Even money for a blackjack, a poor bet

Has a dealer ever advised you to take "even money" when you have a blackjack and the dealer is showing an ace? You don't want to do that! There is a very good reason why you shouldn’t. In taking even money you are simply doing the same thing as taking  the insurance side bet, which is considered a poor bet for the player. When you take insurance you are allowed to bet up to half your original wager, using additional funds. You will get paid 2 to 1, if the dealer has blackjack. Whether the dealer has blackjack or not, the net effect of placing the bet is that you get paid even money. However, you will win more than even money over the long haul if you don't take the insurance side bet! In a 52 card deck, there are 16 ten-count cards (10, J, Q, K) and 36 non-10 cards. The dealer will hit blackjack whenever a 10-count card is drawn. Let's assume you are playing at a $2 table. The insurance bet is half of $2, or $1. 36 times out of 52 you will lose your insurance bet for a total loss of $36. 16 times you will win the bet, and since it pays 2 to 1, you will have a total win of  $32. $32 minus $36 gives a net loss of $4, or a house edge of  about 8%. That makes even money a bad bet. The bottom line is don’t take insurance and don’t take even money!