Post
by NickFaulks » Tue Jun 02, 2015 12:12 pm
I wonder whether the amateur players who say that they want the events they play in to be exempt from AC regulations would feel that way if it happened to them. If I were doing quite well in a 5 round Swiss and in round four I lost against someone who played remarkably accurately while behaving very strangely, it would spoil my weekend. I might well think, if that's the way it's going to be, then stuff weekend Swisses. I suspect you would feel the same way.
One argument is that cheating at my level is quite unlikely, but that is wrong. Without any controls, cheating by way of technology is quite easy and getting easier. If cheating is easy, some people will do it. Don't ask why, they just will, in the same way that some people select housebreaking as their profession. We know there is a population that routinely manipulates their grades to keep winning modest prizes in Major and Minor events, that has always been the case. Why is clandestine use of an engine so different?
Above all, we must avoid the idea "everyone does it, so why not?" gaining traction. If you think that can't happen, look no further than internet chess. That really is the end of the game.
If you want a picture of the future, imagine a QR code stamped on a human face — forever.