466: Blackjack
Jun 8, 2012
Stories about the casino game everyone thinks they can beat. In one, a woman gambles away her inheritance and then sues the casino, saying they're to blame. In another, Christians join forces to take down casinos — by becoming professional card-counting blackjack players. Plus: MIT Blackjack Team member Andy Bloch teaches us to count cards.
- Host Ira Glass and producer Robyn Semien get a blackjack lesson from Andy Bloch, who played for the MIT blackjack team. He teaches them the basics of card-counting, the technique that gives players an advantage against the house — enough of an advantage that most casinos will ask you to leave if they catch you doing it. (9 minutes)
- Jack Hitt tells the story of the Christian card counting team featured in the documentary Holy Rollers, and why they see no contradiction in being devout Christians who spend their days in casinos. Jack is the author of the book Bunch of Amateurs. (18 minutes)
- TAL producer Sarah Koenig tells the story of a woman who sued the casino where she lost her inheritance, saying that it was to blame, not her. The story was inspired by a chapter in The Power of Habit, by Charles Duhigg. (25 minutes)
