Hacker News Reader

Comment by sethg | Hacker News Reader

If you (where “you” can be an individual or a team) know how to count cards and are disciplined about following the technique, and you patronize a casino that doesn’t catch you, there is a slow leak of money from the casino’s pocket into yours. The whole business model of casinos depends on the slow leak going in the other direction.

View on HN

This comment is, actually, unhelpful.

At least most of us are taking for granted that bit of knowledge, as to actually have this conversation about card counting. Thanks for clearing it up for us.

Furthermore, its position in this thread makes it an entirely offtopic reply to a legitimate question.

Please downvote. Greying out my response will get many more people to read it.

This comment is completely unhelpful.

Did you mean to imply that another comment is completely unhelpful, or was it your intention to invoke the Epimenides paradox by writing a comment that claims itself to be unhelpful?

https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Epimenides_pa...

How clever. The intent was more than apparent.

Perhaps I've been reading too much Raymond Smullyan, I apologize if it came across as a criticism of your comment. In fact, I thought the ambiguity was clever on your part.

No worries. I thought the Planet without Laughter was particularly entertaining.

It's also amusing in its own way to watch my comments get voted down.

I have, undoubtedly played more +EV games versus a casino than anyone on this site. (And, yes, I will bet on that, too!) But some sort of egalitarian sense of correctness has driven the "value" of my comments below yours.

I cared enough to make a 2nd (and now third) comment about it, but really, I don't care. So that kinda sucks.

Laughter? Was this supposed to be a joke?

Hey, neat. Yet another comment where I am a demonstrable expert and I get voted to Hell like a moron. Feel free to get this one to -44, except that you can't tell any more where it lives. Best to down vote if you're unsure.

Your original comment is being downvoted because it doesn't explain why the comment it says to be unhelpful is (or at least that's my best guess; I obviously don't know the intent of every downvoter). HN tends to frown on comments which add nothing to the discussion. Also, if you're a "demonstrable expert" then you should be able to actually explain why the original one was unhelpful rather than just asserting that as fact and expecting everyone to believe you.

"Actually explain?" Come on, read it. It says "casinos make money, but if you count cards, you make money." It's a worthless statement and it has nothing to do with the comment it replies to.

I downvoted dtby's comment because the reasonable way to deal with worthless comments is to downvote them, not post a followup saying "This comment is completely unhelpful."

Let me elaborate on my previous comment, then:

In the absence of security countermeasures on the casino end, counting cards is not very difficult. You need to be able to do some mental arithmetic in a distraction-filled environment, and you need the self-discipline to follow the technique even when your guts are telling you otherwise, but lots of people have those character traits.

So if a casino does not take active measures to distinguish the blackjack players who are counting cards (who need to be kicked out) from the blackjack players who are just lucky (who need to be courted until their luck runs out), then lots of people, not just the generic “you”, will show up and gradually bleed the house dry.

...And you are still not telling us anything that anybody doesn't already know.

I thought it was clearly to explain this: but it's still pretty crazy how much effort casinos will put out to thwart non-mechanical card counters.

I didn't explain why it was (demonstrably) summarily unhelpful because I assumed it was clear to anyone with a basis in logic, without even a nod to the fact that I happen to know how it works in practice beyond the theory.

In case anyone happens to continue to be confused: see, also: No true Scotsman.

If it's so clear to anyone why the post was unhelpful, then why would we vote up your comment saying that? What does it add?

You don't only get downvoted for being incorrect.

It's exceptionally unclear why people executes their down votes. I consider it worth my while to point out: "No you're not crazy, this really is as pointless as you think."

If it seemed like I care about getting down voted, I assure that's only ancillary.

PG, do you see this? Turn the numbers back on, please.

No you're not crazy, this really is as pointless as you think.

I had no idea that was the point you were trying to make. But I still don't know the reasoning behind your claim - to me, it makes sense for casinos to spend money looking for and kicking out card counters.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com