Magic Solutions

Living in Las Vegas, I am in awe of how much money the casinos bring in from gambling.  Obviously, gambling is a losing proposition for the gambler - these massive hotel-casinos weren't built on winners.  In fact, the only games a bettor can consistently win in is poker and sports betting (due to the fact a bettor is taking money from another bettor, not the casino).  You can also theoretically win at blackjack here by counting cards, but from what I've seen it would be difficult.

Las Vegas is a city built on dreams that come true only for a chosen few.  The rest spend their money, hopefully have a good time, and return to their normal lives.  But the belief that one can, in fact, be the lucky winner seems to be ingrained in all of us.

The health industry offers its own version of gambling by selling quick fix products.  Just like thinking one spin of the roulette wheel may solve your financial problems, you can also believe that buying this incredible new product will solve your health problems.  Though neither is likely to work, there is always that tendency to believe that "magic solutions" exist, if only we can find them.

Life would sure be a lot easier if this were true!  I wish I had a sexier message to tell people other than "exercise one hour per day and you will lose weight", but that's reality.  Flipping through the channels last night, I heard a contest on "The Biggest Loser" state, "I've realized that if I put in the work on my diet and exercise, I will lose weight."  But of course; what else could it be?

Being overly optimistic about things probably helped way back during Stone Age times.  The pessimist who didn't want to go the extra mile probably had his genes disappear a long ago.  Current research also shows that some degree of self-deception is helpful.  Those with the most accurate picture of reality are also at a higher risk of depression. 

I'm not sure there's any cure for this belief in magic solutions other than experience.  Maybe it's not so bad to waste some money here and there chasing fantasies.  And by the way, if you just send me $29.99, I'll personally tell you the SECRET to PERMANENT WEIGHT LOSS!

Just kidding!