"Men have trained, or can train, every kind of animal or bird that lives and every kind of reptile and fish, but no human being can tame the tongue." (James 3: 7-8)
Is it just me, or are we all prone to unconsciously doing what we vocally detest? I'd like to think that we all attend a candid conversation or two wherein you voice out a certain peeve, and the person you talk to reacts in favor to your point, but louder and less wholeheartedly. It's not that I've been observing people, it's just that this realization just hit me to the point that everything I say has to go through some sort of 'filter' in the form of a question - You got the guts to back you up with what you plan to say? Can you walk that talk?
Anything that does not go through that 'filter' is somehow retreated and voiced out with confidence when the next conversation comes, when (hopefully) you actually did an act which absolves you of that small tinge of guilt - the one that could swell up to a line you will remember with embarassment for the rest of your life.
It sounds like a good plan, but the trouble I guess I have is that there is a disconnect between my reasoning and that 'filter' that I described. It ruins the timing, and as we all know, the right words at the wrong time may not sound as 'right' as we originally imagined. It's quite difficult; When you speak too soon, or when you go all in before the flop is laid, it'll either come out as an act of confidence, or hollow arrogance, or, hell, someone might call your bluff. On the other hand, if you wait for what you think is the opportune moment, the river might be the King that your 'opponent' might be waiting for to Straight your Two Pairs to the same embarassment you would feel for the rest of your life.
I wasn't expecting this to come to Poker, honestly. What would Chris Ferguson do?
...by the way, Chris Ferguson is also known as 'Jesus' in World Poker Tours.