At least 20 women have accused Donald Trump of engaging in sexual assault or harassment prior to becoming president (AFP Photo/Michael B. Thomas)
Trump declares April ‘Sexual Assault Awareness’ month
Washington (AFP) – US President Donald Trump — who has himself been repeatedly accused of sexual misconduct — on Friday designated April 2018 “National Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month” amid a national debate over the issue.
“Sexual assault crimes remain tragically common in our society, and offenders too often evade accountability,” said a proclamation from Trump released by the White House. “These heinous crimes are committed indiscriminately: in intimate relationships, in public spaces, and in the workplace.”
“Too often, however, the victims of assault remain silent. They may fear retribution from their offender, lack faith in the justice system, or have difficulty confronting the pain associated with the traumatic experience,” it continued.
“My administration is committed to raising awareness about sexual assault and to empowering victims to identify perpetrators so that they can be held accountable.”
At least 20 women have publicly accused Trump of engaging in sexual assault or harassment prior to becoming president. The White House has maintained that the women are lying.
In February, allegations of domestic abuse led two Trump staffers to resign. The Republican leader came under fire for lamenting the “shattered” lives of those accused, saying the allegations could be false.
The 2016 presidential campaign that launched Trump to the White House saw the unearthing of an infamous “Access Hollywood” tape in which the real estate tycoon bragged about groping women.
By Michael W. Chapman | March 29, 2018 | 10:45 AM EDT
In another interview with his longtime atheist friend, Eugenio Scalfari, Pope Francis
claims that Hell does not exist and that condemned souls just “disappear.” This is a denial of the 2,000-year-old teaching of the Catholic Church about the reality of Hell and the eternal existence of the soul.
The interview between Scalfari and the Pope was published March 28, 2018 in La Repubblica. The relevant section on Hell was translated by the highly respected web log, Rorate Caeli.
The interview is headlined, “The Pope: It is an honor to be called revolutionary.” (Il Papa: “È un onore essere chiamato rivoluzionario.”)
Scalfari says to the Pope, “Your Holiness, in our previous meeting you told me that our species will disappear in a certain moment and that God, still out of his creative force, will create new species. You have never spoken to me about the souls who died in sin and will go to hell to suffer it for eternity. You have however spoken to me of good souls, admitted to the contemplation of God. But what about bad souls? Where are they punished?”
Pope Francis says, “They are not punished, those who repent obtain the forgiveness of God and enter the rank of souls who contemplate him, but those who do not repent and cannot therefore be forgiven disappear. There is no hell, there is the disappearance of sinful souls.”
Imagine
John Lennon
Imagine there’s no heaven
It’s easy if you try
No hell below us
Above us only sky
Imagine all the people
Living for today…
Imagine there’s no countries
It isn’t hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace…
You may say I’m a dreamer
But I’m not the only one
I hope someday you’ll join us
And the world will be as one
Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man
Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world…
You may say I’m a dreamer
But I’m not the only one
I hope someday you’ll join us
And the world will live as one
asserted his dominance early in the Candidates tournament, proving his mettle by winning his last two games following a loss to the last challenger for the crown, Sergei Karjakin.
IM Boris Kogan said, “The measure of a Chess player is how he plays after a defeat.” Caruana learned from his first candidates appearance, where he arguably played the best Chess. Unfortunately he had problems converting winning positions. This time he took advantage of better positions, converting them into wins.
The tournament was marred by the inclusion of former World Champion Vladimir Kramnik,
who did not qualify for a spot in the field, but was given some kind of “free-pass.” This is fine for other tournaments where fans wish to see one of their local heroes battle the best. For a chance to face the World Champion it is unthinkable. Kramnik took the place of a more deserving player. Chess has become a young man’s game and Vladimir is over forty. When a player turns thirty in China they no longer compete, but must move on to coaching.
The tournament was also marred by several egregious blunders which altered the natural progression of events. In round seven Karjakin was languishing in last place when he faced Wesley So.
This position was reached:
Wesley blundered horribly when playing 35…Ke8? 35…Rc7 would have left the position even.
In round ten, against Vladimir Kramnik, Levon Aronian
had this position in front of him:
Because of the discovered check Levon must play 36…Rg7. He played 36…Qc7, resigning after 37 Ne8+.
In round thirteen Alexander Grischuk
sat behind the black pieces against Shakhriyar Mamedyarov:
The knight is under attack but 34… Nf5 keeps the game level. Grischuk played the unbelievable 34…Nxb5, which lost on the spot, although several more moves were played.
The multi-verse theory is everything that can happen does happen. Imagine we are in a universe where those three losing moves were not played, and each game ended in a draw. The final standings would have been much more in line with how the players performed:
Exchange Ding and Aronian and the final standings would look like about what one would figure going into the event.
“Is it just me or is Ding one of the success stories of the candidates. Thus far unbeaten, likely to learn hugely from the whole experience, if he isn’t amongst the favourites for the next edition I’ll be amazed.”
— Daniel Gormally (@elgransenor1) March 27, 2018 (https://en.chessbase.com/post/candidates-2018-berlin-round-14)
As for Levon Aronian there were those who worried his dismal play at Gibraltar foreshadowed rough seas ahead. For example, consider what GM Kevin Spraggett
wrote on his blog before the event began:
Round 1 of Candidates Tournament
by kevinspraggettonchess · Published March 10, 2018
The Candidates Tournament is the unique event that will decide who will be the challenger for the World Championship match (against Carlsen), later this year. As such, all the players will be especially careful not to risk anything unnecessary at the beginning.
Being a double round event, I suspect that most of the players who have a real chance to win will wait until the second half before they make their play for winning. But, of course, everything depends on circumstances, and should a player start to run away with the tournament in the first half, then the others will have to react.
Up until now I have not written much about the chances of the players. I don’t see anyone particularly better than the others, though of course the Armenian star Levon Aronian has had the best results in the past year.
But form is more important than results! It is very difficult to maintain top form for more than 3 months at a time, let alone an entire year. Though Aronian emerged on top in Gibraltar last month, his play showed signs of fatigue.
Otherwise I would have chosen Aronian as the favourite in Berlin.
I contemplated writing about the first round of Gibraltar, but the excellent coverage at the tournament website caused me to eschew a post. From the website:
“There was a remarkable success for two Hungarian sisters in round one. Not in itself an unprecedented event in top-level chess but what was unusual was that they were not named Polgar. Anita
Tradewise Gibraltar Chess, Masters, Rd 1, 23 January 2018
and Ticia Gara
Tradewise Gibraltar Chess, Masters, Rd 1, 23 January 2018
faced formidable opposition in the shape of Levon Aronian,
Tradewise Gibraltar Chess, Masters, Rd 1, 23 January 2018
top seed and arguably the most in-form chess player of last year, and celebrated super-GM Nigel Short.
Levon and Nigel have achieved a lot of successes in the Gibraltar tournament in their time and they haven’t got where they are today by conceding draws to players in the mid-2300 rating range but they could make little impression on the Hungarian sisters. Indeed, Levon might have done worse had Anita made more of her chances when we went astray in the middlegame. Nigel had the upper hand against Ticia but it came down to an opposite-coloured bishop endgame and he could make no headway.” (https://www.gibchess.com/round-1-2018).
Playing over the games of Aronian had caused thoughts similar to those of GM Spraggett. The complete collapse of Aronian brings to mind something known to Baseball as the “yips.” There have been pitchers, and position players, who have lost the ability to throw the baseball. It has come to be known as “Steve Blass disease.” Steve was a very good pitcher, good enough to win game seven of the 1971 World Series with a complete game 2-1 victory over the Baltimore Orioles. He pitched well again the following year, but “lost it” in 1973. New York Yankees second baseman Chuck Knoblauch or Los Angeles Dodgers second baseman Steve Sax both developed problems throwing the ball to the first baseman. New York Mets catcher Mackey Sasser, after a collision at home plate with Jim Pressley of the Atlanta Braves, developed problems in returning the ball to the pitcher. Jon Lester, a well known pitcher who helped the Cubs win it all in 2016, has had a problem throwing to first base, so he simply stopped throwing. Arguably, the most famous example occurred with St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Rick Ankiel, who, unfortunately, contracted the “yips” during the 2000 National League Division Series. In the first game Rick issued six bases on balls and threw five wild pitches. He was never the same, but was good enough to go to the minor leagues and return to MLB as an outfielder, one with a strong arm. I would urge anyone interested to read the book, The Phenomenon: Pressure, the Yips, and the Pitch that Changed My Life, by Rick Ankiel.
A friend, Ron Sargent, a Vietnam veteran, was an extremely talented pool player. Word on the street was Ron could have been a world class player. That ended when he took a bullet to the head in ‘Nam. After numerous operations Ron managed to live a full life, which included marrying his high school sweet heart later in life, even though he had no feeling in one side of his face. Ron said, “Anyone can run a table, but it’s a totally different story when the cash is on the table and that little lump of shit gets caught in your throat.”
Some players, like baseball player Billy Martin,
thrive under pressure. In several World Series, he rose to the occasion when the pressure was at its zenith; others do not. This is not the first time Levon Aronian has under performed under pressure. It is quite possible Levon has a case of the “yips.” At his age and with his consistently poor results on the big stage, this could be the end of Aronian as a world class Chess player. No MLB player has ever over come the “yips.” Although it could be possible for Levon to “dig deep,” and find a solution to his “yips” problem, the odds are against it happening, because he will forever be plagued by “self-doubt.” In an interview with Ralph Ginzburg published in Harper’s magazine when Bobby Fischer
was eighteen, when asked to name the crucial ingredients needed to become one of the best Chess players, Bobby said, “A strong memory, concentration, imagination, and a strong will.” Obviously, one of these key ingredients is missing in the armory of Levon Aronian.
I will print part of an email sent to Kevin after reading his post:
Kevin,
I would not wager on the four players who participated in the Tal Memorial rapid/blitz, Grischuk; Karjakin; Kramnik; and Mamedyarov.
Ding a Ling and So so will battle for last.
That leaves Aronian and Caruana. The former has had a fantastic year, but his last tournament looks as though he has run outta steam. Then there is past under performing in these events…
Which leaves Fabulous Fabiano.
I do not say this because he is an American, but from a objective process of elimination.
Michael
My thoughts elicited this response from Michael Mulford, aka “Mulfish”:
“What’s the rationale for ruling out the four Tal Memorial players?”
Part of my response:
“My feeling is that the speed tournament took something outta those players…Bobby would NEVER have done that! A player needs to be FRESH AS A DAISY going into a grueling 14 round tournament!
It is a travesty that Kramnik is in the tournament! MVL should be there! He is old and will fade in the second half…
Mamed is the most unpredictable. He coulda lost today, but hung tuff! He has played well recently, elevating his game considerably, but Fabby is the most talented player…”
Because of playing much faster games in the event it is difficult to prognosticate the coming match for the human World Chess Championship. Caruana is no match for Carlsen in speed games, so he must win the match in the longer games, which is what I expect will happen.
Doing this caused me to reflect on one particular line from a Bob Dylan song, Its Alright Ma , (Im Only Bleeding).
After Richard Nixon resigned the Presidency of the US the line invariably received an eruption from the crowd, including standing ovations. The song that follows is a new to me live performance from 1986. It is one of the most powerful performances Bob has done of any song.
But even the president of the United States
Sometimes must have to stand naked
Complete lyrics follow the song below.
The Trumpster dropping his pants and getting spanked by a magazine with his picture on the cover caused me to reflect on a former US Chess champion, Dr. Reuben Fine, also a Freudian psychologist, who has written many books on both Chess and Psychology, such as:
and,
The full title is, Bobby Fischer’s Conquest of the World’s Chess Championship: The Psychology and Tactics of the Title Match.
Bobby was not the only Chess player psychoanalyzed:
What would Dr. Fine have thought about, psychologically speaking, any man dropping his pants to be spanked with his own picture? Makes you think, don’t it?
This is an excerpt from the transcript, which can be found at the same page as the interview by Anderson Cooper:
“Stormy Daniels’ real name is Stephanie Clifford. She’s 39 years old, from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and has been acting in, directing, and writing adult films for nearly 20 years. She was one of the most popular actresses in the adult industry when she was introduced to Mr. Trump at a celebrity golf tournament in Lake Tahoe in July, 2006. She says he invited her to dinner, and she met him at his hotel suite.
Anderson Cooper: How was the conversation?
Stormy Daniels: Ummm (LAUGH) it started off– all about him just talking about himself. And he’s like– “Have you seen my new magazine?
Anderson Cooper: He was showing you his own picture on the cover of a magazine.
Stormy Daniels: Right, right. And so I was like, “Does this– does this normally work for you?” And he looked very taken– taken back, like, he didn’t really understand what I was saying. Like, I was– does, just, you know, talking about yourself normally work?” And I was like, “Someone should take that magazine and spank you with it.” (LAUGH) And I’ll never forget the look on his face. He was like–
Anderson Cooper: What– what was his look?
Stormy Daniels: Just, I don’t think anyone’s ever spoken to him like that, especially, you know, a young woman who looked like me. And I said, you know, “Give me that,” and I just remember him going, “You wouldn’t.” “Hand it over.” And– so he did, and I was like, turn around, drop ’em.”
Anderson Cooper: You– you told Donald Trump to turn around and take off his pants.
Stormy Daniels: Yes.
Anderson Cooper: And did he?
Stormy Daniels: Yes. So he turned around and pulled his pants down a little — you know had underwear on and stuff and I just gave him a couple swats.
Anderson Cooper: This was done in a joking manner.
Stormy Daniels: Yes. and– from that moment on, he was a completely different person.
Anderson Cooper: How so?
Stormy Daniels: He quit talking about himself and he asked me things and I asked him things and it just became like more appropriate.
Anderson Cooper: It became more comfortable.
Stormy Daniels: Yeah. He was like, “Wow, you– you are special. You remind me of my daughter.” You know– he was like, “You’re smart and beautiful, and a woman to be reckoned with, and I like you. I like you.”
It’s Alright, Ma (I’m Only Bleeding)
Written by: Bob Dylan
Darkness at the break of noon
Shadows even the silver spoon
The handmade blade, the child’s balloon
Eclipses both the sun and moon
To understand you know too soon
There is no sense in trying
Pointed threats, they bluff with scorn
Suicide remarks are torn
From the fool’s gold mouthpiece the hollow horn
Plays wasted words, proves to warn
That he not busy being born is busy dying
Temptation’s page flies out the door
You follow, find yourself at war
Watch waterfalls of pity roar
You feel to moan but unlike before
You discover that you’d just be one more
Person crying
So don’t fear if you hear
A foreign sound to your ear
It’s alright, Ma, I’m only sighing
As some warn victory, some downfall
Private reasons great or small
Can be seen in the eyes of those that call
To make all that should be killed to crawl
While others say don’t hate nothing at all
Except hatred
Disillusioned words like bullets bark
As human gods aim for their mark
Make everything from toy guns that spark
To flesh-colored Christs that glow in the dark
It’s easy to see without looking too far
That not much is really sacred
While preachers preach of evil fates
Teachers teach that knowledge waits
Can lead to hundred-dollar plates
Goodness hides behind its gates
But even the president of the United States
Sometimes must have to stand naked
An’ though the rules of the road have been lodged
It’s only people’s games that you got to dodge
And it’s alright, Ma, I can make it
Advertising signs they con
You into thinking you’re the one
That can do what’s never been done
That can win what’s never been won
Meantime life outside goes on
All around you
You lose yourself, you reappear
You suddenly find you got nothing to fear
Alone you stand with nobody near
When a trembling distant voice, unclear
Startles your sleeping ears to hear
That somebody thinks they really found you
A question in your nerves is lit
Yet you know there is no answer fit
To satisfy, insure you not to quit
To keep it in your mind and not forget
That it is not he or she or them or it
That you belong to
Although the masters make the rules
For the wise men and the fools
I got nothing, Ma, to live up to
For them that must obey authority
That they do not respect in any degree
Who despise their jobs, their destinies
Speak jealously of them that are free
Cultivate their flowers to be
Nothing more than something they invest in
While some on principles baptized
To strict party platform ties
Social clubs in drag disguise
Outsiders they can freely criticize
Tell nothing except who to idolize
And then say God bless him
While one who sings with his tongue on fire
Gargles in the rat race choir
Bent out of shape from society’s pliers
Cares not to come up any higher
But rather get you down in the hole
That he’s in
But I mean no harm nor put fault
On anyone that lives in a vault
But it’s alright, Ma, if I can’t please him
Old lady judges watch people in pairs
Limited in sex, they dare
To push fake morals, insult and stare
While money doesn’t talk, it swears
Obscenity, who really cares
Propaganda, all is phony
While them that defend what they cannot see
With a killer’s pride, security
It blows the minds most bitterly
For them that think death’s honesty
Won’t fall upon them naturally
Life sometimes must get lonely
My eyes collide head-on with stuffed
Graveyards, false gods, I scuff
At pettiness which plays so rough
Walk upside-down inside handcuffs
Kick my legs to crash it off
Say okay, I have had enough, what else can you show me?
Trump’s ‘Space Force’ sounds a lot like the Space Corps his administration didn’t want
“I was not really serious, and then I said what a great idea.”
By Loren Grush@lorengrush Mar 13, 2018, 7:21pm EDT
Today during a speech to military members in San Diego, President Trump proposed the idea of creating an entirely new branch of the US military specifically geared toward war efforts in space. He dubbed this theoretical new branch the “Space Force,” noting that such a new agency could become reality soon.
The problem is Trump’s administration actively opposed the idea of a Space Force last year. In June, the House Armed Services Committee drafted legislation in the National Defense Authorization Act that would create a “Space Corps” within the US Air Force.
The Air Force didn’t want it and even the White House objected to the idea at the time, saying it would create more bureaucracy. “I oppose the creation of a new military service and additional organizational layers at a time when we are focused on reducing overhead and integrating joint warfighting (sic) efforts,” Defense Secretary Jim Mattis wrote in a letter to the ranking members of the House and Senate Armed Services Committees.
But that didn’t stop President Trump for advocating for a “Space Force” today. “My new national strategy for space recognizes that space is a war-fighting domain, just like the land, air, and sea,” Trump said at the rally. “We may even have a ‘Space Force’ — develop another one. Space Force. We have the Air Force; we’ll have the Space Force.” (https://www.theverge.com/2018/3/13/17117224/trump-space-force-air-force-corps-us-military)
Who, or what, will be fought in outer space has not been specified. I do not know about you but when I hear “Trump has a plan” I become worried, if not frightened.
Thing is, some whistle blowers have said we already have a “Space force.”
SECRET SPACE WAR: Shock claim US Navy fighting intergalactic battle with reptile aliens
THE US Navy has been fighting a secret space war against evil reptilian aliens hell bent on invading planet Earth, a new book has sensationally claimed.
By Joshua Nevett / Published 29th August 2016
Fleets of Star Wars-style US Navy space fighters have been covertly protecting the human race from reptillian (sic) attacks for decades, according to UFO author William Tompkins.
The 92-year-old writer claims to have worked in the aerospace industry for a think tank tasked with designing kilometer-long anti-gravity spacecraft for the US Navy in the 1950s and 60s.
During this period, the former-Navy insider turned whistleblower (sic) claims to have personally designed five space ships and 30 support ships.
In the new book, Selected by Extraterrestrials,
he claims these massive Naval interplanetary craft were created to fend off the invading lizard aliens, who want to enslave the human race.
These space wars, said to be very short, have been happening for decades right under our noses, he claims.
However, in the book he warns that the lizard aliens are “becoming stronger” and urges the Navy to beef up their defences (sic) – or face reptile rule.
Apparently the US Navy works closely with Nordic aliens, who have similar large, moon size spacecraft capable of beating reptile attack ships.
The Nordics apparently came from the Orion Constellation and influenced the building of the pyramids.
Meanwhile, the reptilian enemies attack various planets, take them over, and put their inhabitants into slavery.
But humans and the Nordics, who works with the US Navy to develop advanced spaceship technology, have joined forces to build a variety of Star Wars-style space fighters.
Randy Cramer’s life experiences are either incredible or absurd. He reports that he spent 20 years as a Marine in the U.S. Secret Space Program (SSP). His tour of duty took him first to an elaborate, secret, fully-equipped base on the moon. Then, he went to Mars where he spent 17 years at a military base. After a major loss of human lives during a battle between the military forces and native people of Mars, he was deployed back to the moon where he spent his final three years as a military pilot. He tells his story with vivid and captivating detail.
Randy Cramer: Space Traveler and Mars Colonist
Randy Cramer, who initially told his story under the pseudonym “Captain Kaye,” says he was only four years old when he began training for the SSP through a program called Project Moon Shadow. He was one of approximately 300 girls and boys who were “covertly drafted” to participate in the program. Girls comprised only 20 percent of the group, a male/female ratio that remained consistent during his entire 20 years with the SSP. https://www.gaia.com/article/randy-cramer-mars-defense-force
program OFF THE GRID (http://www.ora.tv/offthegrid). At the time Jesse was contemplating a run for the oval office. His guest that day was none other than Donald poppinJay Trump.
The two were talking about the possibility of running for POTUS. The Trumpster said, “If I run I will win.” OK, no one ever says, “If I run I will lose,” so it was to be expected.
host of one of my favorite internet TV programs, Dark Journalist (http://www.darkjournalist.com/). The show concerned a letter written by POTUS Richard Milhous Nixon
near the end of his Presidency as it was about to end.
“BOMBSHELL REVELATIONS CHANGE HISTORY! DARK JOURNALIST EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW!!! HUSTON PLAN COVERT INSIDER REVEALS PRESIDENT NIXON HID A TIME CAPSULE IN THE WHITE HOUSE THAT CONTAINS EXPLOSIVE ET/UFO DISCLOSURE ! THREE MEETINGS THAT CHANGE HISTORY!
In this historic Dark Journalist Episode Former Undercover Huston Plan Insider Robert Merritt steps forward for the first time ever in public reveals his Three Meetings with President Richard Nixon in a Deep Underground Location Beneath The White House! NIXON HID TIME CAPSULE WITH TOP SECRET INFORMATION IN THE WHITE HOUSE AFTER WATERGATE BREAK IN! President Nixon revealed to Merritt a Special Message that Nixon Read to him aloud before sealing it in the White House for later generations to learn the Truth. The letter contained information that the United States had obtained and had under its protection an ET Being. Scientists at Los Alamos eventually learned to communicate with the Being and developed vast knowledge from this interaction which helped them to achieve Advanced Technology and Science.” (http://www.darkjournalist.com/s-merritt.php)
During the program to which I just listened Daniel Lizst said Richard Nixon had written a letter to current POTUS Donald Trump in 1987 in which he wrote, “If you run for President you will win.”
has been playing well recently. I was, therefore, surprised to see him open with the Bird because it is not one of his usual opening choices. If one plays an opening regularly one obtains a “feel” for the typical positions. This is one of those times you will see a very good player struggle when out of his usual element. His opponent, Deimant Cornette,
is an IM, in addition to holding the WGM title. Why are there separate titles for women?
Lenderman, Aleksandr GM 2600 (USA) – Cornette, Deimante IM 2477 (LTU)
GAMMA Reykjavik Open 2018 round 08
1. f4 (No matter where you look this move has not scored well. I have employed it on numerous occasions and obtained interesting positions. Adam Caveney, while living in Atlanta, played the move exclusively on his way to becoming a National Master) d5 2. Nf3 c5 (When playing the Leningrad Dutch system with colors reversed I invariably answer by moving my Queen pawn forward one square, as mentioned previously in this blog. I would do the same here) 3. g3 (3 e3 is the original way of playing the Bird.) Nc6 4. Bg2 (Houdini and Komodo at the CBDB show 4 d3, but Stockfish shows the game move. Yet the SF program used at ChessBomb shows 3 g3. Go figure…) g6 (The Stockfish program at depth 44 at the CBDB plays this move, but the SF program at the Bomb plays 4…h5. Komodo plays either the game move or 4…Nf6. Your choice.) 5. O-O (The first choice of human players. Houdini and Komodo at the CBDB play 5 d3; the SF program at Da Bomb plays 5 Nc3) Bg7 6. d3 e6 (6…Nf6 is the first choice of Komodo, and most often played, but the Fish has other ideas, such as 6…b6 or Nh6) 7. e4 (Although an obvious move and almost always played, Stockfish at the CBDB prefers 7 Na3.) Nge7 (The main move, although Houdini has 7…Nh6, a move not in the databases, rated higher. By a transposition of moves we have reached the position from a game between Morozovich (2711) v Dubov (2661) at the 69th Moscow Blitz 09/06/2015. Dubov played 7…Nf6 and won. See game below) 8. c3 (Komodo prefers 8 e5) O-O (Fish likes 8…b6) 9. a4 (A rarely played move. Fish says 9 e5; Dragon says 9 Na3; nocaB says, Qe2! “When in doubt, always play Qe2!”) b6 (Komodo’s choice; Fishy prefers 9…h5, or dxe4. Rb8 is also possible. See Grunberg v Popescu 1998 below for 9…a6) 10. Na3 Bb7 (Fishly & Houey like 10…h5. See King v Hausner 1992 below for 10…dxe4) 11. Qc2 (The Dragon & the Fish say 11 e5. See Haakert v Landgraf 2003 below for 11 Bd2) Rc8 (Boldly going where no man has gone previously. For 11…Qd7 see Haakert v Oechslein 1999 below; for 11…a6 see Mozes v Borsi 1993 below) 12. Rd1 (In this type of position it is more common to play 12 e5, or if the rook is to be moved, Re1) Qd7 13. Be3 (It has become obvious Lenderman has no intention of ever playing e5) Nd4 14. Bxd4 cxd4
15. c4? (Iffy play by white has allowed a small advantage for black. This move tends to exacerbate an already tenuous position. Once again, e5, or even Nb5, were better choices) dxe4 16. dxe4 Rfd8 17. Qd3 Qxa4? (Pawn grabbing. Simply 17…e5 retains the advantage. Now the game is about even, Steven.) 18. Nb5 Qb4 (Now taking the pawn is correct, (18… Qxc4) 19. Rxa7 Rd7 20. b3 (Alek simply refuses to play e5, which he should do now) Nc6 21. Ra4 Qc5 22. Kh1 (I don’t mean to beat a dead horse…Yes, I do! Play e5!) Ra8 (22…e5!) 23. Rxa8+ Bxa8 24. e5 (I do not believe it. Finally!) Nb4 25. Qd2 d3 26. Ng5 h6 (26… Bxg2+ first) 27. Ne4 Bxe4 28. Bxe4 Bf8 29. Kg2 Nc2
30. Kf3? (Oh no, wrong way Mr. Bill! With this move Lenderman lets go of the rope with both hands. 30 Kh3!) f5 31. Ba8 Qc8 32. Bd5 exd5 33. e6? (Not that it mattered, but why not take the pawn with 33 Qxd3?!) dxc4 34. exd7 Qc6+ 35. Kf2 Bc5+ 36. Kf1 Qh1# 0-1
Morozevich, Alexander (2711) v Dubov, Daniil (2661)
Event: 69th Moscow Blitz
Site: Moscow RUS Date: 09/06/2015
With no games today in the Candidates tournament I decided to check out the “action” at the European Individual Championship. It was early in round five and several games had already finished, so I clicked on to learn why the games had prematurely ended.
Looks like white has a small advantage, which is confirmed by Stockfish at ChessBomb, but he does have a doubled pawn. Why waste all that time playing Chess?
Wow, looks like black has a rather large advantage. Oh well, he is only an IM and his opponent is a much higher rated GM. Hummm, maybe that’s why Santos is only an IM…
Donny Gray
wrote an article for Chessbase which posed the question, What’s the matter with draws? This also happens to be the titele of the article. We learn, “Donny achieved the title of United States National Master back in the stone age (1988). Now he teaches chess full time for the ICC (Internet Chess Club) under the name “Curmudgeon”. He also writes a monthly article for the Georgia Chess Association, georgiachessnews.com, and is in charge of the ChessThinker website, ChessThinker.com.” (https://en.chessbase.com/post/what-s-the-matter-with-draws)
I considered going back to the earlier rounds, but why waste my time? There is only ONE GAME each day in this tournament, but these “players” obviously did not come to play Chess…Maybe the night life is exceptional in the city of Batumi, located in the country of Georgia?
“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” – George Santayana, philosopher, essayist, poet and novelist.
Moment of Truth
Yes, This Is Going to Be Worse Than Watergate
In 1973, there were still some independent-minded lawmakers in the Grand Old Party. Today, not so much.
Michael Tomasky
03.20.18 5:13 AM ET
“The temperature’s rising. The New York Times’ Maggie Haberman reports that this president feels he really knows how to do this job now, and from here on in we’re going to see Trump unchained. So the Trump we’ve been seeing has been chained? God help us.”
from the following round. I have always liked Svid since reading an interview, or Q&A, in which he mentioned Bob Dylan as one of his favorite musical artists. I have previously watched some of his round of the day videos, which were excellent. They are usually filmed after a long day of analyzing Chess when he is obviously exhausted. They are, nevertheless, wonderfully elucidating, and the aforementioned videos are no exception. After the opening moves had been played today, I watched the post-game press conference with Levon Aronian and Fabiano Caruana
on Chess24 (https://chess24.com/en) before watching Svid give his take on the game, which I enjoyed immensely.
While working at the House of Pain (aka, the Atlanta Chess and Game Center), I noticed Chess videos had become quite popular. Being a fossil from the days when players obtained information from books, I wondered why anyone would pay that kind of money for a video when one could use it to purchase a book. Videos proliferate to the point now when one can obtain them freely via the internet.
“I agree that kids are good to have around, in chess and elsewhere. A neighborhood with young children running round is more alive, and kids playing chess means tournaments will continue into the future, if more noisily. But they’re different now. I asked one of the Charlotte teenager Masters what he’d read to help him become so strong – My System, Zurich 1953, My 60 Memorable Games, opening monographs, or what? “I don’t read chess books.”
Good weekend to you,
Gene
On Friday, February 2, 2018
Ouch! That hurt. I love the feel of a good book in the morning. I begin most days with a book and cuppa coffee. A good day finds me with another cuppa afternoon joe, and a book!
I have read that beauty is in the flaws, or imperfections. This is applicable to Chess, for without imperfections some of the greatest games, most beautiful and exciting games would never have been played. Such is the case with the current Candidates tournament in Berlin. Peter Svidler can be heard saying, “…more mistakes are forthcoming.” He also says the games are, “…incredibly interesting and exciting,” because of the mistakes. Caruana has been involved in two of the games mentioned in this post, as has Levon Aronian. Fabiano was fortunate to win both games, while Levon was not so fortunate, yet he is to be applauded as much as Fabiano for playing fighting Chess, which has been infinitely more enjoyable than some of the draws made by other players. I hope a fighting player wins the event because one should not be able to draw their way to a seat across from the human World Chess Champion. “I’ve played pretty good fighting Chess,” said Caruana. Levon, probably the favorite going into the tournament, said in answer to a question, “Not my best; probably one of my worst.” For Levon it has been a
Myriad problems marred the beginning of the tournament. GM Kevin Spraggett detailed how bad were the conditions when he wrote, “The players in the tournament are really suffering. There is only one toilet for 8 players, the first day there was no running water! Now there is water, but it is soapy.” (http://www.spraggettonchess.com/the-laughs-at-the-candidates-tournament/)
Levon mentioned in the interview in answering a question concerning flashes from cellphones, said it was, “Not as noisy as the first couple of days.” For such an important tournament, second only to the Worlds Championship, this is unacceptable. Levon went on to say, “When you play badly your play is affected by everything, but when you play well it’s not so…” The sound of clapping could be heard from the audience.
Let us hope the Germans somehow manage to alleviate the suffering of the poor players for the last rounds of the tournament. The best human Chess players in the world deserve better conditions than they have received.
Armchair Warrior 