Musings 27...Talk Radio, God and Poker

I can remember, when I was a kid, listening to the first talk radio shows I ever heard. My dad and i would listen to a fellow by the name of Dick Hustead on WWHY radio in Huntington, West Virginia--1470 on your dial. He ranted and raved about everything and took calls from listeners. He was forever getting into knock-down and drag-out arguments with the people in radioland. I always wondered why people bothered to call in if they hated his views so much. It always seemed to me that if a fellow on the radio was espousing some view point that I did not agree with, I would just turn the dial to some rock station.

Well, WWHY is long gone and so is old Dick. Today, but talk radio still thrives. There are a certain group of people who love arguing on the radio. They love hearing their own voices and they love setting other people straight.

These same people, usually think that they have a special relationship with God. They can set you straight on what is right and wrong. Many times they don't let the facts cloud their issures. They use words like moral focus, moral center, God-fearing, moral values, etc. Personally, I think they are a scary bunch.

I believe in God, but I don't have a clue as to the true mind of the Creator. How could anyone? I especially love it when people think that they have to defend God. It's kind of a slap in the face to think that God--the supreme being--needs earthly defenders. Maybe I'm over thinking it...but, I doubt it.

When I hear guys like Fat Rush and Slanthead Hannity speak of moral values, it makes me ill. Rush has a moral compass that allows him to abuse drugs. Hannity just hates everything that doesn't kiss Mr. President's Texas butt. The operative word there is hate. Hannity also wraps himself in the flag. He is forever saying to soldiers, "Thanks for you're service." It's a nice little thing to say, but action speaks louder than words. If I was a soldier--and I was many years ago--I wouldn't want to be thanked by a guy who didn't have a clue as to what it was like to walk in my shoes.

Now we get to poker. Big Bill Bennett, the guy who was the drug czar, likes to go on all the talk shows and guide people toward his idea of morality. It was reported several months ago that he had a gambling habit and had lost million in Las Vegas. He didn't see any problem with that. Of course, he cut back on his gambling when his wife complained. I'm told that Big Bill liked to play blackjack and poker. Now blackjack is not my game, but I have played my share of poker.

I love playing the game, especially seven-card stud. Texas Hold'em is a wuss game. You can lose a lot of money playing cards. My wife allows me to indulge by playing on line for play money. Yep, play money. Because if I played for real we'd be in the poorhouse. Sometimes I play good, but most times I play bad. There is a real degree of luck. Since, I don't use real money, I can do other things with my wealth. I could donate to a charity or church. I could help put some needy kid through college. Basicly, it gives me more options to do better things with my money. I wonder how many poor people and kids could have benefitted from the millions that Big Bill lost over the years.

So here it is in summary. Morality--do it...don't preach it. Godliness--practice it, don't just talk about it. Poker--play only good hole cards. It's all pretty simple...really it is.