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A Gun on the Table
There recently has been a discussion on the English Chess Forum about weapons at American tournaments.
The covers of two chess books add impact to the thread: The Sniper by Charlie Storey and Secret Weapons by Andrew Martin.
http://www.ecforum.org.uk/viewtopic....158963#p158963
The posting that sparked comment was this, in part, from the USCF Forum:
I have recently had to make a decision at a chess tournament which I feel was the correct decision but would like to see how the USCF, and others, would respond to this decision.
A man I know wanted to have a gun present at a chess tournament for his protection citing Open Carry laws. Focusing only on this aspect, and not on the stuff that led up to this man feeling this was necessary (it wasn't), here is the reasoning I used in denying him entry into my events:
(1) The USCF rules book says players cannot have an aid to playing the game. Aids include taking notes, electronic devices, and all manner of other things we all often discuss.
(2) A gun can be an intimidating presence to other players, especially those who are not gun enthusiasts.
(3) Thus, this can give a psychological advantage over your opponent.
(4) Therefore, as a TD, I ruled that this was unacceptable and I denied him entry.
I believe this was the right course of action completely, against this individual. But, I'd like to see if anyone else has run into this sort of thing or not?
http://www.uschess.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=21617
And here I thought that the only things you could not bring into the playing hall were a cell telephone and a secret computing device!
There recently has been a discussion on the English Chess Forum about weapons at American tournaments.
The covers of two chess books add impact to the thread: The Sniper by Charlie Storey and Secret Weapons by Andrew Martin.
http://www.ecforum.org.uk/viewtopic....158963#p158963
The posting that sparked comment was this, in part, from the USCF Forum:
I have recently had to make a decision at a chess tournament which I feel was the correct decision but would like to see how the USCF, and others, would respond to this decision.
A man I know wanted to have a gun present at a chess tournament for his protection citing Open Carry laws. Focusing only on this aspect, and not on the stuff that led up to this man feeling this was necessary (it wasn't), here is the reasoning I used in denying him entry into my events:
(1) The USCF rules book says players cannot have an aid to playing the game. Aids include taking notes, electronic devices, and all manner of other things we all often discuss.
(2) A gun can be an intimidating presence to other players, especially those who are not gun enthusiasts.
(3) Thus, this can give a psychological advantage over your opponent.
(4) Therefore, as a TD, I ruled that this was unacceptable and I denied him entry.
I believe this was the right course of action completely, against this individual. But, I'd like to see if anyone else has run into this sort of thing or not?
http://www.uschess.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=21617
And here I thought that the only things you could not bring into the playing hall were a cell telephone and a secret computing device!
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