I've been thinking about this possibly a little too much, but does 1 dollar always equal 1 dollar?

Here's a made up story to illustrate an ill conceived point. Whatever side of the brain it is that you use when you make a punt will be used when contemplating this.
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Picture this: you're sitting at home one Sunday, bored, watching telly (probably sport - regretting that you don't have money on the team coming first) and you hear a knock at the door. Who could that be, you think.

"Hi there" the man at the door says when you open it. "I would like to offer you an offer you can't refuse".

"Okay then," you say.

The man continues: "I have a coin. I'll toss it high in the air and you call. We'll have a wager. If you win I'll give you DOUBLE the amount you wagerd. If you lose then you give me the wagerd amount. How does that sound?"

"Arrr, better than average?" you suggest.

The man clicks his fingers in front of your face and suddenly you hear a loud explosion as the universe splits in 2, creating parrelell universes and lots of smoke. The events in each universe are slightly different.


UNIVERSE 1:
The smoke clears...

"Let's play for $10" says the man. "If I win you give me $10 - If you win I'll give you $20. Are you in?"

"Yes" you say.

The man tosses a coin... you call: "Heads!", or maybe "Tails!"... the coin goes high in the air... it lands... bounces once... twice... comes to rest... you inspect the coin... and the result is...

Well, it doesn't matter what the result is. The point is: you calculated the odds; deemed them generous; and made the bet.

Meanwhile...


UNERVERSE 2:
The smoke clears...

"Let's play for everything" says the man. "If I win you give me all your money, your car, your furniture, your house, everything. If you win I'll give you 2 houses, 2 cars and twice the value of everything you currently own. Are you in?"

The odds are good. But are you in?