Election Speech

Me

For what it is worth, this is my election speech based on the notes I had prepared beforehand.  After a long and difficult meeting, the speech I actually gave was somewhat shorter and less pointed:

My name is Jerry Graham.  If you're new here, and you love to play chess, you've definitely come to the right place.  But I am going to say some things about people who are relatively new running for the board.

We should have a very active board, and we are not a generic organization.  What someone learned in some other field generally will not help you on the board.  What we do is not unimportant.  What we do here is important to many people.

Past President Chagrin

Running the club correctly is not simple.  If you're running it and it seems simple, its either because you're not doing it correctly, or because its actually someone else who is doing it.

The Marshall Chess Club is a community, a local club and an international club.  These functions are interrelated.  Let me give you an example:  When GM Fabiano Caruana and GM Hikaru Nakamura first walked these floors that you walked today, they walked them not as grandmasters, but as children.

GM Hikaru Nakamura vs NM Nagib Gebran

Today our club is at a crossroads.  If I was in charge we would discuss this before voting.  But I am not in charge, so I suggest all interested members meet to discuss this at a later date.


There are always bad results when leaders try to hammer the Marshall Chess Club into something it is not:

River Phoenix and Keanu Reeves

• The Marshall Chess Club is not a business.
• It is not a community service organization.
• It is not an educational organization.
• We are not poor.
• We are not looking for a sugar daddy.
• We are not standing on the corner selling ourselves.
• The members are owners, not customers.
• The board members are our trustees, our fiduciaries, our representatives.
• They are not our bosses.
• The board is not a supposed to be a secret society.
• The board is not supposed to be a gossip club.

My name is Jerry Graham. Thank you and have a great evening!

As Matters Stand at the Marshall

Past President Chagrin

At the end of a very hectic annual meeting, I played some games of chess with Past President Stuart Chagrin.  I also shook hands with Gus, another person I've had disagreements with.  During my match with Stuart, Gus joked that the winner of the match could impose their ideology on the club for the next three years.  Though I won the match, I don't expect to impose my ideology on the club.  No one should.  The club should be run democratically as mandated by law.

There is a lot of misunderstanding about what me and my friends have been trying to do.  What we are demanding is that the club be run in a lawful manner.  I think new president, Mr. Paul Rachlin, understands many of our concerns, and he understands that words are not enough.  He needs to take some action.

President Paul Rachlin vs WCGM Magnus Carlsen

Shortly before the annual meeting we sent a list of allegations to the board and the past president.   As we see it, we have made many previous efforts, of the informal and political kind to get the club back into compliance.  We have never made this list of allegations public, because it is unfortunately not part of an informal or political process, and unfortunately a step in a legal process.


Hopefully Mr. Rachlin will solve many of the problems in the upcoming weeks.  Hopefully my role is winding down, and I will be able to return to the club just to play chess.  There are an infinite number of ways of running the club legally.  While I may throw out suggestions from time to time, I fully understand that the club is run by the board, not by me.

If the problems at the club become a matter for the authorities, they presumably will not be interested in the personalities or philosophies, but in whether the club is doing everything in a legal manner.

The motto of FIDE is Gens una sumus "We are one people".  So the ideas of having a chess community, and of chess bringing different people together are not new.  But to have a community there must be trust.  Only leaders who are fair, honest, and law abiding can maintain an environment of trust.  So let's hope for the best, and let's play chess.

Who should the Ideal Marshall Board Member Be and Why?

Former President Leon Haft

  (opinion)

 

I just wrote this up quickly.  I hope its good.

 

Necessary qualities:

Debt:  There is no reward for joining or serving on the board.  Anyone who seeks anything other than to service the club is self-dealing.  Therefore board service is most appropriate for long-standing members who already owe a debt to the club.  Never put someone on the board because they want to be on the board.  That's always a bad sign.  Put people there who are willing and do not have inappropriate motivations.

 

Archie Waters

Loyalty:  A person demonstrates loyalty by joining the club, paying their dues, playing at the club, and waiting for several years before running for the board.  A loyal person does not disobey or ask for or make exceptions to the dues policies, bylaws, or compliance with government laws.  Loyalty may be demonstrated by serving on committees and other volunteer work before joining the board.  While times change and the most long-standing members are not always correct, it would reasonable to consider the input of longstanding members before making a decision.

Dr. Milton Hanauer

 Enthusiasm:  The person show be enthusiastic not just about chess in general, but about the specific organization.  They should be people who have a reason for being enthusiastic about the organization.  They should see the club as more than a symbol.  They should see it as a working organization which must operate within certain parameters. 

 Respect:  The person should respect the organization not just because of our outward successes, but because we have an operational model that has worked well for over 100 years.  This includes our structure as a membership club for chess and social purposes, our committee structure, and our tradition of mentoring new volunteers until they are experience board members.

Available:  The person does not just need to be available for board meetings.  The must be well informed with respect to all happenings at the club.  They need to have time to research the legal and social environments that the club operates in.

NM John Collins

 Experience:  Experience with the particular organization is important.  That is why long-standing members are better.  Experience in other fields or with other organizations is not as important.


Contact:  Contact with the club is important is as discussed above.  That is the reason for the rules regarding residence (living in the area) prior years members are required for board service.  A board member should really exceed these requirements.

GM William Lombardy

 Representative:  It is incredibly important that board members represent all of the voting members as opposed to unduly representing themselves, each other, and outside organizations.  Ideally each voting member should be represented by exactly one board member.

 Fiduciary:  While other board activities are optional, it is essential for each board member to function as a good fiduciary.  This means being inquisitive:  Finding facts and laws for themselves rather than trusting other board members.

Not Necessary:

 

Howard Stern

Donations:  Donations are generally good things unless there are too many strings are attached.  A good donor will not require a seat on the board.  A good donor loves the organization the way it is, and doesn't see the need to change it.  Of course a good board attracts more donors than a bad one.

Expertise in Other Fields:   Of course we need expertise in other fields, but we can always find expertise among the members.  A good expert doesn't need to be on the board and in general doesn't want to be on the board.

Cooperativeness:  If you have two people who always say the same thing, you only need one of them.  Boards that are too friendly among themselves are often colluding against the members.   Its better to have people who don't like each other and keep each other honest.

Conclusion: 

Martin Shkreli

You might ask how you can get 15 people who meet all of these qualities.  I've always said that you can't, and that a 15 person board is far too large.   In the olden days some would say that a large board helps prevent unfriendly takeovers.  This assumes that all board members are loyal, astute, and upright.  I think its better to have a small number of solid people than a large number of uninterested or corrupt people.  Whether people are nice or not has nothing to do with it.

Justin Beiber and Christian Beadles

I should also add that all members should
participate in governance.   If the club turns into a business, it will no longer be an affordable place for adults to play chess.  Non-profits also have a tendency to drift to where the money is.  That's whats going to happen if long-standing members don't participate in governance.