Finance Roll

My grandfather, who I speak of frequently, was the wisest person I have ever known. What was so interesting about him, wasn't that he lived to be almost 100 years old and witnessed such dramatic changes in the world. What was so interesting was he had made his living as a professional gambler. Not like the people you might see on in the poker tournaments on television. He was the real deal. He was the "Gambler".

As I knew him, he was merely my grandfather, a simple man with platinum blue eyes that pierced you, like he was looking in to your soul. He liked to play the fiddle, chew tobacco and watch the world unfold in front of him.

My mother told me stories of his skills, and how when she was a girl, he would come home after being gone a few days, and have a roll of hundred dollar bills that could "choke" a horse. He once made 31 straight passes at a craps table. This guy knew the odds, and he played them with one objective. To Win.

This was back in the late 1930's and 1940's, when money and jobs were scarce. He understood human nature, and knew "people", because he studied them closely.

He was my personal version of E.F. Hutton. As a kid, I thought he didn't talk much because he was so old. As it turns out, he just didn't have anything to say. But, when he did, it was worth paying attention.

One hot August day, as he rocked slowly in his favorite chair, never sweating even though it was incredibly hot, he began to speak. So, I will share this piece of wisdom from him with you and I hope you might see the importance and appreciate it as much as I do.

As he reminisced on a lesson he had once taught my father and uncle, he said, "If you sit down at a card game, and in the first five minutes you don't know who the "patsy" is. It's you! You would be smart to politely take your money and leave, because you are about to get your pockets emptied."

I have always found that particular piece of advice to be very insightful.

Perhaps, in the big scheme of things, one man's bit of wisdom cannot change anything. But, if faith can move mountains, then maybe it can. Because as I see it, we need to employ some wisdom right about now, with all that is going on.

We have millions of families in debt beyond belief. We have families struggling to fuel their automobiles just to get back and forth to work. We have a banking system in trouble. Foreclosures are occurring at a pace that is unprecedented. We have a government that is spending our money as fast as they can print it, and we have a mountain of national debt that is spiraling out of control.

Here is where knowing who the patsy is becomes important.

Just in case you hadn't already figured it out, the patsy is us, the American people. We are the patsy because we continue to believe we can win this game. We think we can depend on Social Security and Medicare. We think we will have enough money in our 401(k) plans to live on. And, none of it is true. We are anxiously waiting to draw that miracle card to complete an inside straight, and the odds are seriously against us.

The only real meaningful solution to our issues is to improve our cash-flow and get out of debt. This applies to our government and to us.

The government has an advantage we don't have. They can print more money to improve their cash flow, and they can raise taxes on everyone.

Your family is in this game all alone, just like mine, and your neighbors. The solution must begin in your house, and my house, and your neighbor's house, etc.

The "players", namely; banks, credit card companies and government don't care what your future looks like. They are playing to get your money. Period.

If we don't get up from the "table", and do it soon, we WILL get our pockets emptied. Wisdom only works when you USE it and our five minutes is just about up.