Nigel Short: Women's brains not chess brains

SheridanJupp wrote:

I find contentment in being completely silent. That for me is the best state of mind. No thoughts or feelings. I had seen some disturbing webms and lying in bed I realized that there's this "outer space" where nothing can bother me. I call it "outer space" because I like to think that when you take away all matter in the Universe, it's a similar state. The state of absolute quiteness of the mind and the carrier of matter (sub atomic matter included) are in my opinion one and the same thing. Does that make sense?

Yes. I just see that as Mushin (mind, no mind)

Also, I take back what I said about 2 pages to explain my Stoic/Nietzsche hybrid of philosoohy. I think it was summarized elsewhere as:

God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,

The courage to change the things I can,

And the wisdom to know the difference.

(Request to higher level being ok but not necessary.)

Mushin!! Wow That's Fantastic! I guess that makes me a martial artist!!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mushin

Any man saying that women are inferior to men can be seen as ignorant. Here's something worth watching.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TBvF6r6DOvc

(SJ #1580) I find contentment in being completely silent. That for me is the best state of mind. No thoughts or feelings....lying in bed I realized that there's this "outer space" where nothing can bother me. I call it "outer space" because I like to think that when you take away all matter in the Universe, it's a similar state. The state of absolute quiteness of the mind and the carrier of matter....are in my opinion one and the same thing.

I agree w/ nearly all of this (yet not all - w/ reservations)...good splash of text luv !

LOL. I think this thread is dying naturally because people come here and see this inflammatory topic, then see how it's ending up as philosophy 101. I bet they're thinking Gah! Not this boring sh*t. :)

What I find interesting is that when you're unhappy it's like you have the plague or something. And when you're happy it's like you just won the lottery. And alotta x's you're happiness (or lack of) is determined 4u. And so there you go....you can't control ppl avoiding you or clinging to you, and you can't control your own H/UnH....whatever, it's weird.

And HonestGirl is not making any sense at all....and he knows it....whooptie doo.  

So M314. Where do we go from here (#1488) ?....and who's they ?

....and BTW, after #1606 ?....I'm out.

Yeah.

The_Ghostess_Lola wrote:

What I find interesting is that when you're unhappy it's like you have the plague or something. And when you're happy it's like you just won the lottery. And alotta x's you're happiness (or lack of) is determined 4u. And so there you go....you can't control ppl avoiding you or clinging to you, and you can't control your own H/UnH....whatever, it's weird.

And HonestGirl is not making any sense at all....and he knows it....whooptie doo.  

So M314. Where do we go from here (#1488) ?....and who's they ?

I never knew where any of this was going or why. The thing I would like to ask people like Nigel Short is, if you feel this way about women and chess then what's the practical implication? Why are you saying it? Do you just not want to hear the women's line of argument anymore? Do you want to ban women from playing men in chess? Are you afraid of new rules that you feel would be unfair to men? Otherwise, why say it, unless you just want to be a provocature? IDK.

Dionysus01 wrote:

Frankly, really, the female brain is the last thing I give a damn about.

Nerds with all their obsession about it.  It's bizarre. They're feeling threatened by females or something? 

Imagine lions chest thumping over and over about how much more ferocious they are than zebras. Were that the case you'd start to wonder if it's really a lion or just a wimp in a lion's suit.

I suspect it's a leftover from the high school caste system in the Revenge of the Nerds time.

It reminds me of that old folk song One Tin Soldier.

I used to sing this to my kids to get them to sleep. Yes, I'm a freak. :)

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=7RjI44WXKMI

The problem w/ #1602 is that an aware person sees right thru this....but usually still gets a feel good outta the flattering thing.

And TY PttP for removing that....and I do have a sense of humor - it's just probably strangely different - or so I'm told.

M314....I am deadset against separate categories. I am tho' for equal tournament opportunity. And we're not a group carrying a'O a hidden superiority complex....quite the opposite (me thinking aloud: I'm somewhat comfortable about speaking on behalf).

....and Dion ?....it's not the brain about giving a damn....it's the emotion, am I close ?

....and I would call an Honest Girl a pompous a$$....but that would be a bit too generous....so I'll shut up now.

Dionysus: I walk wire in a circus gym a few times a week, and it's usually just a lot of girls stretching, swinging, climbing, and bending - but as soon as the straps guys (ariel straps will chizzle you like a Renaissance sculpture) walk into the room, everybody stops and runs over to talk to them like a herd of baby geese.......in my experience, (straight) girls are just as boneheaded about boys as (straight) guys are about lovely ladies - they're just less obscene with the way they present their attraction. 

And Power Girl - So many LOLs! The Descartes one....could...not...stop...laughing

.......I don't like the implication that having power over men is more important....

I think the Vietnam war proved that 12 year old girls with sniper rifles can trump whole units of strapping, virile, manly men. 

Well, I think people already knew weapons more than even things out :)

Like The_Ghostess_Lola pointed out, it's mostly about the justification for separate titles and tournaments for women. The feminist side of the argument claims that this segregation is sexist and should be abolished. This is a difficult issue because currently, women at the very top perform at an average level of about 300 rating points below men, 200 points of which is due to much lower participation.

People like Nigel Short perceive this remaining 100 points to be a biological issue and use it to defend the segregation. The middle ground would probably be to point out that 300 points is a huge gap that warrants separate categories for women for now, so that they have an equivalent chance of gaining titles and winning tournaments, getting more visibility for female chess players and consequently more interest in young girls to start playing. Because the gap may eventually lessen as more women enter the field and be completely removed if the 100-point remainder turns out to be a cultural issue, Nigel Short is jumping the gun, but his intentions can be interpreted as completely honorable and - if one were to read what he actually said - in no way sexist.