In Which a Bear of Very Little Brain Makes Feeble Attempts at Comprehension
Who loves conspiracy theories? I know I do. Ones you can really sink yer paranoid teeth into: meaty, juicy, so-thick-you-can-cut-'em-with-a-steak-knife... not because I have any sort of "meat tooth" for paranoia, but... well...
*sigh*
Deep breath, now:
Mmm, Yummy, but I Couldn't Eat A Whole One
Okay. This started after taking a course in Communications Studies which, of course, covered propaganda.* Absolutely fascinating stuff, and it really changed the way I parse the news.
Now, I'm not saying I believe conspiracy theories; I just find them entertaining as little mind games. I'm not astute enough to really truly assess these things, nor have I the kind of memory capable of following all the strings of possibilities through to their ends; it's just a fun exercise to have "a little think", insofar my wee, hamster-wheel-powered little brain is enabled.
And the thing to remember here is, I don't personally know any of the entities involved; I'm not informed on any of the subjects; nor can I vouch for the veracity of any of the facts. So, really, it's ultimately an exercise in {Hollywood-type} fiction.
In fact, after that build up, I'm sorry to let you down; in this particular instance, I really don't even have anything more than a finger-waggling inkling. There's something in there, I say. More than what they're telling us. On the other hand... aha, maybe that's just what they want us to think... ;)
Strange Fisch
Story in question: Chess Genius Bobby Fischer has been in the news lately. Apparently, Mr. Congeniality started a row over hard-boiled eggs while in detention in Japan and was placed in solitary confinement.
I was a bit perplexed as to how on earth a chess game could be interpreted as violating an international sanction; but evidently, there was in place an economic embargo which extended to sports events; and Fischer not only played, but won himself a cool $3.3 million. I can only assume the organizers of the event made a profit of much more than that; otherwise I'm a little unclear as to how taking 3.3 million from Yugoslavia violates an economic embargo.**
Shaken, Not Stirred: the Story of A Boy and His Brains
But I can't help but wonder, what if... what if there's some sort of spy novel luking in there somewhere? Brilliant but intractable chess champion, fought over by international intelligence agencies willing to do anything to have him and his formidable brainpower in their possession...
Into this martini throw some cool chess-playing babes, some martial arts sequences, a chase scene; shake the audience well, add an ending with a twist and you're done.
Make it into a movie, and it might actually manage make chess seem sexy to high school students... Or does that strain the limits of credulity?
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
* Small Aside {speaking of "meat tooth"}: One of the required reading texts for this course was a book called How Real is Real ~~ fascinating book, well worth a read. I mention it here only because it contains the story of Operation Mincemeat, which the author used to illustrate the idea of "disinformation".
** I also need a kind and understanding someone to explain to me how a chess match can rake in over $3.3 mil. Gambling? Charging admission? TV, book and movie rights? Marketing "{insert double-entendre chess phrase here} and all I got was this lousy T-shirt" T-shirts?
Posted by edgar at March 8, 2005 11:52 AM