samsloan
2012-04-05 15:37:49 UTC
[quote="Meadmaker"]As a member, I have an agenda. Lower costs. It
costs too much for someone to play in his first Chess tournament. If
the allegations are true, that people are using their USCF positions
to feather their nest, then that would be something I would want to
stop, because it would be a contributing factor to cost. That
allegation is made over and over, in various forms, from every side.
Mike made it in this thread, but it is made in many other venues, from
threads to blogs to court papers.
So is there any substance to it? My guess is no. However, if there
is, I would love to hear it.
ETA: I also realize I didn't do a good job of relating this to the
actual thread topic. I would also contend that if there is any money
to be made, from a business perspective, from taking over the USCF, we
are probably doing something wrong. "Control" of the USCF shouldn't
be profitable. We should pay the staff we need a reasonable salary,
but no more than they could make using their skills in the business
world, so that no one, whether Bain Capital or the head of the next
evil cabal that runs for the EB, has anything to gain from a takeover.
[/quote]
The reason it costs so much to play in chess tournaments is not
because board members are trying to "feather their nests". None of the
current board members make any money from chess except for Bill
Goichberg and possibly Allen Priest, a scholastic organizer. The rest
spend their own money on chess, with no hope of recovery.
However, Susan Polgar and Paul Truong absolutely thought they were
going to make a lot of money by taking over the USCF. This is in part
because they were completely ignorant of the way that not-for-profit
corporations work. Susan told me herself, when we were on good terms,
"Any time I do anything, it is for the money."
The reason chess tournaments are so expensive is chess players like to
gamble. They think nothing of paying $307 to enter the World Open,
because they are all absolutely convinced they are going to win the
$13,000 first prize for their section (that will actually be won by
some unknown person from Armenia).
Every time a rated tournament is held along side an unrated
tournament, the rated tournament gets more players. Every time a
tournament with high entry fees and high prizes is held along side a
tournament with low entry fees and low or no prizes, the tournament
with high entry fees and high prizes gets more players.
Sam Sloan
costs too much for someone to play in his first Chess tournament. If
the allegations are true, that people are using their USCF positions
to feather their nest, then that would be something I would want to
stop, because it would be a contributing factor to cost. That
allegation is made over and over, in various forms, from every side.
Mike made it in this thread, but it is made in many other venues, from
threads to blogs to court papers.
So is there any substance to it? My guess is no. However, if there
is, I would love to hear it.
ETA: I also realize I didn't do a good job of relating this to the
actual thread topic. I would also contend that if there is any money
to be made, from a business perspective, from taking over the USCF, we
are probably doing something wrong. "Control" of the USCF shouldn't
be profitable. We should pay the staff we need a reasonable salary,
but no more than they could make using their skills in the business
world, so that no one, whether Bain Capital or the head of the next
evil cabal that runs for the EB, has anything to gain from a takeover.
[/quote]
The reason it costs so much to play in chess tournaments is not
because board members are trying to "feather their nests". None of the
current board members make any money from chess except for Bill
Goichberg and possibly Allen Priest, a scholastic organizer. The rest
spend their own money on chess, with no hope of recovery.
However, Susan Polgar and Paul Truong absolutely thought they were
going to make a lot of money by taking over the USCF. This is in part
because they were completely ignorant of the way that not-for-profit
corporations work. Susan told me herself, when we were on good terms,
"Any time I do anything, it is for the money."
The reason chess tournaments are so expensive is chess players like to
gamble. They think nothing of paying $307 to enter the World Open,
because they are all absolutely convinced they are going to win the
$13,000 first prize for their section (that will actually be won by
some unknown person from Armenia).
Every time a rated tournament is held along side an unrated
tournament, the rated tournament gets more players. Every time a
tournament with high entry fees and high prizes is held along side a
tournament with low entry fees and low or no prizes, the tournament
with high entry fees and high prizes gets more players.
Sam Sloan