These are some of my opinions about two types of people in life, and how they parallel two types of players in the game of Poker. If you aren't familiar with the game of poker, then most of this might not make sense. (In fact, even if you do "know" poker it might not)

In poker, you have folks who know the rules and know the rank of the hands. And then you have people who know the game. For purposes of brevity (for which I'm generally not known), I will refer to the first type as A or Player A, and the later as B or Player B.

A type players think that the game is about the cards. B type players know that the game is about people, position, risk and then perhaps the cards.

In poker, you have good hands and bad hands. This is NOT to be confused with having winning hands or losing hands. As the line in the famous Kenny Rogers song goes, "Every hand's a winner and every hand's a loser."

A types think the game is a matter of luck. B types know that there is no luck, only risk, reward or loss, and long term probability.

Luck. I don't believe in it. Luck is that intangible, magical quality that we ascribe to our perception of how "fair" things are when they happen to us when we lack specific knowledge or specific control over the situation. After the shuffle and the deal we get our 5 cards (in the case of 5 card stud or draw for example purposes). If A gets a bad hand, he thinks "Unlucky". He/she will likely stay or fold based on the merit of the hand alone. If B gets a bad hand, he/she still evaluates the position, the other players, the stakes, the probabilities, etc. B may still fold a winning hand or play a losing hand, but the likelihood in the long run is that B will come out a winner. Luck has a way of totality negating effort, accomplishment and ability. i.e. He isn't good, he's just lucky. There is no luck, only levels of cause and effect that we can't perceive.

As a sidenote, I exclude cheaters (or in terms of life, criminals) from this analogy. "Mechanics" can manipulate decks in seemingly unbelieveable ways. They control the flow of cards from decks, and subvert rules to gain unfair knowledge. Cheaters, like criminals, should be dealt with accordingly.

What has this to do with life (or more importantly, politics)? I'm glad you asked. In my opinion we are born into this world with a contract forced upon us at birth. A contract that we have no prior knowledge of, and one that we are not given the opportunity to decline. That contract is: Life is fair. Wait, maybe it's better to say that life is impartial. We all get 5 cards at the start of the "game". Sometimes those cards are good, and sometimes they are bad. What matters is how we play them. There are tales aplenty of the rich man who loses it all, and the poor guy who makes it big. I would suggest that the main difference is usually whether they were type A or type B "players".

One of my favorite type B examples is Ken Hamblin. Ken Hamblin is of West Indian descent and he grew up poor in a ghetto during a period that was much harder for dark-skinned minorities. Ken Hamblin's window to the world was a radio. He did not have access to the plethora of vast amounts of information like the majority of Americans today who have ready access to not only the radio, but TV (with Cable), The Internet, non-segregated libraries, etc. etc. On the radio, he heard of distant places that were much more pleasant and unlike the area and circumstances under which he grew up. Places that only existed in his imagination. He decided that he wanted to see these other places, that he wanted to improve his lot, that he wanted to take the hand he was dealt, and make it a winner. He did just that. Today he is a nationally syndicated talk radio host. And yes, he's also a conservative. (He said the C word!)

Meanwhile, the type A players complained about their "hands". They complained about their luck, their fortune. Many type A players want the hands to be dealt equally. It's not enough that they get 5 cards like everyone else, but they want their 5 cards to be equal to everyone elses. Life just doesn't do that. It gives you 5 cards, and leaves it up to you to play them.

Now this brings me to the political analogy (and it's about time right?). Democrats / Liberals = Type A. Republicans / Conservatives = Type B. Okay, it's not the easy, I know. You see, it's not really that I think of it in such simple terms. I'm sure there are plenty of D/L's who have worked hard from bad circumstances to achieve success. Likewise there are some R/C's who have also taken turns for the worse. But I do think that generally the respective viewpoints are there. The key word is generally. I don't want people to think that I'm expressing this as an absolute.

D/L's seek to have the government make the 5 card game "equal" for everyone. R/C's expect people to show initiative and play the hands they are dealt. I agree that there are times in US history when we should have thrown some people some wild cards to compensate for past underhanded dealings. I guess the major point of contention today among many people is when is enough enough? Please don't make the mistake of thinking that I'm drawing this whole analogy down to the race issue, because I'm not. This whole analogy applies to people of all races, and all walks of life. It is a personal thing, not a racial thing, that makes one person perservere, and another throw in their hands.

I grew up lower, lower middle class. I guess today, I have reached middle middle class. I think that the Type B mentality has served me well, and I think it serves others well. I believe I have achieved some degree of success. Not on the scale of Mr. Hamblin, but enough for me.

There are probably gaping holes in my analogy, which I'm sure will be pointed out to me. I will either learn from them, or attempt to explain or refute them.

At any rate, those are just my humble thoughts for how people can make their life better. Learn to play the game, not just know the rules. Play the hands you are dealt, and make them winners.

VES