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I was curious to see the full text of the translated poem. Here it is via google books preview of the book in question:

Oh man, think long

before talk escapes your mouth.

Speak thoughtfully, without anger and hatred,

thus you will succeed all the better.

Listening quickly and answering slowly,

considering things carefully, that is how wise men live.

Through talk many have been overcome,

in silence few have been found dishonourable.

There is no better protection from dishonour

than being the master of your tongue.

It seems like solid advice.

I'm curious about the known exceptions. I.e., when has holding one's tongue entirely, or taking time to think before speaking, worked out badly?

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The advice is meant generally as a matter of having a habit of listening and considering before speaking. This has nothing to do with being able to handle a debate partner. Prudence is assumed here, as always.

(W.r.t. Trump, I would not say his style is "designed", even if it is exploited. As a New Yorker, his pauses are conventionally short relative to those used in other regions of the US such that someone from some place like Texas, where pauses are longer, may not be able to catch the pause in time or even discern the pause at all. So his interlocutor must realize that this is the case and respond accordingly.)

Maybe don't stifle the urge to say you love someone.
Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak and to remove all doubt.
Interesting account of use of gossip to spread information that ordinary people might not have been in a position to learn and how the author leveraged his contacts to expand his own local network of trusted sources.

I am left wishing for a joke about priests talking to nuns though. Maybe someone could dig some of these old jokes from the document so that the rest of us can chuckle at the same jokes this guy and his peers enjoyed.