Tapping the tank

[Dobbler1]

To what degree do you think that having meaningful discussions online about poker strategy end up being examples of "tapping the tank"? Now there's not enough paper in the world to document everything I don't know about poker strategy, but I think I know a few things. From time to time, I run into someone in a discussion about poker strategy that I'm pretty sure is simply thinking about poker in the wrong way. I sometimes wonder that if I "set them straight" (assuming for the sake of discussion, I'm correct on whatever bit of poker strategy is in question), am I just lowering the population of the fish pool?

Here, I think, are the obvious counter-arguments for this idea:

1. The fish tank is so big that any effect I might have on it isn't worth consideration.
2. People who approach poker in the wrong way... having the wrong underlying assumptions or attitudes, aren't going to hear what I say, so I am not actually helping them play better.
3. Encouraging good discussion in a forum like this increases the interest in poker overall which makes the total participant pool bigger, and that will attract more fish too.

Some thoughts that support this idea:

1. I play freerolls against these people, and I am both revealing things about my game to my competition, and the active community here isn't that big, all things considered. In a smaller community, effects are amplified.
2. The people that might reject what I have to say are not the only people to read my posts. While the outright fish who will never learn won't... well learn, some borderline competition will. Isn't it better for me to keep the people who are capable of getting better on the fishy side of things for as long as possible?

Final thoughts: Life isn't zero sum, and more often than not helping people out, or having good discussions with competing ideas is good for everyone. The problem is, poker is zero sum. There's no win/win in poker. My instincts are often to look for the win/win in a situation, but I wonder if I'm doing myself a disservice, and if I should be more shrewd and calculating in small pockets of life that are clearly win /lose. The main reason I do discuss things, apart from it being interesting to do, is that I'm not as capable of challenging, or even identifying my own assumptions as others are, so I hope that when people push back against my ideas, I might see some weaknesses or flaws in them.

I'd love to hear people's thoughts. Ironically, people who do think it's tapping the tank are probably less likely to respond.
🤣🤣🤣

 

[iwont20]

Share your knowledge which you can easily counter once someone adjusts using it. If you don't want to bother or don't know how, then just exploit in silence. That's my two cents 😉

 

[puzzlefish]

At some point the effect is just to increase the impact of variance on a given game where players' skills have improved. It starts to look more and more like a bunch of coolers deciding the winner.

 

[Rahatis]

I was like that once. I just enjoy ignorant conversations at the tables while staying silent. Away from the tables I don't even bother.

 

[pentazepam]

The problem is, poker is zero sum. There's no win/win in poker.

It's even worse. Poker is "negative sum" due to rake.

 

[Mag_P1e]

I also came to the same thoughts after seeing poker pros and high-limit players giving lessons, webinars, etc. It seems to me that people by their nature are too arrogant and think a lot about themselves, so only a few can listen to advice (but how paradoxical it may sound, people do not like to listen to others, because a lot of them think a lot about themselves and they give brainless and often even harmful advice - a dilemma on the level of “what came first - the chicken or the egg”). So there is no point in proving anything to anyone in this life, our only task is to become stronger today than we were yesterday, and let the people around us mark time, hiding behind some circumstances and so on - this will only benefit us!💪💪

 

[GARCIA PABLO DANIEL]

I think that your explanation, with all due respect, is ironic, you know very well your abilities and weaknesses in the game and only you will know how to improve day by day... I think that the debate with other people that you love is to know your rivals and cover strategies to implement on them and it is very good, there is nothing wrong with it!!! Everything is valid in this game as long as it is allowed, I will take you into account at the tables hehehehe, I send you a cordial greeting from argentina!!