Regarding decisions around flag censorship and whatnot on chess com.
Personally—I love the flags man. My chess passport has 214/244 flags. There is no other game that can compare. The history, the global nature, the passion.
Chess has been described as a conversation with no words. I love playing people from around the world. Places I’ve been. Places I want to go. Places I’ll unfortunately never see. I feel connected through this ancient game, this language, this conversation with no words.
When I see people from far off lands, all I want to do is ask them about their lives. Share a game. Share our passion. And when I travel I know there’s always a chess club I can go to and have that conversation, no matter what language we speak—as a certain controversial yet talented young GM once said: the chess speaks for itself. And it does! You can tell a lot about someone by the way they play.
It’s a shame abuse happens. Let’s not let a minority of racists ruin the kings game. Let’s not let chess descend into the same tribal politics that’s dividing the world. Chess should be a platform that transcends ideologies—a way to show the world that no matter our differences, there’s always possibility of dialogue. Through fair rules, transparent communication, and our shared passion. No matter the outcome, win or lose, every game is a chance to go beyond the petty differences between our nations and politics. Chess was around before all this shit and it’ll be here well after everything has changed. The eternal game is for everyone.
Who knows who’s on the other side of the board, what their beliefs are, why they believe them, and what they do about it. Quite frankly—who cares?
I just wanna play chess man. Politics belongs in a different arena. Respectfully—let’s leave this stuff out of these forums.
Always walk away from the game with grace and dignity and uphold this ancient tradition. Maybe chess can be an example for the world—despite our differences, we share common ground on the 8x8 board.
May the best man, woman, or those betwixt between win!