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Wow This topic seems really negative, both for chess and for Chess players in general.

Anything in life that we pursue with obsession can lead to problems. Players like Fischer, who may seem mad on the outside, usually have some kind of history of seclusion or personal hardship.

I personally went through a 16 years phase, if not longer, of constantly playing computer games all day every day. This wasn't healthy and caused a lot of problems for me, both mental and physical, I was afraid to leave the house it got so bad.

I became very unsociable and paranoid about everyone around me, fortunately I was able to say enough is enough and pull myself from my own demise.

I was both completely compelled with the gaming industry and felt very passionately about it at the time. I had no other interests, really. It's not just computers this can happen with, even though it was an addiction, there are many strange ways we can become obsessed with various activities in life.

In chess, a perfect example is Fischer, his life was far from normal when he was a small child. His father disappearing, his mother, Regina who wrapped up in her own activities to notice her son and his needs.

He escaped it all, through the chess board. Having discovered chess at an early age and becoming compelled by the game, it eventually made him paranoid in his later years.

We cannot blame the tools when we misuse them. Would you blame glue and ban it because some people decide to sniff it? Would you ban beer because a small minority of people become addicted to it? 

The key word here is balance, we need to approach everything in life with moderation and not abuse the things around us.

Well, let's make this clear: to be different from the rest of the people doesn't mean to be abnormal. Many great persons of the past, who did great things where 'weird'. So it depends from what you consider normal and what you, or the society where you live, consider weird. In a conformist and irrational world, to be considered abnormal may be a sign of normality. There are many things of this world and this society that makes no sense. 

Then there are some mad men who play chess. But that's a problem of them, not of chess. 

=) hope you get what I'm trying to say in my poor english, lol

There is no true "normal."  Everyone is unique, with their own set of idiosyncracies.  Chess, like many activities, attracts people with certain mental capacities and skills, which does not make them "weird."  Professional musicians (including me) tend to be eccentric and strange in our own way, different than athletes, accountants and librarians.  Yet, they also have their own mindsets and personality types.

The chess community is made up of a very diverse group of people: some of the best players will act like spoiled children while others will act with the voice of maturity; some of the worst players will act like spoiled children while others will act with the voice of maturity.

One can see these differences in the posts of most threads on chess.com.  Some are very helpful with topics, others seem to lash out at others with whom they disagree.  It is a microcosm of the human situation.  We need to accept one another's differences and extend courtesy and respect to all -- while attempting to crush our opponents on the board!

Yes, many artists and geniuses are weird. But maybe if we try to understand what we see, when we see something different, we may find out a sense in it. Or maybe not, it's simply weird!

I've been playing chess for 40 years!!! I have been a faithful holdout as to denying chess players perceived stereotype of weirdness and/or the propensity of the game to make you bizarre. No more! I can't speak for all chess players but we ARE a bunch weirder than most and my social skills have suffered from my devotion to the game. I still LOVE the game and have engage many friends from it but honestly, we ARE a motley bunch well deserving of our bohemian perception. Put another way - Chess is a selfish, jealous mistress. Survey how many chess players you know with either steady girlfriends or a decent wardrobe. I love US but we ARE weird!!!

People Who like to Pin/Skewer/Fork' etc their Opponents ( Pieces,actually ) All d Time ,has juz gotta be kinda Weird ...

( Normal People don't/dunno how to do that )

I guess I was Perfectly 'Normal' until I learnt abt Chess Tactics .... ! LOL

( juz kidding )

I am a chess player and I am not weird!

My brother thought girls that played chess use nerd glasses and have alot of acne.

OPs been gone 5 years.

So you said that many chess players dont live for too long, Okay how about , the great Viktor Korchnoi who has lived for decades and Vassily Symslov? 

that's only two. he said many, not all.

I'm the OP. With many years away from chess, I've back with a different perspective. Chess has it's pros and cons and the cons are very hard to reverse. I've never really studied chess and all of my knowledge has come through experience, so I might have a very different attitude about chess. I had become lazy to not learn chess, and addicted to it's comfort of play non stop. I am still lazy and I am still a child, even though I am old. I can't get a hold of life. I can't be an adult. It's like someone who learns a different language. They can speak it, but they aren't connected to the culture. The way I've abused chess has caused me to remain a child. And I am still addicted to other games. But the other games have allowed me to take a different path, to learn the game and train in it, and become a better person. Life is so interesting, and the comfort of chess has denied me to connect to life. We chess players are like bugs in the jungle. We are very good at the small things we do, but we are living as 2 dimensional creatures, and no matter how good we become at chess, we will never be able to experience life. We must evolve spiritually to new dimensions. I am different now. Even though I might not be an adult, I am very spiritual and that has allowed me to connect to the main reality, and understand the small realities of games allow us to master experiences and evolve into new amazing beings. We are angles. We must realize it. I love you all. 

Chess is a weird hobby. Majority of chess lovers, but not all, are weirdos.

My chess friends are not weird, just obsessed with chess. Everyone deserves at least one obsession/hobby.

Who says chess players are weird? The majority who lives a boring life of work, work, work? Gluttons, drunkards and gamblers? religious and political fanatics? Who are actually weird?

Chess players are the only normal ones.

It's the other 99% who are "weird"

Of course all chess players aren't weird. In the past 50 years, I must have met at least three or four "normal" people who play a strong game of chess.

Go to an Oakland Raiders game, then you'll see weird.

Weirdness is in the eyes of the beholder. All people are weird.