Becoming a "National Master"

It would be cool to be a "National Master" in three or four different countries, maybe a couple islands as well.

Sadly, it took me a few minutes to even get that one (where's my magic flute when I need it?).

Why don't you just show us that each and every NM on this site is from the US?

And better yet, here: http://www.chess.com/members/view/alexsuper1987

That is a "NM" that is not from the United States.  He took me all of about 10 seconds to find, having been on the first page of titled players listed on the site. 

Learn how to not ask questions to try to prove a point when you haven't done your homework or have any idea how the person will respond.  You'll just end up looking like a fool.  I know you're just a kid but its a good life lesson.

OK. I suggest these exotic places for getting the title:

paradise island: then you will be able to say "I played chess against Wonderwoman for the ultimate prize".

Vatican: so much wheeling and dealing and skulduggery goes on there anyway; they will give you the title in a flash.

Gilligan's Island: offer to repair Mr Gilligan's boat, plane etc and set up the net there for blue movies and your title is assured.

If those don't succeed then it's time to go exotic. These nations are hard to find. But for the intrepid chess advnturer they are worth the effort.

Atlantis: follow Mr Cayce's suggestion and head to the Bermuda triangle...somewhere.

seventh layer of hell: Asmodeus will grant you the title...FOR YOUR SOUL in 7 easy payments.

Yeah but it is "anywhere other than the US," which was what was asked for.  The point is, this site will recognize a NM title from a nation other than the US.  I also saw a handful from Canada, one from South Korea, and a NM from Taiwan, and you know Taiwan isn't even recognized by the UN.

Please don't tell me that this whole ordeal to be recognized as a National Master in an undeveloped country is just to get a free Chess.com premium membership and the two-letter abbreviation by your username.

Oh no no, this is one of those more academic exercises to explore the "what ifs" within the realm of possiblity and to see if anyone had ever thought of this and/or done this for real.

Keep in mind this plan would also probably not require that much cash or influence per se, but probably shouldn't be undertaken by anyone that lacks the proper connections and either firepower or at least the appearance of not being someone to "mess with."

Its quite foreseeable that your average western "chess nerd" that would be poking around places like Liberia or the Ivory Coast with a suitcase full of cash in hand, inquiring aimlessly as to whom he had to meet to get his "National Master" title would simply just wind up disappearing and never being heard from again.

Yup.  The life lesson is that there are a bunch of assholes out there.

Hey, what did I do?  The guy arrogantly challenged anyone to "find me an NM on this site that from anywhere other than the US" without even bothering to check first that there are scores of NMs here from outside the US, including on the very first page of titled players on the "members" page.

I earned the NM title from the USCF in 1984 and also earned the NM title of Portugal after living/playing there for about 14 years . 

I just got dumber(!) reading this whole thread. I was dumb to start it, but even dumber to finish it. Maybe I got sucked into a dumbening black hole. I dunno how black holes work. I don't know how holes even work. I mean, holes are always still filled with *something*, right? Even if it's vacuum. I wonder how those Dyson vacuums work. Hey, is that ice cream...?

Oh, that so cool Mr. Reb!  How was Portugal?  I have a friend in Miami absolutely in love with Portugal (especially the "Algarve" coast region).

Not only that, but you have some bona fide knowledge about how these things work.  Did you read the original post and the follow up threads?

Like, would you mind sharing your knowledge on how another national chess federation awards a "NM" title?  Is it pretty much standardized all over the world?  Or does FIDE allow each national federation its own discretion on how to award an NM title?  How much control does FIDE have over its national affiliates? 

And what about those countries with no FIDE-affiliated national chess league?  Is it true what "Estragon" said about how any titles from those particular countries wouldn't really count for much? 

Mind if I pick your brain a little about this?  Your knowledge is greatly appreciated.

Thank you for your response.  So that solves it then, the plan is doable and FIDE won't get in the way. 

Shadow Knight says "look, I just changed my flag to Western Samoa.  You really think any of those people who are NM's come from that country?"

Yes I abosutely do think that guy is from Italy.  Is there anything about him that makes you think he's not?  The guy has an Italian name, he looks Italian (like real Italian and not Italian-American), I know where "Catania, Italy" is (actually it's in Sicily), and his  homepage is some italian-language page.  And anything about the Taiwanese NM makes you think that he's not Taiwanese?  In other words, the guy's not "Chuck from Seattle, West Samoa" or our friend NimzoRoy, who's obviously not from Swaziland. 

You are obviously miffed that you tried to talk tough with no idea what you're talking about and got proven wrong within about 5 seconds, as you should have been, trying to "prove a point" when being completely uninformed about what you're discussing.

And I highly doubt you have a large sum of money.  What are you like 13?

On a related yet different note, ShadowKnight, I noticed that this topic seems to be bringing about a very confrontational, overly antagonistic, almost insecure side of you.  That seems unlike what I've seen of your posts before as you've always seemed to be pretty pleasant and friendly.  Something about the topic of non-US National Masters really gets under your skin, doesn't it?

Well I think anyone that knows me OR has read this thread can see that we are just discussing a theoretical idea with the side question of whether anyone has heard this happening in reality.

I am not trying to get a title like that for myself.  Do you think I have high-level political or underworld contacts in Cote d'Ivoire or Liberia, or the money to buy my way into those areas, as if I'm Nicholas Cage's character in God of War?

 I mean no disrespect to you or any hard-working chess professionals trying to get their titles the proper way.  I hope you understand that.

What is more important? The fact you have the knowledge and skill set of a NM that you earned or just having the title and being a phony. I could not look  at myself in the mirror if I pulled a stunt like this in anything that I may try to achieve in life. Be real to yourself and others you just might figure out that life gets a little bit brighter this way……..

Well, also think of these three things:

1)  You might not need chess skills to pull off a "stunt" like this but you would need quite a different and perhaps more valuable skills: International savvy and what we in America call "balls."  Getting a "national master" title as proposed would involve both going to dangerous places and most likely dealing with dangerous people who have no compunction against exploiting, torturing, or killing people en masse . . . and those would just be the "political" types you'd be meeting.  (If you even had the connections to get an audience with them).  If you for whatever reason would have to bring any third-world underworld types into this as liasons then you're getting involved in a whole other level of depravity (drug smugglers, human traffickers, illegal arms merchants, diamond smugglers, etc).  I never suggested things would be as easy as walking down to the Ivory Coast Capitol Building, paying a friendly clerk $10,000 and walking out as a "National Master." 

2) I re-iterate that I myself am not at all interested in doing this.  I might like to lead a fun lifestyle and do things that normal bourgeoisie young people might frown upon, but in no way do I feel like I'm at the level of international and/or street-smarts where I would be comfortable attempting this myself.  I just threw out a theory, invited anyone to poke any holes in it, give any personal information they knew about National Masters from different countries, and asked whether in the entire history of chess anyone had thought of this before.  

Based on what I've researched on the internets and least and the responses on this thread, it seems like this plan could possibly or even probably work.

3) This ShadowKnight guy has gotten so worked up over this thread that he's now playing on this site under the flag of Western Samoa.

Grobzilla may be right ..... I just sacrificed my queen

http://www.chess.com/forum/view/community/chesscom-doesnt-recognize-canadian-nm-title

Staff says NMs from countries other than the US are permitted