Poker Strategy / Marcus Bateman / 26 November 2009 / Leave a Comment

Nearly all the best poker players have a kind of in built desire to try and steal pots from people. This is an extremely useful trait for any poker player to have, as being able to pick up as many pots as possible, in spots that others would miss, can really make the difference in the long run.

This can often be a hard point to adjust to, as we are trained by the society around us to be honest for the most part, look to try and treat people fairly, and not take things from them which rightfully should be theirs. To be successful in poker you have to largely ignore this, and try and spot every little opportunity where you think that your opponents will give up a pot and attack them remorselessly.

One of the most interesting examples of people who thought like this in life itself, and one that can really help you in adjusting your moral compass at the poker table, is the Spartans. The Spartans were a brutal and aggressive culture by todays standards, but they still achieved a high level of culture, despite utilising a system of morality about property and stealing that we would find very alien.

In Sparta, it was in no way the responsibility of the individual to not steal. If anything, stealing was actively encouraged for the most part (particularly amongst adolescent boys, who were cast out and forced to fend for themselves through stealing in order to become men). Instead, it was the responsibility of the individual to protect themselves from thieves.

The moral code that we are used to was effectively flipped on its head in Sparta - just as it is at the poker table - where the onus shifts from you not doing something to someone else, to you protecting yourself from others doing something to you. There is nothing wrong with trying to exploit every edge possible at the poker table, and conversely, it is only your responsibility to protect yourself from those around you.

Although this moral code can seem a bit strange at first, it is actually one that has existed in many cultures all over the world successfully, and is not too hard to adjust to if considered carefully.

A line from the hyper aggressive Drill Sergeant Hartman in Kubrick's masterpiece Full Metal Jacket perhaps sums it up best for me:

'Private Pyle, why is your foot locker unlocked?...Hell if it wasn't for idiots like you there would be no thievery in the world would there?'.

Related entries

Being table captain
Loose-aggressive styke and variance
Finishing off poker tournaments

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