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Alright, so I was at the casino last tonight. Now, the casino on a Friday night is a little different to the casino on a Tuesday afternoon.
During the days, and into the early hours of the morning; the casino is home to the diehards. Either those so masterful at their craft that they can make a living out of their winnings or those so disillusioned by the aura and magic held within its confines that they play for hours on ends, running up their credit card bills in the slim hope of one day breaking even.
The verdict's still out on which one of the two categories I fall into.

Ever since I first laid eyes on the game of roulette I've been hooked. There's something so alluring about a game which honours the brave and exposes peoples true characters.
I have literally seen a middle aged man, sporting a wedding ring drop to the floor in despair upon one simple spin of the wheel.
The responsibility that he holds in everyday life; diminished. He was broken by the wheel of fortune.
The fact that something so humble, so meagre as a coloured wheel and a tiny ball could evoke such strong emotions in people; ranging right from jovial ecstasy down to the most harrowing sorrow has always kept me fascinated.
Add to this; the bright lights, a range of fine spirits and the unmistakable big-win atmosphere that the casino environment always teases and it's enough to get sane, right-thinking people hopelessly addicted.

So, Friday night rolls round. For those who come to the casino most days, it holds no extra significance. Sure, the bouncers will be more vigilant, there'll be trophy wives dressing to the nines akin to the proverbial mutton dressed as lamb and the drink prices will take an astronomical rise, which I believe violates Bar Licencing Laws but alas for an industry that contributes little in corporation tax despite being one of the highest grossing, breaking simple regulations won't phase them.
Friday night seems to attract the moths like a massive light. By moths, I mean city-slicking high-rollers who swan around the casino in a flurry of affluence and ego.
In the 9-5 world of board meetings, video conferencing, stock holding and tailored suits these men are the pinnacle of their working environment.
In the casino, they are nothing. Little more than moths.

You see, the casino is like time itself. It will always win. No one can out last it, no one can ever truly defeat it.
As with time, the casino will change you. Sure, you may take minor victories from it on your way but ultimately at the end of the day, whom is the one standing tall preparing to do it all over again for eternity.
I see these 'business men' swan in with their fancy clothes, their wives who have escaped the pretension, finely cut lawns and personal trainers of Suburbia and their wallets full of various cards and pound notes.
I see these same people cashing their money in for towers of chips. Just like many of the companies these men represent, I see their towers falling, their empires crumbling as spin by spin, the House takes from them what the downturn in the economy took from their annual bonuses.
It's a great feeling of liberation and satisfaction seeing these men lose hundreds, even thousands of pounds and become just like everyone else. Losers. In the casino, their stature, their reputations mean nothing. The game of Roulette treats everyone as equals and is not discriminating in who it will rape.

There's almost a divinity to it. A God like presence, in that Roulette treats us all as equals and both rewards and punishes us more fairly than any God could.
Perhaps this is why the Bible and various other religious hyperbole scriptures warn off gambling. They try and paint it as evil.
The Bible the very same manifesto that promotes discrimination, that was written in blood and violence and has caused waves upon waves of mindless persecution and war has the audacity to claim something else as 'evil' is the greatest irony of all.
The Bible would have us believe that two men who are in love with each other, two men who follow the law, respect and treat others equally and are capable of raising children in a loving household are evil because of the way the feel about each other. The Bible would have its followers persecute these men. Their crime? They love one another.
The Bible believes that this is not natural and that is why we must condemn it. Well, Reverend, evolution is ****ing natural and you try to deny its existence!
Roulette is more divine than God. It treats everyone equally, be it a gay couple, a house-wife who spends her days ****ing the tennis coach whilst her husband ****s his secretary, or be it me a 19 year old, straight white male who is little more than an observer in all of this.
The Roulette wheel does not believe in 'karma' nor does it believe in racism, homophobia, xenophobia, sexism, ageism or any other form of hate that religion breeds.
It's impartial and unbending. It doesn't matter who you are, where you're from, what you did and it sure as Hell doesn't matter if you like the Backstreet Boys, Roulette will treat you as fairly as it does the next person.

Perhaps this is why my friends and I find solace in it. Now, by no means is this a cult movement. I do not worship the wheel of fortune. I find more truth in it than I do most things.
It's honest. Anyone who enters the casino does so on their own accord. Anyone who loses money at the Roulette table does so of their own choice.
In a life full of prejudice and unfair treatment, the casino is one of the few Mecca's where the laws of the concrete jungle don't apply.
Sure, the House has the edge. Look at the Roulette wheel. 36 standard numbers, 6 even chance columns; Red, Black, Even, Odd, High (19-36), Low (1-18), 3 sections; the first, second and third twelve numbers and three rows; top, middle and bottom. Then there is of course the House's great equaliser Zero.
The unknown quantity. The enigmatic anti-hero who always rears its head in the most inappropriate of times to ruin it for those who bet with probability in mind.
Zero is the Casino's secret weapon, the added feature that tilts the odds ever so slightly in their favour.
Zero is the Jesus Christ of the Roulette God.
However, what are the chances Zero will come up upon a spin of the wheel.
37/1. It doesn't take a betting man to realize that they have greater chances of winning on a row, on a section, or on an even chance column than Zero coming up.
However, when it does. You have not been tricked. You know Zero is a factor. It's painted a distinct green, it's given a sizeable part of the board to show itself. Everyone who plays knows it's there. So, when it comes up, you know that you have willingly bet against it.

I enjoy soaking up the atmosphere of the casino. Sometimes I go only for a few Canadian Clubs as I watch the game of Roulette unmercifully tear through the bank accounts of those who think they can defeat it.
Will they ever learn? Will I?
Sure, I've lost more money there than I can ever begin to estimate, yet I am drawn back more than most. Does this make the contents of this entry somewhat hypocritical. Perhaps.
I do feel that I have come to appreciate the beauty of the game.
Despite what the old Asian guy with the notepad and pen may believe, there are no patterns in Roulette. How can there be. It's the randomisation of wheel and ball coming together.
It can humble even the most ego-maniacal and wealthy. Just as there is no 'karma' (sorry weed-smoking teens) in real life, if there were, explain to me how George W Bush remains rich and healthy, there is no 'karma' in the casino. No matter how nice you are, Roulette doesn't care.
No matter how much of a **** you are, Roulette equally could not care.
It will take from and reward you randomly.
It's a game of chance, nothing more, nothing less yet it holds more power than and can evoke greater emotions than any religion ever could.

Regards

MC