The second Thursday of 2014 already!   My how time flies when the weather is bad (or worse) and my North American friends are freezing their butts off!  I was born in Canada during the winter months  (currently residing in the rainy mountains in Portugal) but during the passing winters spent here  I  often find myself feeling homesick for all that  snow and cold  that is so synonymous with  Montreal’s harsh winters: sometimes , when the feeling is particularly intense, I would need to open my ice-box and stare, just to remind me of what a real winter is!  BUT not this year!   This year all I need do is turn on the television set  to my favorite news channel and VOILA!  Instant gratification!  Thankyou POLAR VORTEX!

My advice to my fellow North Americans is to try to  stay alert and drink lots of  coffee!  Not only will it help you to remain alert and active because of all the caffeine, but it also contains HEAT!

 Click on image to enlarge.  SOURCE

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 GRANDMASTERS  AND FASHION!

Photogenic female grandmasters Kosteniuk, Schripchenko and Pogonina (amongst others) have already appeared in well known fashion magazines  –some of them more racy than others–and the feedback has been VERY positive. 

The combination of beauty, elegance and intelligence is a natural fit.

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BUT WHAT ABOUT MALE GRANDMASTERS?

Up until recently, the male grandmasters have been neglected, but this is changing.  There appears to be something alluring about male ruggedness and intelligence.   First  Magnus Carlsen successfully hooked up with G-STAR a couple of years back  promoting the well known clothing line!

Now take a look (photos below) at Canadian star Eric Hansen appearing in the latest edition of  PIE MAGAZINE, a classy Canadian magazine that targets an affluent world-wide readership of both males and females alike!

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IS THERE NO PLAN B?

Taking place this week is the year’s first on-line meeting of the CFC , where the President, Vlad Drkulec, made it abundantly clear in his opening address that the most important topic on hand was a POLICY DISCUSSION on the CFC’s application for continuance as a Not for Profit (NFP) under the Canadian government’s new legislation (CNCA).

Predictably, while not lacking good intentions, the CFC leadership is overwhelmed by the complexity of the task, while the input by the Governors is both scarce and superficial. To date, only eight (8) governors –including the President–have made any efforts to participate in the discussion, with almost 2/3 of the comments being made by the President himself! Making matters worse, it is clear if one reads the discussion that the President himself has difficulty grasping the essentials of what the CNCA is all about! For example:

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” My thought on how this might go forward is that we will submit to the governors a stripped down bylaw which will be consistent with the new NFP act and will be largely (I hope) uncontroversial. It will contain those provisions which are required by the government and non-negotiable and nothing else. It will need two thirds approval by the governors. If it doesn’t pass then we might have to consider packing it in.”

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Here on this blog last week I suggested that the best course of action for the CFC was to hire a professional (lawyer) and let him guide the entire continuance process. Sound advice that is echoed by many legal firms and experts:

”Given the serious consequences associated with dissolution as a corporation, it is essential that the remaining Part II CCA corporations take appropriate steps to continue under the CNCA as soon as possible. The continuance process will require the preparation of articles of continuance and a new by-law which complies with the CNCA. Drafting these documents and having them approved by the board and the members at meetings called for that purpose before filing with Industry Canada can take a number of months, subject to the governance process and polity of the organization. Given the complexities surrounding the new CNCA provisions, it is generally advisable to obtain assistance from a lawyer who is knowledgeable concerning the CNCA and experienced in charity and not-for profit law matters to ensure that the new governing documents are compliant. The following are some related resources.” LINK

And the consequences are VERY real! The CFC risks losing all of its assets if it does not submit a successful application for continuance before October 17 of this year. The Chess Foundation could also suffer significant losses as most of its money can be considered CFC assets (Life memberships, direct contributions to the CFC as well as proceeds of the sale of the CFC condominium a few years back, etc)

Most Governors don’t even understand legal talk. Many haven’t even read the CFC Constitution!   I think the most reasonable course for the CFC executive to take is to use some of its assets to HIRE a professional for guidance. EVEN should the CFC decide not to incorporate, legal advice is necessary to protect its assets. In essence, it all comes down to MONEY.

USE IT OR LOSE IT!