Though I don’t have children of my own, I get along well with kids and generally enjoy spending time with them. In particular, I find it fascinating to inhabit, as well as I can, their worlds for little bits of … Read more…
In the latest installment of my poker serial, our hero finds himself in a Seven-Card Stud game, among other new experiences: “First time?” Mike laughed good naturedly at his hesitation. “It’s already lit, just suck it a little, like a … Read more…
No new podcast this week, but… I’ve been writing some serialized poker fiction for Two Plus Two Magazine recently, and the third installment was just published. If you’ve been following along so far, I hope you’re eager to read more, … Read more…
Last month I went out on a limb and published a (poker-themed) piece of fiction in Two Plus Two Magazine. I wrote it primarily as a standalone story, though it admittedly concluded in an open-ended way. I was pleasantly surprised … Read more…
My latest piece for Two Plus Two Magazine is (poker-related) fiction called Walter Tine’s Poker Odyssey, so I’m particularly curious to know what you all think of it. If he crossed the street now, they would surmise that he crossed … Read more…
My latest piece for the Two Plus Two Magazine is more of a story than a strategy article. It’s about a friend of my grandmother’s who was a small-time gambler and a few conversations we had about poker: “I saw … Read more…
I recently published an essay called Your Information Diet that summarizes my frustration, informed/inspired by the 10+ years I spent immersed in the world of competitive debate, about the current state of political discourse in America (and quite possibly elsewhere … Read more…
I just published an article on a friend’s blog entitled “Your Information Diet“. What much of the discussion about “bubbles” ignores is that it matters a great deal what kind of opposing information you consume. Even worse than an echo … Read more…
As some of you know, debate has been a big part of my life. I was a nationally competitive debater in high school and college. In the early days of my poker career, I founded and ran a debate league … Read more…
Edit: I originally reported a donor match that is apparently not happening. Very sorry about that, but I hope you’ll contribute anyway! Edit2: Sorry for all the confusion. The match is apparently on and good for the rest of November … Read more…
This was a surprising little moment for me in reading The Autobiography of Martin Luther King: King was a gun owner prior to and in the early days of his involvement with the Montgomery bus boycott! After a bomb exploded … Read more…
I don’t often talk in terms of heroes and role models, but if you forced me to name one, I would choose the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. As I’ve written here before, I believe that he represents about … Read more…
I was not directly effected nor especially traumatized (no moreso, that is, than the vast majority of humans who were horrified by the suffering, death, and destruction) by the attacks of September 11. Far more traumatic, for me, was what took … Read more…
As recently discussed on the podcast, Gareth Chantler has recently been working with displaced Syrians in Turkey. He’s going to be raising money on Twitch this Sunday, and I encourage you to watch and/or participate in the fundraising (which is … Read more…
Dara Kearney and I yesterday released a joint review of a hyper turbo tournament that he won on PokerStars. Most of you probably know, by now, that I’m raising money for the Bay Area Urban Debate League and will release … Read more…
Good buddy Nate just published a list of some of his favorite books he read in 2013, which prompted me to want to do the same. Only one or two of these was actually published in 2013, but they’re all … Read more…
The most important poker tournament of your life starts today. You registered for it and submitted payment months ago, and there are no refunds. This tournament has a unique structure. It is a multi-day tournament, and each player is assigned … Read more…
Today is the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, in my opinion one of the most significant events in American history. For those who don’t know, the March was part of the larger movement pushing … Read more…
Tommy sent me this amazing screenshot, and I forgot to use it as an image to go along with his recent podcast appearance, so here it is in all its glory:
“To live well, the right things have to go wrong. I don’t know in what proportion. But in Buenos Aires, I seemed determined to find out.” So begins the latest installment in Gareth Chantler’s chronicle of his continent-spanning nomadic poker … Read more…
I had the idea of seeking out some good interview-based podcasts, partly to help me get better at interviewing for the Thinking Poker Podcast and partly because I like that stuff. Then I listened to one episode of WTF With … Read more…
My latest article for the 2+2 Magazine, An Old School Home Game, is a bit of a departure from the standard fare. It’s about a very interesting home game to which I was recently invited, and while it contains some … Read more…
Earlier year this year I wrote about the recent introduction of legalized casino gambling in my home state of Maryland: “Don’t insult me with those ridiculous claims like “the money is for education!” Money is fungible, and education is already a … Read more…
For those who haven’t heard (mostly non-American readers, I would assume), Trayvon Martin was a black teenager killed by what seems to have been an overzealous neighborhood watch volunteer. He was walking near his father’s house, talking on his cellphone … Read more…
It’s no surprise to that greeting card manufacturers, jewelers, etc. want to create a sense of obligatory gift exchange surrounding both traditional holidays like Christmas and manufactured ones like Mother’s Day. What is surprising to me is how willing consumers … Read more…
Last week’s trip report from a BDL tournament culminated in a description of the Varsity Finals, in which a brother and sister team from Roxbury narrowly lost the championship debate. I’m pleased to report that they’ve since had an even … Read more…
While on the train to the BDL tournament last weekend, I shared a car with a small group of middle-school students and their teacher. One of the boys in the class had found some used scratch-off tickets on the floor … Read more…
Tommy Angelo was at this thought-provoking best with his recent blog post “Old Man Goals“, about mellowing out with age: I only have one objective now when I drive, and that’s to not run into anything. If I decide to … Read more…
During the second half of Day 1 of the PCA, I had a young, apparently very successful high-stakes cash game player on my left. I didn’t recognize his name or screenname, but he talked about playing 10/20 and 25/50 NLHE … Read more…
Earlier this month, I posted about an organization that’s particularly important to me. I want to make clear, though, that whether you give to the Boston Debate League or to a cause that’s important to you, you really should consider … Read more…
Emily, my girlfriend and esteemed webmistress, was actually the one who thought of and baked this. Eating it was my contribution. I carved the pumpkin myself though!
No, I’m not talking about my mixed games dabbling. At least in the United States, December 31st is the deadline for making charitable donations that you can write off against your 2011 income. That means that the government is functionally … Read more…
CNN reports that, The Transportation Security Administration stood by its security officers Sunday after a Florida woman complained that her cancer-stricken, 95-year-old mother was patted down and forced to remove her adult diaper while going through security. At least from … Read more…
Today marks the 40th anniversary of President Nixon’s declaration of “war on drugs”, a quagmire that has proven far more expensive and deadly than the Vietnam War that he inherited. Put simply, the war on drugs is an ongoing decision … Read more…
One of my co-workers introduced me to the workplace cliche that “this job wouldn’t be so bad if it weren’t for the customers,” which in my naivete I believed to be both original and uniquely applicable to my job. Today, … Read more…
(Sorry for all the low-content posts lately, I do plan on getting some more poker-related stuff going soon. For now, enjoy the filler!) One summer during college I worked at a day camp for kids from Cambridge. Most people know … Read more…
Isabel Wilkerson’s The Warmth of Other Suns ought to be required reading for all Americans, black or otherwise. It tells a story that most of us know tangentially but whose true scale and historical importance are appreciated by few. I … Read more…
Yesterday’s post mentioned the “honor system” method that is becoming increasingly popular as an enforcement mechanism on public transportation. The idea is that both weekly/monthly passes and single use tickets are sold by machines at the train stations, but in … Read more…
Thanks to everyone who has submitted non-profit organizations important to them. Hopefully we can continue to grow this list, recommended by and for poker players, of organizations that are making a difference and that deserve our support. Please recommend an … Read more…
This holiday season, I’m starting what I hope will become a yearly tradition to encourage more poker players to donate a portion of their winnings to non-profit organizations. And since it must have a cheesy poker related name, I’m calling … Read more…
From the team that brought you The R4v3n comes another excellent, fully produced and animated poker poem, “The Ballad of Jackie Mayfair”: It takes a little while to get going, but I was pretty into it by the end. Enjoy!
This Poker Stars commercial is pretty awesome. Just a warning: there’s a lot of graphic violence, so possibly not suitable for work/children:
The Freakonomics blog reports that an Israeli lottery last week picked the same six winning numbers that had been picked three weeks prior. Predictably, this seems to have led to speculation of fixing, as Lottery officials denied allegations of rigging: … Read more…
A friend recently sent me a link to an article entitled “Big Game Theory” in Discover magazine. It’s about the phenomenon of physicists getting interested in, and having success at, poker. Author Jennifer Oullette cites Michael Binger, Michael Piper, Liv … Read more…
Sorry for the lack of posts recently. Life’s been hectic in both good and bad ways. Some friends from college were visiting us in Portland over the weekend, which kept us busy but was a blast. I’m about to fly … Read more…
The Wired blog yesterday reported on a recent experiment in which robots “learned” deception autonomously, without specific instructions from their programmers: Two robots — one black and one red — were taught to play hide and seek. The black, hider, … Read more…
Interesting little blurb on the Freakonomics blog this morning entitled When is a Poker Face Not a Poker Face? plugs a study finding that smiling or emotionally positive faces result in more mistaken folds that an emotionally neutral face: The … Read more…
Learned this on a tour of the State Capitol today. There are seven justices, and apparently after hearing a case they vote using a poker chip (this was the term the tour guide used to describe it, anyway) with a … Read more…
An old friend of mine is currently living in Berlin, and I’m going to be visiting him there from May 25-June 5. I tell you this for three reasons: 1. Bragging. 2. If you’re a Thinking Poker reader who happens … Read more…
Have you read Freakonomics by Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner? I never wrote a review of it, and I doubt I’ll re-read it just for that purpose, but it’s got a lot of appeal for the poker player who’s interested … Read more…
Sorry I’ve been a bit quiet of late, I’ve been doing plenty of writing but it’s mostly towards the book. It’s taken away from my playing time a bit as well, so not as many interesting hands of late. If … Read more…
The Wired Game|Life blog featured today a unique indie game in the early stages of development. Chris Hecker’s SpyParty is an asymmetrical multiplayer game: One player mingles among computer-controlled party guests, attempting to perform sly feats of espionage. The other … Read more…
I was really blown away by The Onion’s tribute to Salinger. I think it’s one of the best things I’ve ever seen in their pages, and that’s saying something. Not only is the irony spot-on, but they mimic his writing … Read more…
I had the pleasure of playing with Liv Boeree in the 2008 WSOP, spent basically an entire day sitting on her immediate left. Poker media are generally pretty quick to promote anyone who can handle chips and has two X-chromosomes … Read more…
Even after days when I’m totally immersed in poker, it’s pretty rare for me to dream about the game (or to remember those dreams, anyway). I’m sure it’s happened before, but I can’t recall any specific instances. I had two … Read more…
The controversial LA Gangland Bus Tours, which for $65 a head takes tourists on a two-hour bus tour of Watts and South-Central Los Angeles to visit sites significant to the history of street gangs in the US, is scheduled to … Read more…
I’ve been vaguely aware of both the plot of The Blind Side (homeless black teenager from broken family is adopted by wealthy white family and goes on to play pro football) and the critiques of its racial politics for some … Read more…
Robert Wright’s Nonzero is not a poker book. I picked it up because it claimed to apply game theory to human evolution, both biological and cultural, and to offer a sweeping and prophetic account of humanity’s history and future. Yes, … Read more…
By now, you’ve probably all heard about the arrest of prominent black academic Henry Louis Gates, Jr. in his home by a Cambridge police officer. If you haven’t, or even if you have, I suggest reading the police report. The … Read more…
Part 1Part 2Part 3 It has been 25 years since Savage Inequalities was first published, and there have been some changes. Schools are still funded primarily by local property taxes, guaranteeing that wealthier school districts will produce better educated children. … Read more…
Part 1Part 2 One thing I admire about Kozol is that he is much more upfront about his agenda and the sacrifices required than are many other advocates of reform. He admits that, “Attorneys in school-equalization suits have done their … Read more…
The argument can be made, sometimes convincingly, that many forms of inequality in the US result at least in part from poor choices on the part of those who hold the short end of the stick. That argument absolutely disintegrates … Read more…
I’m a voracious reader, and it’s not my intention to write a review of every book I read. Having just completed Jonathan Kozol’s Savage Inequalities: Children in America’s Schools, however, I am moved to record some thoughts here. It turns … Read more…
I’m currently reading Robert Musil’s “The Man Without Qualities,” a gift from a friend of mine who is a student of German literature. It’s a very insightful and well-written book with a lot of humorous passages, though it’s a bit … Read more…
Slovenian film critic Slavoj Zizek is pretty much the hippest academic out there today (taking over the title from Jean Baudrillard, of course). I first discovered him through college debate, where his work is among the most cited no matter … Read more…
I took seven semesters of French in college, and though I’ve never been to a French-speaking country, my knowledge of the language, particularly the written languate, was pretty strong when I graduated. In the past three years, though, I’ve barely … Read more…