What would you do?

27 June 2017

By Frank Scoblete

Albert Einstein discovered the most revolutionary truths by just thinking about the world. He called these thoughts “mind experiments.”

We do mind experiments too, although not at Einstein’s level. For example, in certain college ethics courses you are asked questions about what you would do in this or that situation. You see a couple kissing while standing on the train tracks but just across the way is a baby crawling on the tracks, and a train is coming – who do you save? It is too loud there to yell to the couple to get off the tracks and the baby has no idea of language yet. You make the choice as to who dies.

These types of mind experiments try to ferret out your innermost thoughts and moral leanings. That may be so, that may be not so, but the experiments are interesting either way.

So let’s do a mind experiment. You have just won a huge jackpot at the slots — say, 50 million dollars. You are on the first day of your four day trip to the casino you love. You win that jackpot in the first hour of your play. After the rigmarole of getting your check and meeting all the casino honchos, do you stay the four days and continue to play? Or do you take your golden nest egg and head home to savor your delight?

Miriam: “I’d stay the four days. I’d probably bet on higher denomination machines. I enjoy the casino experience and I’d stay now with no worries about losing any money. That’s what I would do.”

Mac Burger: “I want to be called Mac Burger because I eat a lot of burgers. I’d head home and say goodbye to my wife. Just kidding. But I would go home to get my head on straight. I think winning so much money would put you in a tizzy. You know what the word tizzy means? Well, like I said, I’d be in a tizzy and I’d need to settle down. Going home would be the way to go for me.”

Jane: “I would go home to give some serious thought to what I should do now with all that money. I don’t think I would tell too many people but I know the casinos put your picture up so keeping it quiet would probably be difficult. I think I’d have relatives coming out of the woodwork to borrow or just ask for some money. I’d try to avoid those people. I’m guessing the parasites would eventually be waiting for me.”

Judith: “I would go home to think but I would certainly return to the casino once I knew what I would do with such money. I would love to win that kind of money and I can tell you I would not throw it away with crazy spending sprees. I think winning a huge jackpot is a gift from heaven and I wouldn’t be an idiot with the dough; but I would go on a world cruise and stay in the best suite on the ship.”

Kevin: “I’d stay at the casino, maybe even add days. I’d drink and eat and gamble. Actually that’s what I do anyway. But with that kind of cash, wow!, no stopping me now. I’d buy expensive clothes and flash my money so the chicks get interested in me. Don’t tell my wife! [He laughs.]”

Okay folks. Give it some thought – what would you do?


[Read Frank Scoblete’s books I Am a Card Counter: Inside the World of Advantage-Play Blackjack, I Am a Dice Controller: Inside the World of Advantage-Play Craps and Confessions of a Wayward Catholic! All available from Amazon.com, on Kindle and electronic media, at Barnes and Noble, and at bookstores. Visit frank’s web site at www.frankscoblete.com.]