[fnurt]

This post reminds me of a guy I used to play with. Every time it would be checked around to him on the button he would bet with a shrug and say, "it's my obligation!"

You certainly don't want to bet every time you're on the button in this situation. For one thing, once your opponents figure out they can count on you for a bet, you will find yourself getting constantly check-raised.

Also, the button can paradoxically be a less successful position for steals because people are so used to the button trying to steal that some of them will call you with whatever. You can use this to your advantage by value betting mediocre hands like second pair.

In Bob Ciaffone's "Improve Your Poker" he points out that before you try to steal you should think about how many players are in the hand and also how likely it is that someone has hit the flop. It's usually silly to try a steal from the button when 7 players see the flop, even if they all check it around to you. If the flop is something like JTx where someone surely must have at least a draw, stealing becomes even sillier. You want to vary your play as a general rule, so why not save the steal for a hand where it has more than a 1% chance of working.