Is Polonius's advice to Laertes good in Act I, Scene iii?

I've always
found some of his advice interesting, particularly the borrower/lender idea.  However many of
his ideas are given an ironic slant with his last remark, which might seem to be violated by
everythingdoes:

This above all: to thine own self be
true
And it must follow as the night the day
Thou canst not then be false to
any man.

What he has told his son suggests he wantsto put
on a front (clothing) and listen more than he speaks. While this emphasizes the appearance vs.
reality theme, making a good impression, because the company you attract and keep affects your
nature, and being wise enough to know when not to speak are pieces of sage advice that
Shakespeare would have known about from the Book of Proverbs in the Bible.

In
another , you cannot be true to yourself if you attract to and surround yourself with false
people and if you speak out arrogantly in a pretense of wisdom.