Friday Coffee
SPRAGGETT ON CHESS
The end of another week is upon us and these last few days–especially– prove the point that it is a VERY dangerous world we live in. The insanity in Boston will linger for a long time in the American psyche, while tragedies such as those in Waco, Iran and Iraq will surely repeat themselves in the near future, as this kind of stuff is cyclical.
I know it is a cheap cliche, but violence does breed violence. Refusing to understand the values, points of view and cultures of others leads to a dangerous spiral. We find ourselves reacting more to negativity than starting something new and positive. The chicken and the egg…no one is right and no one is wrong…today’s fucked-up world forces us to question what is really important to us–which is GOOD–but how to explain our growing indifference?
Gawd, I love Fridays! I am such a philosophical genius on Fridays…Thankyou, coffee!
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There is an awful lot of chess taking place right now. Besides the CHINESE CHAMPIONSHIPS , the GRAND PRIX in Switzerand and the BANGKOK OPEN a whole slew of other tournaments begin this weekend.
The 31st edition of one of France’s longest-standing international opens begins tomorrow in METZ . I have played there about a half-dozen times in the past and have always enjoyed it. Tough opposition, a really beautiful city and lots of sunshine. Check out the website from time to time…it is people friendly!
Closer to home, congrats to the tireless Michael Yip for doing such a splendid job on his blogs! His Canadian news BLOG fills a real vacuum in Canadian chess circles. On Michael’s blog you can get daily news (games, photos, x-tables, etc) of those tournaments that are taking place in Canada, or follow our fellow Canadians in international tournaments.
For instance, today I took a quick peek and found out that Toronto IM Bindi Cheng has just recently played in Philadelphia. Or you can follow the Toronto championship that is taking place this week.
For instance, today I took a quick peek and found out that Toronto IM Bindi Cheng has just recently played in Philadelphia. Or you can follow the Toronto championship that is taking place this week.
”Chess in Toronto? Liar! It is just a myth!”
Ofcourse, it is difficult to take serious this year’s Toronto championship. One of Canada’s strongest chess centres can not but attract a few weak FMs?? Surely someone is fucking around with Toronto’s chess organization!
Canadian Ralph Deline has started a new BLOG , this time 100% dedicated to chess! Check it out and join me in wishing him the best of luck! Ralph often sends me material for this blog, and I reproduce a super video that Ralph pointed out to me. I wish I had the courage to fly like this:
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8L8UCfxmtSw]