Dave McKenna tackles a 16-year-old chess cheat

Damn commies.

 

That's one boring lede.

 

I agree. If it weren't McKenna, I wouldn't have kept reading. But once you get past that, the writing really picks up.

 

I suppose that's true. Still don't see why an editor didn't juice the lede a little.

 

I'm not sure that sort of editing is part of the process there.

 

It's funny how you can try your best as a reporter, but you still won't really sound like you know what you are talking about to the people inside the subject.

Stuff that jumped out to me (in an otherwise awesome piece):

1) Getting someone in check is not impressive or important by itself. Saying "he got his opponent in check in 16 moves" is like saying "The defense blitzed before the 10th play of the game." Maybe the blitz was an awesome play and maybe it was a terrible one, but you can blitz pretty much anytime you want.
2) There's no such thing as a "former Grandmaster." It is a lifetime title.
3) I wasn't sure on this one, so I had to look it up to double-check. There is no Kevitz Variation of the Queen's Gambit Declined. There is a Kevitz variation to the English Opening, which is similar to the QGD but not at all the same thing.

I'll let the Fischer references slide because they were quotes, but that's like making Jordan references in a story about your JUCO basketball team's star player. Also "pawnhead" can slide because, while I've never, ever heard it used before, it's a nice turn of phrase.

 

The lede was really buried.

 

Rick: First off, great icon!

Second: "2) There's no such thing as a "former Grandmaster." It is a lifetime title."

I did not know that. If your ranking slips below the cut-off, you are still a Grandmaster?"

 

*****
"He's just a little boy who made a mistake," says Catherine Smiley, his mother."
*****

Yeah, I am an old curmudgeon, but here we have one of the major issues in education of the young today.

Mom will stand up for you even if you cheat.

(Sorry, needed to vent.)

 

I would hope my mother would defend me for doing something like that.

 

Yes.

Same for all master-level titles, actually. If nothing else, it prevents people from retiring to protect their titles. No need to discourage people from playing.

 

How the hell do you cheat at chess? Unlike cards, everything is right in front of both players.