My TakeKenny Rogers’ song to young radicals
- As in the words of The Gambler by the US country great, protesters who came up trumps in bill battle should know when to walk away after being dealt a winning hand
I am old enough to have been a fan of Kenny Rogers, the great American country singer. The Gambler is, in my opinion, one of the greatest songs of the last century. The lyrics offer one of life’s great lessons, the only such song I know of.
A friend sent me a link to the original video recently, and old memories came back.
Rogers sang these immortal words: “You’ve got to know when to hold ‘em/ Know when to fold ‘em/ Know when to walk away/ And know when to run/ You never count your money/ When you’re sittin’ at the table/ There’ll be time enough for countin’/ When the dealin’s done.
“Every gambler knows/ That the secret to survivin’/ Is knowin’ what to throw away/ And knowin’ what to keep/ ‘Cause every hand’s a winner/ And every hand’s a loser.”
Listen, young people, you need to know when to commit and when to halt
I have never read wiser words in a more condensed form than these.
I would, if I could, offer this song of Rogers to the young radicals of today, who believe causing mayhem is the only way to achieve their goal.