Sympathy for the Devil

Please allow me to introduce myself
I'm a man of wealth and taste...
Just as every cop is a criminal
And all the sinners saints...
So if you meet me
Have some courtesy
Have some sympathy, and some taste...

-Jagger/Richards

This is an excerpt from an article "It's Outrageous" by Peter Wallace of ManilaStandardToday.com :

"Would I be overstating it if I said the Philippines seems to have lost its moral underpinnings?...

The real national hero is not Manny Pacquiao, it’s Wesley So, the 15-year-old chess grandmaster. What a magnificent feat—I’ll pick brains over brawn anytime. Which is not to denigrate Manny’s success but to point out how much attention he gets versus how little Wesley does. Mind you, my dad was world bridge champion and my uncle world chess champion so I’m a bit biased, but nonetheless Wesley deserves a red carpet too."

I don't know about this one. Ask any Americans who they think is the real sport hero of their country and I bet that nine out of ten they will tell you that it is Mohammad Ali and not Bobby Fischer thinking that Ali had accomplished more things though Ali is also more brainy of the two. Now tell me are we have to be that outrageous? True sports heroes, after all is not made out of their chosen profession. I shouted out, where are these world's undisputed boxing and chess heroes when the hijacked planes on 9/11 slammed into New York's twin tower? The other hero was grieving while the other "hero" was watching in glee. And where's the greatest chess player of our time from Azerbaijan when the Chechnyan separatist attacks Dagestani? Where? And where's the best boxer of his generation, when Islamic separatist groups attacks villages in warn torn Mindanao? He's there. Among all this, who could possibly be the real heroes? These brawny. Sure, I will also pick brains over brawn. Count me as one of those people who believe in human intellect over physical strength. That is what a hero should be. But comparing the accomplishments of Manny Pacquiao and Wesley So is kind of overstating, I think. Manny is "a man of wealth and taste" whereas Wesley is just an upstart kid with but "well-learned politesse". People always love man of wealth and taste. Boxing is an evil business. I never like the violence of the sport, in fact. But also you won't expect a 15 year old boy who barely scrape a living in the streets by selling cigarettes to play chess than brawl for his own survival? You see there is devil in every sport. Chess is not spare. Chess is not as neat as you might think. Ahhh...I know. What's puzzling you is the nature of their game.













Surprise! chess is one of Manny's favorite pass time.

Photo courtesy of pinoychess