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Do You Believe in Luck
| September 2nd, 2010 at 11:35:28 PM permalink | |
| EvenBob Member since: Jul 18, 2010 Threads: 231 Posts: 6411 | Do you believe luck is a force in the universe, or is it just a word we use to describe events that go or don't go our way. Not a bad question, you'd be surprised at the number of people who've never contemplated this before. One casino owner to another: "It would be so much easier if we could just hit them over the head, steal their money, and throw their bodies in the creek." Al Swearengen, Deadwood |
| September 2nd, 2010 at 11:38:06 PM permalink | |
| mkl654321 Member since: Aug 8, 2010 Threads: 65 Posts: 3412 |
There is no such thing as "luck", in the way most people use the term: some sort of guiding/malicious/fickle force that changes the course of otherwise random events. The fact that a believer is happier than a skeptic is no more to the point than the fact that a drunken man is happier than a sober one. The happiness of credulity is a cheap and dangerous quality.---George Bernard Shaw |
| September 2nd, 2010 at 11:49:17 PM permalink | |
| chook Member since: Jul 5, 2010 Threads: 5 Posts: 113 | It's just another four letter word. But, thankfully not the foulest: - work. You can't trust a dog to mind your food. |
| September 3rd, 2010 at 5:04:19 AM permalink | |
| odiousgambit Member since: Nov 9, 2009 Threads: 174 Posts: 2419 |
There is the purely factual observation that the distribution of random events can be expected to be skewed. Thus on a given night, you might do well at a game where there is a House Edge. Etc. Etc. Since life often means doing well at critical moments, you can have bad or good luck at those critical moments. There is the U.S. Grant phenomenon, for example, a failure in life who will be able to shine in the right circumstance [leading troops, but must be given second chances at that too] and along comes a long war. Currently, there is a certain debate about good and bad years to be born. Now that is luck. See links. http://ccinsider.comedycentral.com/2008/11/18/colbert-malcolm-gladwell-reveals-the-secret-to-becoming-rich/ http://www.patricktaylor.com/1351 "Baccarat is a game whereby the croupier gathers in money with a flexible sculling oar, then rakes it home. If I could have borrowed his oar I would have stayed." Mark Twain |
| September 3rd, 2010 at 5:09:48 AM permalink | |
| DJTeddyBear Member since: Nov 2, 2009 Threads: 105 Posts: 5737 | Luck absolutely DOES exist. Unfortunately, it exists in two forms: Good and bad. It is always balanced, and you never know which side of the balance sheet you're standing on... Superstitions are silly, childish, irrational rituals, born out of fear of the unknown.
But how much does it cost to knock on wood? |
| September 3rd, 2010 at 6:38:28 AM permalink | |
| dwheatley Member since: Nov 16, 2009 Threads: 10 Posts: 550 | Luck only exists in hindsight. Wisdom is the quality that keeps you out of situations where you would otherwise need it |
| September 3rd, 2010 at 6:43:59 AM permalink | |
| Mosca Member since: Dec 14, 2009 Threads: 74 Posts: 1628 |
Agreed, or in your imagination as hope. It helps to understand that it can be seen as a secondary value, as an artifact of the human mind. It is used to make sense of a world that can often defy understanding. It refers not to events, but to our relationship with events. NO KILL I |
| September 3rd, 2010 at 6:49:42 AM permalink | |
| Nareed Member since: Nov 11, 2009 Threads: 218 Posts: 7296 | Nareed's 12th Law: There's no such thing as luck. This space is closed for remodeling |
| September 3rd, 2010 at 8:49:32 AM permalink | |
| dm Member since: Apr 29, 2010 Threads: 14 Posts: 699 | Jim's 13th Law: There is such a thing as luck. |
| September 3rd, 2010 at 1:57:53 PM permalink | |
| chook Member since: Jul 5, 2010 Threads: 5 Posts: 113 | I don't know if it's just my imagination but I seems to run in cycles. I think it was Pittsburgh Phil who said that you should double your bets when winning and halve them when losing. You can't trust a dog to mind your food. |
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