Fide decision to make about Russia

Now that being said, im not saying boycotting all russian players is good, im just saying some have political say

I'm sorry but your comments are not only completely off topic but also stink of bias, ignorance and a complete lack of understanding. 

You accuse three countries of supporting Russia by purchasing energy from them knowing that the USA is also guilty of exactly the same thing. 

https://www.forbes.com/sites/rrapier/2022/02/21/russia-is-a-major-supplier-of-oil-to-the-us/

Knowing that your ex president who used to be, and could potentially in the future be, a major player in US politics, actively supports Putin and his regime, not to mention several others. 

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/24/world/europe/trump-putin-russia-ukraine.html

Please keep your opinions to yourself if you cannot present relevant arguments that are factually based with full knowledge of events. I will say it again, the USA are allies with the Uk. We stand united and all countries have engaged in financial activities with Russia. That DOES NOT MEAN we had prior knowledge of their intentions or actions, that either of our countries support Putin's regime or are not looking for ways to actively denounce and mitigate their actions. Any opinion suggesting otherwise is supposition.

Your comments have left me with no choice but to defend against your accusations. They are wrong and completely irrelevant to this discussion. Can we please now concentrate on that, not your opinions which are completely unrelated. Most of the Western world is united in condemning Putin's activities and are actively making extremely difficult decisions to determine how to limit those activities. 

Or are you actually from the USA and not just trying to cause division between our countries?

I'll be posting a complaint to chess.com.

And this is why political conversation, which I am guilty of, is not allowed. It is tragic what is happening, and there is plenty of blame to go around, so let us pray for a peaceful solution. 

Please remember that it is against our terms of service to have political discussions. There are plenty of sites on the web to have these discussions. Please remember that this is a chess site and not the place for these discussions.

This thread remains open for now, but if political conversations continue we will lock it down. Please be civil and supportive of everyone during this difficult time.

Thank you.

Regards,
Greta

Glory to Ukraine 🇺🇦 

I hear you, Greta, but I also remember this official post by chess.com some days ago.

https://www.chess.com/blog/CHESScom/in-support-of-ukraine

(Even "in support of Ukraine", not just talking about peace, or just about FIDE's measures on this issue, like in the OP, which is still strongly chess-related ...)

So I think chess.com already has made an exception here, and so far, I understand that this topic would be allowed to be discussed by others publicly as well ...

One could somehow say it is "above politics", even if I admit this would be a questionable argument. But I think the point is that there is no rule without exceptions. And even if chess.com would not have made such an exception themselves, I would say this is one ...

Makes just as much sense as "If we exclude British players from this site, they will see all the parties Boris is attending during lockdown"

It definitely mentioned FIDE's potentially political decision, depending upon the perspective opinion with which it is viewed, which inherently will affect site members and chess. They are basically inseparable. Perhaps Chess.com could have posted an article with no means of commenting here and starting an official thread called Chess and Politics elsewhere, where it is allowed, since the subject comes up in other capacities as well?

First, the site's policy is not consistent. The admin. says: No politics, except in private clubs. But that "balkanises" the debate, because people are split up into small groups. And if politics is ok in a club, why not on the general forum? And why not create a Ukraine Crisis forum so people can have their say there?

Second, the policy is patronising. We are adults and can have a discussion about politics. Sometimes we agree, sometimes we don't. That's democracy. What is the admin. afraid of?

Third, by suppressing discussion, the site is doing Putin's work for him. There's nothing he loathes and fears more than free speech. 

Fourth, the site is perfectly happy for people to post about idiotic topics which have nothing to do with chess. Just by way of example, in Off Topic, there's a silly "Corrupt a Wish" thread which has accumulated 16, 438 posts. And that's not even the largest such thread. Nonsense like that is apparently fine, but two or three posts about Ukraine are quickly suppressed. 

A "D minus" mark for the site. Could do better. 

You are correct that we generally make it a point to remain apolitical. After much discussion, and under these horrible, tragic circumstances, we made an exception to offer our official stance in support of Ukraine. 

This is a very sensitive topic for many, and we realize there are a lot of emotions and feelings going on right now. In light of that, our statement is not meant for further political discussion to extend to the forums.

I trust you can understand why Chess.com is trying to keep the peace on our public forums by preventing political discussions that will inevitably descend into personal insults, attacks, and more division that simply will make things worse.

If you are interested in reading our full official statement, I warmly invite you to access it here: https://www.chess.com/blog/CHESScom/in-support-of-ukraine

My sincere thanks for your understanding during this difficult time.

Best wishes

I am asking a few questions and not making any accusation by saying, has FIDE stated verbatim that it doesn't want the participation of war criminals and where could I find this exact statement? Are any of the men on the list, current chess players, slated to play in upcoming tournaments? 

Next, I will make a statement, simply stating that it is my belief that deciding a territory on the planet should be recognized as an independent, isn't a war crime. That doesn't mean I excuse any atrocity that has taken place. My heart goes out to the Ukrainian people.

I think most sensible people can agree that launching missiles at targets in a sovereign nation, without suffering a prior military action, and then invading and shooting people there, are war crimes.

So, to state they recognize or believe some place deserves a particular distinction, or independence, recognized in the international community shouldn't be viewed as war crimes, is as follows. If some people or nations want to see them as political threats or destabilizing threats, that is fair, but nations do this regularly to each other for various reasons, without those things ever being considered war crimes.  Plenty of other nations also recognize territories or people who should be free or independent regularly and have throughout history. In fact, it is most often a matter of protecting and preserving the people there. Having said that isn't a justification or condemnation of any of Putin's motives. It is a simple acknowledgement of what has happened at face value, while imagining it if no war had taken place or even if one had ended, which is often when nations make declarations about the international status of people and nations. Sometimes even during a war, people will come to the realization that people need a land where they are free and safe from persecution. Israel is the prime example I can think of at the moment. 

If you want to talk about those things in greater detail, I will invite to a place where those discussions have been ongoing for some time. I also welcome any of the rest of you who would like to discuss these matters. 

istg

i come to this site to play chess

and i get politics

damn you, putin

“In end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.” Martin Luther King Jr.

Chess.com has expressed it's support of Ukraine and acknowledges that many Russians are against the war. Several high-profile chess personalities have also expressed their opinions on multiple platforms and forums. 

Many players on chess.com also feel the need to have an outlet for their feelings. Chess is a huge part of some peoples lives and sites like chess.com have enabled that community to expand their interests internationally. People have played chess throughout every war that has occurred in modern history. 

I would simply point out that many feel the need to defend Ukraine and support them in their hour of need. The world unites against these unprovoked attacks and many wish to further their support of sanctions against those responsible and those that support the aggression, including on chess.com.

I hope chess.com will allow this and let discussions like this continue, but moderate them to remove personal attacks or hate speech. This is part of all of our lives now. 

please discuss only matters pertaining to chess. it would be a pity to have this locked as well

So does anyone have an idea where FIDE should try to have the olympiad?  Have they offered any possibilities yet?

Well, in this case, it is very much chess-related ... (sports never is 100% unpolitical, and FIDE - rightfully - has made it a relevant issue ...)

You are certainly welcome to post a complaint to chess.com. I said nothing untrue. 

We may not like that our countries are financing this war, but it remains a fact that Putins power and money come from energy sales. I was addressing the common concern about what can we do. Lots of people say things (including chess.com) but few actually do anything about it.

Energy independence is something we can DO. It is also true that only a couple short years ago our country was much more energy independent than it is today. Again we may not like this fact, but it's true. So if decisions we all make (in our respective countries) can lead to buying less energy from Putin, I see that as a very good thing. It bothers me that our country went from energy independence to now relying (at least in part) on Russian oil. That is certainly troubling. 

I agree that my opinions are biased. My bias is justified. I do not like what Putin has done, and it concerns me that our nation (as well as others) have ignored the obvious threat and even worse helped finance his invasion. So I'm not sure where you get that there is division between our countries, we have the same concerns and have the same objectives. 

The current problem on our side of the pond is that we currently have taken steps to increase energy dependence, which is something that should be addressed immediately. 

Locked post - this keeps going political and that's not for the general forums, 

Please discuss in a private club or somewhere that accepts this discussion.

Please enjoy your chess