Life In 19x19 :: Strength or Looking Strong?

There's a popular saying: Speak softly and carry a big gun. :p

This reminds me an observation I once heard: In the Northern United States it is a virtue to appear smarter than you are, and in the Southern part a virtue to be smarter than you appear.

Phelan wrote:

There's a popular saying: Speak softly and carry a big gun. :p

Must be the modern version of the original Teddy Rosevelt quote "Speak softly and carry a big stick."

1.) To be strong, but appear weak to most that you knew.

Easy polls are easy =D

Is this a choice I can actually make?

I'm still not sure I understand what the poll is asking, but I'll give it a try. Since humans are social animals, social interaction is one of the most important things for us. For the purposes of communication, appearances are much more important than actual characteristics. Being strong without appearing strong is not very useful, unless you're fighting a war or unless strength itself is of vital importance. Strength is rarely of vital importance. Therefore, being weak while appearing strong is the more useful and desirable combination.

Assuming the question refers to Go (I'm still not sure): Would you rather be 20k and have a 9d account, or the other way around? I would rather have the former. That way I could play some games with strong players, and have people listen to and respect my opinion. Whereas the other way around I'm just a boring sandbagger.

I'd like to be 9D and have a 20k account. If i were 9D, i won't care who i play against.

Author:	Kirby [ Fri May 28, 2010 8:02 am ]
Post subject:	Strength or Looking Strong?
Which would you prefer? 1.) To be strong, but appear weak to most that you knew (i.e. to be stronger than everybody thought you were). 2.) To be weak, but to appear strong to most that you knew (i.e. to appear stronger to everybody than you actually were).

Author:	Phelan [ Fri May 28, 2010 8:09 am ]
Post subject:	Re: Strength or Looking Strong?
There's a popular saying: Speak softly and carry a big gun. :p

Author:	CarlJung [ Fri May 28, 2010 8:24 am ]
Post subject:	Re: Strength or Looking Strong?
Is this a choice I can actually make?

Author:	palapiku [ Fri May 28, 2010 8:36 am ]
Post subject:	Re: Strength or Looking Strong?
I don't understand this poll at all. You mean at Go?

Author:	Sverre [ Fri May 28, 2010 9:20 am ]
Post subject:	Re: Strength or Looking Strong?
I chose the sandbagger option.

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Author:	mdobbins [ Fri May 28, 2010 9:47 am ]
Post subject:	Re: Strength or Looking Strong?
Phelan wrote: There's a popular saying: Speak softly and carry a big gun. :p Must be the modern version of the original Teddy Rosevelt quote "Speak softly and carry a big stick."

Author:	uglyboxer [ Fri May 28, 2010 11:02 am ]
Post subject:	Re: Strength or Looking Strong?
This reminds me an observation I once heard: In the Northern United States it is a virtue to appear smarter than you are, and in the Southern part a virtue to be smarter than you appear.

Author:	tj86430 [ Fri May 28, 2010 11:17 am ]
Post subject:	Re: Strength or Looking Strong?
uglyboxer wrote: This reminds me an observation I once heard: In the Northern United States it is a virtue to appear smarter than you are, and in the Southern part a virtue to be smarter than you appear. What about the rest of the world? I have mostly been trying to be smart and appear that as well.

Author:	Phelan [ Fri May 28, 2010 11:57 am ]
Post subject:	Re: Strength or Looking Strong?
mdobbins wrote: Phelan wrote: There's a popular saying: Speak softly and carry a big gun. :p Must be the modern version of the original Teddy Rosevelt quote "Speak softly and carry a big stick." Misremembered the quote.

Author:	rubin427 [ Fri May 28, 2010 12:03 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Strength or Looking Strong?
Kirby wrote: 1.) To be strong, but appear weak to most that you knew. This is the ideal situation for any gambler - not that I make a habit of betting on games...

Author:	Chew Terr [ Fri May 28, 2010 12:04 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Strength or Looking Strong?
Easy polls are easy =D

Author:	Kirby [ Fri May 28, 2010 12:26 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Strength or Looking Strong?
Chew Terr wrote: Easy polls are easy =D Yeah, I figured most people would choose the first option, but I was both curious and bored. One person selected the second choice, though, so I guess it isn't a totally unanimous opinion.

Author:	Toge [ Fri May 28, 2010 12:31 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Strength or Looking Strong?
CarlJung wrote: Is this a choice I can actually make? - Most emphatically YES.

Author:	Hagios [ Fri May 28, 2010 1:03 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Strength or Looking Strong?
Appearances notwithstanding, the choice is easy. "Would you prefer to be strong, or weak?" is the important question here. The secondary question of "How do you want others to see you" is fairly inconsequential. If people see you as weak, that doesn't matter much, if you're strong. I suppose appearing strong could be a virtue to a weak person, though...

Author:	Loons [ Sat May 29, 2010 12:35 am ]
Post subject:	Re: Strength or Looking Strong?
I'd like to be weak and appear weak and be known not to improve. Life would be so simple! As it stands I have to desperately chase after peoples' expectations of me. I'm sort of the red queen of japanese board games. (It strikes me that sounds odd if you're not familiar with it, and a little even if you are; the red queen's always in a rush; not to get ahead but to desperately try and keep up! I am in fact not a crossdresser, for future reference. It's from Through the Looking Glass (and what Alice found there) by Lewis Carrol, and a common hypothesis for why sexual reproduction is so widely used (to keep up with pathogens etc)).

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Author:	nami [ Fri May 28, 2010 2:15 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Strength or Looking Strong?
appear weak be strong it doesn't matter how your appearance is ...

Author:	Nikolas73 [ Fri May 28, 2010 4:16 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Strength or Looking Strong?
For reasons mentioned above I voted for the first option, but perhaps the second could be useful in handicap games...?

Author:	palapiku [ Fri May 28, 2010 4:25 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Strength or Looking Strong?
I'm still not sure I understand what the poll is asking, but I'll give it a try. Since humans are social animals, social interaction is one of the most important things for us. For the purposes of communication, appearances are much more important than actual characteristics. Being strong without appearing strong is not very useful, unless you're fighting a war or unless strength itself is of vital importance. Strength is rarely of vital importance. Therefore, being weak while appearing strong is the more useful and desirable combination. Assuming the question refers to Go (I'm still not sure): Would you rather be 20k and have a 9d account, or the other way around? I would rather have the former. That way I could play some games with strong players, and have people listen to and respect my opinion. Whereas the other way around I'm just a boring sandbagger.

Author:	kokomi [ Fri May 28, 2010 4:53 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Strength or Looking Strong?
palapiku wrote: I'm still not sure I understand what the poll is asking, but I'll give it a try. Since humans are social animals, social interaction is one of the most important things for us. For the purposes of communication, appearances are much more important than actual characteristics. Being strong without appearing strong is not very useful, unless you're fighting a war or unless strength itself is of vital importance. Strength is rarely of vital importance. Therefore, being weak while appearing strong is the more useful and desirable combination. Assuming the question refers to Go (I'm still not sure): Would you rather be 20k and have a 9d account, or the other way around? I would rather have the former. That way I could play some games with strong players, and have people listen to and respect my opinion. Whereas the other way around I'm just a boring sandbagger. I'd like to be 9D and have a 20k account. If i were 9D, i won't care who i play against.

Author:	oren [ Fri May 28, 2010 5:23 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Strength or Looking Strong?
kokomi wrote: I'd like to be 9D and have a 20k account. If i were 9D, i won't care who i play against. This sounds like a Twilight Zone episode. What would it be like to be the only 9d in a world of 20k. Sounds awful.