Why an American will NEVER be a World Champion

 How often should a world champion defend his title?  Seems to me if you are a champion you shouldn't be afraid of any challenges and at the same time prove why you are the champion.

That is why America is the most powerful country in the world..and sometimes why it's the most dysfunctional

yes. the sooner we are honest with ourselves the better. this is true of alot of westerners, especially AMERICANS! YES, ESPECIALLY AMERICANS. i grew up in a simple non college educated family, but my folks still knew to tell me that i get out of something what i put into it. what i havent got in my life, is at least 85% because i didnt DO WHAT IT TAKES TO GET IT. at least 85% if not 95%, or near 100%. i'm a very honest person i think. in grade school, jr high, high school and college, i played too much and worked too little. then, i ended up in the army. i am very lucky that i have had that job for 20 years. and will have it for 2 more years. i of course did that, because the benefits are great.

in america's defense, the dumbing down of a nation was only part of the plan... stupid people are a lot easier scared than smart people... and what would the government be able to do without inflicting fear? they definitely wouldn't be able to start wars like that, or get their hands on that precious black gold :)

Do you think stupid people are easier to scare because lack the critical thinking skills to formulate a logical decision?

America is less likely to have a chess champ because of the declining educational system !!

Anyone dumb enough to think Bobby Fisher could have gone to become a World Chess Champ if he was a high school drop out?

How does Cheater's extensive research support his argument?

Stay Stoooooopid Cheater and your diciples !!

Saliva causes cancer, but only if swallowed in small amounts over an entire lifetime

Up to this point in the thread it basically doesn't warrant one's time; let alone, using one's head to try and sort this mess out. Anyone ever heard of staying 'on topic'? Whew! You folks have gone from politics to education to race, and what not.

Starting with this overwhelming abusive comment by our northern brethren, Nick Was Taken:

"in america's defense, the dumbing down of a nation was only part of the plan... stupid people are a lot easier scared than smart people... and what would the government be able to do without inflicting fear? they definitely wouldn't be able to start wars like that, or get their hands on that precious black gold :)"

And I'm sure he's talking from the Democrat's prospective. Funny thing those Canucks, none of them seem to know their own country's involvement in the war. Moreover, they just don't know 'how' committed they are to the success of America's economy and military complex.

Yet I do agree with Rookbuster's assessment:

"That is why America is the most… powerful (no doubt!), and sometimes it's the most dysfunctional."

If there is anything I've learned in this lifetime…it is that American's can laugh with and at themselves. Speaking strictly for myself, outsiders do not know enough about America's electoral process to even attempt to comment on it. By the way, that goes for most American's too!

Moreover, whilst reading this thread I couldn't stop laughing at the comedy vis-a-vie the Olympic Games and athletic selection. Asians selecting Asians, Japanese selecting Asian Japanese, and whereas America is made up of a multi-cultural society, it is a multi-cultural team who participates in the Olympic Games. Yet that is only 1/2 of the truth. America, who does not grant 'dual citizenship', yet will allow anyone who has anything to do with another nation…to compete for that nation.

Stop with the American bashing. It illuminates your ignorance. Oh and just before I go…put up some real bucks, bux, prizes, green-greedy money up for the title and you get an American. (Now I just wonder how many of yo are saying…'humm, an Indian-American, Japanese-American, the laugh is on you!)

Nice post Oz. :)

I agree that Americans do have a overdeveloped sense of entitlement though that the media & politicans feed into.  However I do like this quote from Obama.

"We can't drive our SUVs and, you know, eat as much as we want and keep our homes on, you know, 72 degrees at all times, whether we're living in the desert or we're living in the tundra, and then just expect every other country is going to say OK, you know, you guys go ahead keep on using 25 percent of the world's energy, even though you only account for 3 percent of the population, and we'll be fine. Don't worry about us. That's not leadership." - Obama

Peak oil will help Americans get over their entitlement complex, even if they must be dragged by reality kicking & screaming.

is this about chess or politics?  hmm www.chess.com not www.electbarackobama.com  maybe we could stop trolling and stay on topic.

and the argument that "general trends do not affect individuals" is so false that I was seriously laughing for quite some time.  Look at russia, with their active government chess program (or at least used to)  and OH MY GOSH look at all the RUSSIAN chess players.   Hmmm I wonder if a general government and societal support encourages the elite to pursue things. HMMMMMMMMMM i wonder :)

Obamas your Pres.elect.start burning chess books

just another example of moronic thinking

there might never be an american chess champ cuz GUYS IN THE CHESS CLUB DONT GET LAID.

hahaha, ian sinclair's comment (page 1) was the best! he backed up cheater's point about the math!

This posting by cheater_1 ranks as one of the least valid intelligent arguments I have ever seen. The facts are all valid but the conclusion is simply ridiculous. Every point is valid and represents problems within the American society but none of them mean that America will never produce a world chess champion. These issues simply mean that America has problems and that a large number of Americans do not have what it takes to be world chess champions but (and I hope this isn’t a huge surprise to everyone) a large number of humans on this planet do not have what it takes to be a world chess champion. However, there are plenty of brilliant, focused, and hard working Americans with the potential to achieve greatness in any field including chess. Anyone who doesn’t realize this needs to step away from the computer screen, unlock the door, and rejoin society.

On another note, while Americans are too obsessed with our overpaid athletes, this aspect of the American culture could actually be used as a counter argument. Many of our athletes achieve the levels they do because of their incredible dedication to hard work, discipline, and drive to be the very best. These same qualities produce world champions in other fields including chess.

Robert Fisher Phd?

Not sure what his Phd was in but I am sure it helped him with his chess : )

Missing linkers

"Philosophy consists very largely of one philosopher arguing that all others are jackasses. He usually proves it, and I should add that he also usually proves that he is one himself."
  
    H. L. Mencken

This video says it all about US education:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJuNgBkloFE

If you were to see a video that shows Americans getting those answers correct would you watch it? 

Oatmeal in Oatmeal out

That video doesn't necessary say anything about U.S. education, there's a good chance that some of those people are uneducated. 

Does this count as "World Champion?"

http://www.chess.com/news/larry-kaufman-wins-world-senior-title

I agree with cheater_1's analysis of American Society but I don't agree with his conclusion that American's are too fat, lazy, dumb to produce a World Champion.

We have to look at the number of World Champions over the past fifty years. Without researching the question I would guesstimate that there have been around 25. A new Champion every two years.

The last time I checked there were around 190 countries. If we extrapolated using only those two "facts" we could say that over the next 100 years there will be 50 World Champions. 50 World Champions/190 countries = 26% of all countries have a chance of producing a World Champion over the next 100 years. 50/190=26%.

We can shorten the terms and say that there is a 1 in 190 chance for any country to produce the next World Champion. 1/190=.5% chance. 1/2 of 1 percent.

So I agree with Cheater_1's analysis of American Society and I also agree that it is unlikely that the USA will produce a World Champion in the short term. But I don't think the reason is that we're too dumb,fat,lazy.

True. There are plenty of Russians that are higher rated, so he should consider himself lucky. As for the WORLD CHESS CHAMPIONSHIP, it is unlikely to ever happen. In our capitalistic society, where money is EVERYTHING, parents shove a golf club or basketball or baseball or football into their kids' hands, not a chess set. 

http://ratings.fide.com/top.phtml?list=men

Look at this list, people. It is the top 100 male chess players in the world. THERE IS NOT ONE MAN BORN, RAISED, AND EDUCATED IN AMERICA ON IT!!!!

I dare ANYONE, I challenge anyone to present an argument with even a hint of a chance of an American winning the WCC in our lifetime. I'm all ears. I have a VERY open mind. It could happen, but then again, the Earth falling out of orbit and flying into the Sun could happen. I'm not even sure if an American (other than B.F.) was EVER on the top 100 list.

Just as Men are smarter than women when it comes to chess, most every other country is smarter than the U.S. But hey, we can sure play baseball better than......oops.....we're not even the best at that. Well, we can sure play Basketball better than other countr..... oops......we're not the best there either. Just what the Hell are we Americans the best at anyway?

complaining and blaming out government for the problems we have.  Hey... Rome didn't burn in a day.....