Chess Wit and Wisdom

Previous “Chess Wit and Wisdom” Entries

• No! Try not. Do, or do not. There is no try. — Yoda to Luke (Thanks to Ernie Hong for the correction.)
• Bad players like to play with their “pretty” pieces. It is the mark of good players that they won’t go on an adventure before they solve the problem of their bad pieces. — Jesse Kraai (ChessLecture, 12/10/2008)
• Chess is an example of something that is just beyond human mental abilities, but not so far beyond them that we cannot make a decent stab at it. We’re very good at language, no better than rats at mazes, and somewhere in between at chess. – Noam Chomsky
•  I once heard of a murderer who propped his two victims up against a chessboard in sporting attitudes and was able to get as far as Seattle before his crime was discovered. – Robert Benchley
• A chess game is divided into three stages: the first, when you hope you have the advantage, the second, when you believe you have an advantage, and the third, when you know you’re going to lose! — Savielly Tartakower
• That graceful creature, the Knight, showman of the chessboard… — Irving Chernev
• Pawns are just like a box of chocolates. You always have to check whether they’re poisoned.

Submit Your Own “Chess Wit and Wisdom”!

Ground Rules:

1. Humor must be G- or PG-rated.
2. No racist, sexist, defamatory, or offensive remarks.
3. I will be the sole judge of whether your submission meets the above criteria.
4. I will be the sole judge of whether your submission is witty or wise enough to post, and I do not have to explain my reasons. Please do not bug or hassle me about this. It’s my site, and my decision is final.

If you have a saying to contribute, and you are willing to abide by the above ground rules, please e-mail your contribution to:

Please state your real name in the e-mail. If your “Wit and Wisdom” comes from some other person, please identify who said it. If you made it up yourself (which is better), then I will identify you as the source.

Your “Wit and Wisdom” submission will have the best chance of being selected if it is short and pithy — just one or two sentences is the ideal length.

Thank you, and I look forward to being tickled and amazed by your words!