Good Triumphs Over Evil

I was talking to a good friend of mine, Robert Turner, and he told me about a sermon he had heard at Crystal Cathedral. It was about odds and percentages, and how "good" wins out over "evil."

It made me think, and reflect on what we do, where we do it, and how we do it … how we act and how we're supposed to act … how we get treated and how we treat others. In the spirit of the holiday season, I'd like to share my thoughts with you.

We poker players deal with good hands against bad hands and odds and percentages all the time. So it is in life, and so it always will be. Reflecting back on Sept. 11, I tried to find the good as best I could, and Robert Turner reminded me of some of the things he had heard in the sermon.

In Chicago in the early 1900s, there lived a man named Easy Eddy – sounds like a poker player, but Eddy was a lawyer. He was a lawyer for the mob. In fact, Eddy was Al Capone's personal lawyer, and he and his family were treated royally. He had a big house with servants that took up an entire Chicago block, a big car with a driver, and all the things that a wealthy family could afford in the Depression era. Eddy was very happy with this lifestyle, but he wanted his son to understand the difference between good and evil. To do this, he kept his son away from his professional life and made desperately sure that the young man didn't join the mob.

A few years later during World War II, a man named Butch was flying a mission off the U.S.S. Lexington. After taking off from the deck of the carrier, Butch noticed that his fuel had not been topped off, and that he wouldn't have enough fuel to fly the mission and get back to the carrier safely. He was ordered back to the carrier with a wingman, and the rest of the squadron continued on with their mission. On his way back, Butch noticed a V-formation of Japanese fighters heading right for the Lexington. He radioed his wingman, who gave him the unfortunate news that his guns were jammed. Butch would have to go it alone. He attacked the fighters and damaged or brought down most of them. The rest turned and ran from the lone fighter. He saved the Lexington single-handedly, and upon returning to the ship was given a hero's welcome. Later, he was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor, our nation's highest military decoration. This type of courage shows how adversity can be met and defeated, even against the highest of odds.

Before Butch became a fighter pilot, his father was gunned down on a Chicago street after turning state's evidence against Al Capone. He wanted his son to have a good name and to learn right from wrong. His good name was Butch O'Hare, and he went on to save the lives of those countless men aboard the Lexington, as well as others during the rest of his career. In 1949, Orchard Field in Chicago was renamed O'Hare International Airport. Here, good surely triumphed over evil.

On Sept. 11, four planes that could have been 100 percent full took off for their destinations. However, they were filled to only 20 percent of capacity. Where there was opportunity for 100 percent "evil" devastation, 80 percent "good" prevailed. For the buildings that were hit in New York City, it was said that on any given day, there could have been 50,000 people inside, yet the unfortunate numbered approximately 6,000, because the planes hit the buildings at an hour of the morning that many people had not yet arrived for work. Where there was opportunity for 100 percent evil devastation, almost 90 percent good prevailed. Due to the valor of the people aboard the United Airlines jet that crashed in Pennsylvania, the number of lives saved is unknown, but surely, good triumphed over the extent of evil that could have occurred. Adversity was overcome, and heroes were born from the tragedy. Good triumphed over evil, and the percentages were in our favor. We'll play this hand, without folding and to the river.

The poker community is diverse, and as you pass through casinos, you'll find almost every race and culture. Some overcame adversity to get here, while others had parents who immigrated to the United States. The day before Sept. 11, we were African-Americans, Asian-Americans, Israeli-Americans, Irish-Americans, Italian-Americans, and so on. Today, we are all just Americans, fighting for the basic principle of our Constitution – the freedom that we've come to know and love. As in previous struggles in our history, it won't come cheaply. However, I believe that we will overcome adversity and that good will triumph over evil.

How closely or remotely does this relate to poker?

Well, every day that we play, we poker players sit next to the very core of our country – its people. We try to play good cards and have good results. We think of pot odds, implied odds, and percentages as we play the game, and even though we try to get those odds in our favor, we sometimes take a chance in the face of adversity. The only way that we can do our part is to get out to the poker game, go about our daily lives, and show the world that we won't be terrorized. Be kind to your neighbor, your dealer, your floorperson, and the guy or gal who just beat you in a pot. Keep your temper and language in check, and become part of the solution. Most of all, my friends, stay happy and healthy during this holiday season. Play good cards and win good pots. May the odds be with you and may you overcome adversity.

Until next time, happy holidays, happy New Year, and God bless America.