Whilst I agree with the concept of politeness...a little lite banter can add some fun to proceedings.
Its worth seeing how other bb`s operate for a broader view...Stifflng the debate is not what we should be about......just like very short statements can hide the underlying realities.....at times.
Have a look at some of the Financial sites, eg,
http://www.iii.co.uk or Football sites...to see what happens...but I must say that some of these are way OTT, both in what they allow...and what they sensor...
However...some observations....Firstly..this debate came about because of the premise that chess is in decline.......??
So maybe any actions should look at that aspect...ie, what can be done to encourage chess more generally.
If chess is in decline....
Then, as I understand it...Junior chess thrives, 4NCL chess is thriving....and chess on the net is apparently thriving.......so its not all bad out there. Have we some lessons to learn.....
Looking at the various stats put about...it appears that there are about 8000 - 10000 graded players....from those notes about chess bands,etc....
yet...note the following headline ...`Under BCF website`....
However, the British Chess Federation (BCF), which represents Britain's 60000 regular tournament players, is now set to play its killer move. ...which appeared only two years ago! .....when we still had that fine body (with all the potential it embodied.
If we have 60,000 such players...thats 12k per Union on average...surely we should not be struggling as we seem to be, to attract players.....but why are so many clearly not playing graded games....?
Can we bring more of these into the fold......