Secrets and lies

It's been, what, just a couple of months since the coup against Andrew Paulson at the English Chess Federation and I don't suppose there's been two more tawdry, disreputable, disgraceful months in the entire history of the organisation.

We've had conspiracy, we've had claims of conspiracy. We've had back-stabbing, we've had elected officials removed without elections. We've had claims, we've had counter-claims. And it all adds up to two tawdry, disreputable, disgraceful months. I could also say poisonous. I could also say a lot of other things.

My personal Disgust-O-Meter long since went into the red zone. Conspiracy and deceit tend to have that effect on me.

Anyway, the latest ridiculous event in this lamentable series, at the date of writing, is the resignation of the Non-Executive Director Sean Hewitt. What has led to Mr Hewitt resigning, when normally he is more concerned with bringing about the resignation of other people? Frankly any reader who hasn't followed this saga is suffering from a particularly happy form of ignorance. But, very very briefly - and yet in more detail than it merits - it revolves around this document, produced by Phil Ehr, so-far-surviving CEO of the ECF.

Tell you what though, I'll leave it until after the fold. And if I were you I wouldn't bother with it. The sun is shining. You're better off going for a walk instead.

It's raining, you say? You're better off going for a walk instead.

It's snowing, there's a force nine gale and there are swarms of giant vampire bats blotting out the sky? You're better off going for a walk instead.

If you're still with us after all that, you probably have followed this saga all the way, and you'll know that Sean Hewitt took issue with Phil Ehr listing him as utterly and unequivocally backing the deal that was made to persuade Andrew Paulson to resign* - a deal for which Sean Hewitt voted.

It's caused a lot of fuss, it's caused at least one resignation and it may be the cause of more.

Here's Clark Gable, explaining what I think about it.

Why do I not give a damn?

1. I do not give a damn, because if you vote for an agreement you shouldn't complain when, later on, your name is attached to that deal.

2. I do not give a damn, because I see no reason for objecting that strongly to having your name so listed, unless you were hoping to undermine the agreement you had voted for. (And who would ever trust a person who did that?)

3. I do not give a damn, because if you spend two months stabbing somebody else in the back** I am not interested when you think somebody's stabbed you in the back.

So much for Sean Hewitt. Mind you, Phil Ehr. Wasn't he the chap who was nominated for his post by Roger Edwards and then, in turn, nominated Roger Edwards' opponent?

Jesus wept. What standards we have. What integrity.

It is of course a pompous, convoluted and ludicrous document and not the first we've seen in this saga that could answer to that description. But that's the standard, isn't it? The document and the resignation are just two further turds to add to the mountain of shite.

Still - why, I wonder, might Phil Ehr want to produce a document like this? Could it be that he doesn't think all the individuals concerned can be trusted to stick to what they agreed? And why would anybody think that, eh?

That's the fruits of betrayal and conspiracy, gentlemen. As ye sow, so shall ye reap.

Here endeth the lesson.***

[* I have no intention of going through the details of this agreement. Life's too short and this blog piece would be too long. Read the document and weep.]
[** Not to mention a track record of making life unpleasant for other ECF officials.]
[*** No it doesn't. This is a lesson which never ever ends.]