September 15, 2008
Risk is everything...
It's all about risk...
Life is this push/pull between the 'rush' we get from feeling the nearness of danger and the horror we feel when it looks like something dangerous might actually 'happen' to us.
Most people we admire are folk who've taken some kind of leap into the unknown putting their livelihood and sometimes their lives on the line. We admire them, perhaps, because they've found the strength to do that which we cannot do, but long to do.
And so, for those who can't force themselves to the edge, we live vicariously through scary movies, thrilling TV dramas, sporting events and sometimes through playing cards with friends or the odd trip to the casino.
We've taken some heat on the whole 'casino thing' you know.
There are people who feel very strongly about gambling, to the point that 'rook' was a card game invented so that non-gamblers could play 'hearts' without it actually being a card game.
Strange, right?
I've always wondered if the problem with gambling is 'gambling' or the tendency for gambling to become habitual. 'Cause, it's strange for a 'habit' to be a bad thing in and of itself--I mean, we teach people to develop 'good' habits, don't we?--so then, does it come down to deciding which habits are good and which ones are bad?
(also, why is it okay to gamble with your life by riding a motorcycle but not okay to gamble some cash on a game?)
And the problem is, in a pluralist society, it becomes really difficult to determine right from wrong.
Even writing this I know there would be some who'd say "Well, it's 'bad' because the (insert your favorite sacred text here) says it's bad..."
And I get that, but the thing is, with this show, and with most people who are trying to live as people of faith in the midst of a diverse culture, that kind of appeal to authority doesn't work outside of it's own subculture which is all fine and good if we're determined to stay within that context but if, as with this show, we're trying to create something with integrity that speaks to and impacts as broad an audience as possible, we have to find ways to engage in meaningful discussion on the important topics of our day without resorting to "I told you so..." type arguing that excludes some and includes others.
A tough thing to do indeed.
Kind of like jumping of a cliff...
TD
