Players losing sight of...

...the pure joy of playing a game of chess. I find that too many people (not all) are too concerned about rating points, their ratings, etc. that they forget about the fun of actually playing a game of chess. While it does have a certain importance for players who want an even match in strength for a good challange, there are times when the 2 players will be very uneven in strength. I play everyone no matter what their rating is, and am always very polite to the players who are weaker than me, because hopefully they are learning and I want to give them a good and fun experience even if they lose. We do not want to turn away any potentially eager newcomers. There are many times when I am totally outclassed but I always enjoy the game even if I lose. The way we can make this a great chess site is for everyone to be polite to others, show good sportmanship when playing anyone, and encourage all the newcomers to chess to enjoy the game as much as they can.