Introspective

What the world champion says about Hans Niemann and his illustrious mentor, Maxim Dlugy is less important than his clear intentions to uphold the integrity of the game he loves… all the while performing at a rating of 2900. Yep, if you think he is giving up his world title because he is not playing well - think again.

Chess just became mainstream. Sadly, it did not do so all on its own, “drama’ followed suit.

Magnus Carlsen, the current reigning world champion since 2013, ‘insinuated’ by an unprecedented withdrawal from an ongoing tournament and a cryptic tweet that his opponent the 19-year old American grandmaster Hans Moke Niemann is not exactly as he seems… and the latter seems to be on a crusade to prove to anyone who is listening that he is the reincarnation of Bobby Fischer, only better.

GM Niemann admitted to have cheated “only online, and never otb” (otb: chess lingo for ‘over the board’) and only twice, the very two times when he was caught at ages of 12 and 16, and never in-between or never after. A very unlucky cheater, indeed.

In the ongoing online tournament, Magnus Carlsen faced Hans Niemann as black and after two moves… Carlsen resigned. Yeah, no shit.

For people who are not aware of who Magnus Carlsen really is and what chess means to him… please watch this video at your leisure.

Magnus Carlsen has nothing to gain by what he is doing and he is doing this for what he actually loves - the game of chess.

There are people who have called him a lot of names including “unsportsmanlike”, but what he has really done is to take on a huge responsibility of doing what many have had wanted to be able to do. He is trying to undo something several have exploited, and many have let pass for their own convenience - cheating in chess.

May be Magnus Carlsen is doing this for all the career chess professionals who survive on talent, hard work, and dedication alone - who are cheated against, whose confidence get destroyed because while they suspect they are playing a machine they can’t always prove it, whose careers are put on the line and is the price they have to pay.

This cannot go on.

FIDE director general, Emil Sutovsky was quoted saying:

But may be the system does need to be broken down, and rebuild. Because the primary objective should be to protect the real players and not penalize them for their integrity. Because past instances bear examples that the current system seems to think a slap on the wrist is sufficient to allow a known cheater come back and play in titled tournaments.

May be the organizers should swallow their gigantic egos, loosen the purse strings, and strive to do better.

May be there should be a system put in place that assesses phenomenal rises, uncharacteristic behaviors, and frankly, the opinions of the few top chess players in the world (who are capable, definitely not all GMs qualify).

Because the best chess players often can know after a while when they are playing a human and when it is a computer.

May be if the system took responsibility, Magnus Carlsen wouldn’t have had to resort to these passive aggressive “vigilante” methods to make his point, to try and right a wrong.

Chess is not “just a game”, it is a passion and a career for many and it is time that “the system” awarded integrity and talent. And not those who has hidden access to Stockfish with a higher processing power.

P.S. If it isn’t obvious, this author considers HMN to be cheating. For every nitpicks, several points have not been addressed, but they might be in subsequent posts.

P.P.S. Finally, if chess values its “child prodigies” so much - if becoming a GM or a titled player, access to elite tournaments, earning money in chess has no age limit then no one is exempt from the penalties of cheating in chess, simply because “he is just a kid” either. No one talks about the careers, the minds that are affected, ruined even, in the wake of the havoc wrecked by a cheater. Chess is not just a game, it is somebody’s life and livelihood.

**Collected

...as on all important issues that threaten the country as we know it.

“এরা যত বেশী পড়ে,  তত বেশী জানে,  তত কম মানে”

"Era Joto Beshi Pore, Toto Beshi Jaane, Toto Kom Maane" 

"The more they read, the more they know, the lesser they obey"

“Hirak Rajar Deshe” by Satyajit Ray

...reminiscent of India today. 

What does this entail for World Politics?

A Government is not a political party.  We are not Pro-”Insert (Any) Political Party Name Here”: We are Pro-India.