Your Balls And Your Word
All I have in this world is my balls and my word and I don’t break them for no one. – Al Pacino as Tony Montana in “Scarface”
I was watching “Scarface” not too long ago, and started thinking about the main character, Tony Montana. He’s has a lot of flaws, but if there is one redeeming quality to him, it’s that he keeps his word.
(A brief segway: “Scarface” is a cult classic, but it pains me to see Al Pacino reinforce just about every Cuban stereotype with his superthick accent and pimp strut. And I wonder why they couldn’t find a hispanic actor for the job, but I digress..)
Tony Montana wasn’t a man to be admired, but he had his morals. He was a thief, drug dealer, and a murderer…but he wasn’t a liar.
It seems like a man keeping his word is a rare find these days. Whenever you turn of the nightly news, you’re almost certain to find something of a man who said he was going to do something but didn’t. There have been cases in business (AIG, Enron), government (just about everything George W. said), and even sports (I’m almost certain Tiger Woods made a vow to be faithful to his wife). Where did we go wrong?
Now I’m no moral compass. I’ve gone off the path of the righteous more than once in my life, hell even twice, but I keep my word. That’s important to me. Your word is your bond, and you should do all you can to keep it.
There may be some unforeseen circumstances that make you break your word. For example, if you suddenly lose your job, taking your 5-year-old on that summer vacation to Disney World you promised goes out the window. But as soon as you can make it up to him, you should. You gave him your word.
Tony Montana said that all he had was his balls and his word. Well, that’s all you leave with too. All of the awards and money you made don’t mean anything when they’re putting you six feet under. People will remember you for what you did..and didn’t..do.
A man already has his balls. Make sure that you keep your word. That will make you more a man than your testicular fortitude.
Feel free to comment.
Interesting linking there, but I follow you totally.
More focus on keeping one’s word and less focus on the presence of one’s balls would totally be welcomed.
It’s sad that it’s a rarity to find someone that actually backs up what they say. A hand shake used to seal the deal, but now you even need to look at those twice
I know someone that has a hard time deciphering the truth, I’m starting to think it’s a mental health issue. If I ask what the weather is like and this person tells me it’s sunny, you better believe I’m bring my umbrella ella ella a a a!!!
Especially weather men. It’s supposed to be a Nor-Easter here…but it’s barely sticking. I wish I could get paid well and only be right 50% of the time.
You know I guess this one falls under the category of education for those who want to be manly. The funny thing is that for me this subject is one of those things that is just like a reflex; I don’t even think about it. I mean the option to be anything less than my word doesn’t even occur. But I definitely noticed that these days, the “word” of to many grown *ss (looking) men just ain’t worth a d*mn. My thing is, a real man is not afraid of the consequences. So why would I bother lying to you or breaking my word? But then again, I guess that’s where having a huge pair comes in handy.
That’s a good point. Covering up something with a lie brings more trouble than just telling an ugly truth. I’d rather tell the truth and take whatever consequences that come with it.
The only reason one has to lie is if they are worried about what others think. If you don’t care you can just tell the truth. I don’t tell the truth all of the time but since I don’t care that much it’s not as much as others.
Its just some kind of personal integrity. I always tell people DO YOU and if you’re consistent then I’ll be cool with it. It’s rare to find someone or anyone who doesn’t embellish a bit. But the only thing you can really measure someone by is them keeping their word. The rest of the stuff doesn’t really involve others but when it involves you that’s when it counts.
I don’t think I’ve met anyone that told the truth ALL of the time. Whether it’s on a resume (I was CEO), to a friend (I can bench 500 lbs), or to a woman (yeah, 14″), we’ve all stretched the truth a little. But a man should really try to keep his word. When you say you’re going to do something, follow through.
Following through with your engagements is in many cases superhuman effort when it really shouldn’t be. Great piece!
Thanks for the love. That one is important to me. When you leave this earth, your word is all you have left.