[blml] Strange biddings

[Adam Beneschan]

Eric wrote:
 
> Welcome to bridge in the 21st century.  Herman describes what has  
> been ACBL regulation for some time, and is now incorporated into  
> TFLB.  You are now permitted to psych only if "[your] partner has no  
> more reason to be aware of the deviation than have the opponents".   
> As the ACBL interprets these words, they mean that you may not psych  
> if you are aware that your partner has psyched in the past -- ever --  
> but your opponents may not be.  They mean that you may not psych if  
> your opponents, by agreement and in practice, never psych.  

Eric, I can't see how the wording you quote can be interpreted in a
way that makes the opponents' psyching practices relevant at all.  The
phrase has to do with the opponents' awareness of your deviation.  I
personally never psych.  Well, almost never; my last psych was about
six years ago, although to be fair I should mention that my playing
time has been cut drastically in recent years.  But that has nothing
to do with my awareness that other players do sometimes psych.  I
can't see how my own psyching practices could possibly put any sort of
restrictions on the opponents', particularly since opponents who don't
know me have no way of knowing how much I psych or don't psych, AND
OBVIOUSLY I DON'T WANT THEM TO KNOW AHEAD OF TIME.

Are you sure the ACBL interprets the quote in the nonsensical way you
described it?  Can you cite something they've said?  

(By the way, I'm not disagreeing with any of your post other than this
last particular sentence.)

                                -- Adam