your god is doing. Ultimately if such a thing exists in the first place.
It's an important bet or decision, because if you tend to believe some of that stuff, you are likely to spend a lot of your time praying, going to church, doing god-belief stuff with important valuable time one can spend doing other important things. How we spend our time is a very important "commodity" or "currency" that in the same way we can either apply to maximize our odds of living life to the fullest or squander.
Needless to say (when it comes to anyone who already knows my views), I put the odds on there being no god to be wasting our precious time on.
Yeah the casino I'm talking about was on a reservation, which I lived on the outskirts of.
The little rituals some gamblers use is the same basic mechanism as the religious use. I used to try to will desired outcomes into existence with reflexive and constant praying, and it was not about trivialities like the canonical example of lost car keys or finding a parking space. I hoarded my poker chips for things like healing from severe illness, sparing loved ones from death, things like that. Wishing still didn't make it so.
And that is very much like gambling, the odds are the odds, and they aren't going to change because of some ritualistic blowing on dice.
Not sure I'm following, but no, hoarding poker chips for purposes of healing and avoiding death is not likely to bring the outcome you are wishing for.
Also interesting to see how people who don't really know the subject they are commenting about will "lead with their chin" rather than perhaps ask the appropriate questions and learn something before making declarations like those made here...Is it that we have "faith" that 2 + 2 = 4 or do we simply know 2 + 2 = 4? Most of us anyway.What I have explained and how I gamble is per the instructions provided in any book about how to properly play these two games in order to maximize the odds. It's all about probabilities. Numbers. Simple as that...
bold above aptly describes the notion put forth that a path of religion and spirituality is a game of craps, a numbers game, all about probabilities.
I have been to the Monte Carlo on the French Rivera. Other than more stylish people not very different in its essence from Atlantic City. Personally I see neither charm nor challenge in gambling.
Of course...
I've been in some pretty nasty casinos, like during our stop crossing the desert in Winnemucca. Elko, Nevada was a big disappointment too. I recommend Wendover out of the three. My wife is also not a gambler and is glad to just go to sleep in our room while I go into the night scratching my gambling itch. Still, even my wife has enjoyed many of the more fancy casinos that provide a good deal more than just gambling. One doesn't really need to gamble to enjoy some of those fancier casinos. I'm not sure I would describe them as "charming," and for most gamblers there is certainly a challenge, or we'd all be winners and make tons of money!
Obviously, you are just not one of those people. No different from how some people love auto racing while others not at all. Opera and/or rock and roll. "Different strokes for different folks." Part of what makes life and people more interesting. I'm not surprised about where you are coming from personally. Needless to say, those casinos don't stay open 24/7 with all that glitz, glamour, lights and free drinks thanks to people like you!
I have to admit that I'm not quite clear how this is related to religion, other than the perception of 'sin', which is mostly not being discussed.
good point, and yeah, i was wondering the same thing. actually from the thread title, that's what i thought the thread would be addressing, how gambling is viewed in different paths of religion and spirituality. that would have some relevant content and be interesting.
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