Sampson and Delilah

1 June 2023

By Royal Flushes

CINDY: The Bible has some great stories about kings and heroes; great men and great women facing troubling times and single events even. These stories have made good movies too. We have a couple of stories that fit casino playing in many ways.

ABBY: Let’s take a look at one of the most famous stories of all time, Sampson and Delilah.

CINDY: We’re taking the 1949 movie version as the basis of our article. It has more oomph to it so don’t be offended. After all, it’s hard to dismiss Victor Mature and Hedy Lamarr as our two steamy characters.

ABBY: You know the story. Samson was beloved by God and a defender of his people, but Delilah seduced and betrayed him. Samson’s superhuman power came from his hair and Delilah cut it all off, weakening his great strength. He was then captured by those nasty Philistines and ultimately brought to an arena where these awful humans intended to kill him to the delight of the crowd.

CINDY: Samson survived, his hair had grown back enough to regenerate his power and he destroyed the arena, killing most of the Philistine audience as well as the Philistine king and his court. God’s man won. Of course.

ABBY: So, what does this great story have to do with casino players? We are all Sampsons in our version of the story. We come to the casino, all in our great power, all with our hard-earned money in our pockets or purses or in our casino credit accounts, about to tackle the great Philistines, meaning the casino industry. We are confident in the power of our money and our strategies. We will win. We will beat the house!

CINDY: Ah, but the casino has many beautiful distractions, much like Delilah.

ABBY: Let me just add this. In our story Sampson is both male and female. We are both this character. Okay?

CINDY: The casino offers glamorous games where we can use our money and skill to make a killing. The amount of money we can win seems endless in our fantasies. We are offered fabulous comps for our play. The more we play, the better the comps we get. The casino invites us to shows and sporting events. Special gifts are given to us if we qualify for them. We get to see the great stars of our age, singing, dancing, telling jokes.

ABBY: Oh, and the rooms we get to stay in for reduced rates or for free. They are something special and they are all for us. We just have to play and play some more to capture them.

CINDY: Some of us get suites too! With spectacular views if we are qualified Wow!

ABBY: The casino itself is filled with lights of many different colors. Many sparkle, just like the stars. The music fills the place. The pulsation of the music gets into your very bones. It is an appealing arena to visit. It is a place many of us love with all of our hearts. The slot machines are colorful; with great sounds and they come in all different dimensions. We get numbers, symbols, animals, movie and television scenes. You can play one game or multiple games on the same machine even. They are riveting.

CINDY: The dealers are professional and want you to win. They do, they do. They never cheer when you lose. They encourage you to play and play some more. You can win; you can own the casino, my friend, you can own the whole place, my love.

ABBY: The casinos are truly Delilahs to us. We become enchanted with the casinos’ beauty; its call to us to join it in games of fun. And we do, and we do.

CINDY: We win sometimes and we lose at other times, probably more other times.

ABBY: You see, our story doesn’t end with us destroying the casino as Sampson destroyed the arena. The Philistines did not have an edge over that man. Sampson had God on his side; the biggest power in the universe. We merely have our hopes and dreams. They are not enough to overcome the casino Delilahs.

CINDY: There is a lesson to be learned here. Caution is the key in our battle. The greatest power in the universe is not a part of the casino Delilah’s tale. Our hopes and dreams? Probably won’t be fulfilled. Our hair, unlike Sampson’s hair, will not grow back quickly. We must learn that lesson if we are to survive and enjoy ourselves.