English Chess Forum

Like you, these living cost loans did not cover living costs and I had to take on other private debt to keep going. The loans that I got were a much better deal. They only start to be repaid once you were earning 85% of the national average wage. They are then cancelled after 25 years, or when you h...

Certainly for me, who started the course at 27 and finished at 30. I graduated in 1997 with about 10,000 of debt and that took years to get rid of. Course fees plus living cost loans adding up to 50-60k (more for some courses) would have scared me out of it. I was entitled to a mature student grant,...

Watching the parliamentary debate (plus other political interviews) it was discussed that the indexation will be year on year from 2016 (a concession forced at the last moment). No one on the government benches have argued otherwise. I have heard nothing to say that the indexation will begin earlier...

The government are treating people like idiots. 21,000 is based on wages in six years time, minus inflation and we are back to 16,000 in real income. The more they go on about 21,000 and forget the six years from now detail, the less trust and more angry people involved will feel. It is an idealogic...

I thought it must be April fools day when Mr Ruffle repeated the same thing from months ago. Sadly it is not. Repeating comments that no one supported months ago, every three months, is not going to get people to see it your way. In fact it just winds people up to disagree further. Replacing someone...

Ernie Lazenby wrote I agree with John re those who try to point out to me the move they have just made while I away from the board. My response is always the same 'I dont need you to tell me what move you have made thank you I know where all the pieces are and where they have come from' Usually shut...

I agree, if you do a good job, why get replaced with someone who may, or not be any better. Can you imagine saying that a Prime Minister has one year and having a general election every year. Or a company had to have a new boss each year. One year is not enough time to even get your feet under the t...

A nice refreshing change.

I would expect that no one would worry about genuine expenses and if you incur costs, then you should claim them. Given that you must be busy, you commitment to attend events is both commendable and appreciated. You have my support and long may you continue.

Still not convinced that chess-related arguments against adjournment are bunk, I see (sigh). Actually, you might be right (but for the wrong reason). I think certain elite professional players wanted rid of adjournments because their built-in unfair advantage had been eroded by computers. It wasn't...

I am sorry, but there should be no room for such things in this day and age. Computer analysis afterwards should mean that if you have a reasonable advantage at adjournment, it will be followed through after resumption. A game continued to the end in one go will often be won by the person making the...

I agree, but the arbiters have to be the ones who apply the rules and as was the case, if they are not present, it comes down to the players arbiter hunting. If a player decide not to do this, as was the case in round four, there will always be a variable application of the rules. This has always be...

I was sat very close to both incidents and both happened very early on in the rounds. Both were quite humorous to watch, but that might not have been the case if it had happened later into the round, when more concentration is needed. The round four one occurred on one of the lower boards of the ope...