So you are the good old U.S. of A, and you have a fat stack of chips that brooks no disrespect. Ever since U.S.S.R. lost that big hand and split its pile, you've been the undisputed chip leader. You've been having your way with the table for the last hour or so.
That pesky Saddam two seats ahead of you bets big on the flop, and you know he hasn't got the chips to back it up if you take him on. You look at your cards-- 9 and 10 suited. Not really a great hand, but Saddam is a notorious bluffer and this is a great chance to take him out of the game. You check and raise him for all he's got. You watch him flinch, and you know you own him.
But what's this? So far everyone at the table has folded, but then the bet gets to the shadowy, dusty player sitting right behind Saddam. He matches your bet, and doubles it. You do a double-take. As you watch, the figure's chip stack grows. A couple of chips here, a couple there, passers-by tossing chips in. From the darkness around the table, cheers come at his cheeky bet, and even more chips start to flow in.
This is unexpected. Saddam folds like a paper bag and so do the intervening players. You match the unexpected bet, but decline to raise. You need a minute to think. Who the hell is this guy? You thought this hand was between you and Saddam, but now Saddam isn't even a factor. Now you are playing against someone you had barely even noticed until this hand. And although his stack is still smaller than yours, it keeps growing. This, you think to yourself, is not good.
The flop comes down. Ace, king, eight; unsuited. Your flush draw is gone, and your straight is a Hail Mary. Your potentially promising hand has gone to shit, and the bet is to you. You could raise, trying to bluff your way out, but something tells you that that isn't going to work against this guy. He looks like a new player; he isn't smart enough to back down. Your stack is still looking respectable, but now you remember that your house is triple-mortgaged and you've got a couple of kids heading to college soon. Do you really have the money for this?
Maybe it's worth trying to take down this bastard now, before his stack starts getting too big. But suddenly you remember the first rule of poker: Never chase good money with bad. The odds are against you, and they aren't going to get better. Your shadowy opponent is grinning like a fox in the henhouse, and across the table China is looking serene, sitting this hand out. Most of China's chips are wooden, but damn if he doesn't have five or six wheel-barrows of them sitting around. And they are starting to turn to gold.
Never chase good money with bad. And even more so, never chase bad money with bad. The odds are against you, you don't know your opponent, and now that you think about it, you aren't sure you have this money to lose. You got yourself into this--how the hell are you going to get yourself out?