WWTBAM Bored

I've mentioned that I'm starting to form a partnership with one of the local pros. (We'll be playing, by the way, in the next stage of the North American Open Pairs on Sunday.) He's quoted in this article from the New York Times. --Bob

So Bob which one is your friend? or you may prefer not to name him here.

Bob78164 wrote:I've mentioned that I'm starting to form a partnership with one of the local pros. (We'll be playing, by the way, in the next stage of the North American Open Pairs on Sunday.) He's quoted in this article from the New York Times. --Bob

I hope your friend isn't one facing sanctions. That might make the partnership awkward. Would you both not be able to play?

themanintheseersuckersuit wrote:So Bob which one is your friend? or you may prefer not to name him here.

The Los Angeles expert quoted in the fifth paragraph, who thinks the team is getting a raw deal. I'm inclined to agree with him. --Bob

Good luck Bob, I hope to check back on Monday and see a great result!!!

My two cents on the sign. I was offended and find that kind of stuff in poor taste. Protest all you want here or anywhere but do not tie your protest in with any other event. I do think the "sanctions" they are talking about are too extreme. Rap them on the knuckles and be done.

Bob78164 wrote:I've mentioned that I'm starting to form a partnership with one of the local pros. (We'll be playing, by the way, in the next stage of the North American Open Pairs on Sunday.) He's quoted in this article from the New York Times. --Bob

Good luck on Sunday!

I am glad to see the French team gave there support. I wonder if that was before or after their loss to the German team.

I agree with Kusch and Kleinman, the sanctions are too much:

At issue is a crudely lettered sign, scribbled on the back of a menu, that was held up at an awards dinner and read, “We did not vote for Bush.”

. . .

“This isn’t a free-speech issue,” said Jan Martel, president of the United States Bridge Federation, the nonprofit group that selects teams for international tournaments. “There isn’t any question that private organizations can control the speech of people who represent them.”

Not so, said Danny Kleinman, a professional bridge player, teacher and columnist. “If the U.S.B.F. wants to impose conditions of membership that involve curtailment of free speech, then it cannot claim to represent our country in international competition,” he said by e-mail.

Here's what I think is the crux of the issue:

Ms. Martel said the action by the team, which had won the Venice Cup, the women’s title, at the Shanghai event, could cost the federation corporate sponsors.

This is creepy:

Alan Falk, a lawyer for the federation, wrote the four team members on Nov. 6, “I am instructed to press for greater sanction against anyone who rejects this compromise offer.”

Selective enforcement is even more creepy:

David L. Anderson, a bridge player who supports the team, said it was common to see players at international tournaments sporting buttons bearing the date “1-20-09,” when George W. Bush will hand off to a new president, as well as buttons reading “Support Our Troops.”

“They don’t go after those people,” Mr. Anderson said.

I heard plenty of Clinton bashing in the eight years he served, but I never heard anybody complaining about a "We didn't vote for Clinton" sign.

SportsFan68 wrote:I agree with Kusch and Kleinman, the sanctions are too much . . . .

Here's the way I look at it -- if a baseball player aired his political views during, say, the World Series parade, would we talk about suspending him at all, much less for the season?

The remedy for speech is more speech, not enforced silence. If the USBF has a problem with what the team did, it should use persuasion, not coercion, and as big a megaphone as it cares to wield. --Bob

For those who may be following this matter, the dispute has settled. By the way, one of the affected players, Jill Meyers, played the same game Sunday at which my partner and I failed to qualify. As it happens, they were the only pair in the field that we failed to play against. But she mentioned the fact of the settlement, which apparently occurred Saturday night. --Bob

I'm looking for a new partner....