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Bob Armstrong
01-12-2009, 04:01 PM
From the Chessville Weekly - by USCF Board Member, Paul Truong ( husband of Susan Polgar ), about the operations of the USCF Board:

" Instead of focusing on how to sustain the membership or how to make chess so much larger with new members, benefits and revenues, the board majority abuses members' fund for their own political motive. It is especially irresponsible in this economy. They will do everything in their power, legal or not, to oust their political opponents. The same board members are using members’ money to defend the wrong doing of non-board members.

I believe the USCF is losing more than $330,000 this year so far. This number will escalate dramatically by the time this fiscal year ends. The same people are doing everything they can to hide the facts from the members. The USCF just received $400,000 bequests. How much of it will be left by the time they are done playing politics? "

Knock wood ! CFC seems to be doing a lot better !

Bob

Michael Barron
01-12-2009, 11:11 PM
And you, Bob, was talking about Elephant in the room! :)

Bob Armstrong
01-13-2009, 12:10 AM
Hi Michael:

I guess elephants are relative - bigger country, bigger elephant; smaller country, smaller elephant ----but still an elephant !:)

Bob Armstrong
01-13-2009, 07:27 PM
It is maybe important to add a note about Paul Truong.

A January 4 Sunday New York Times chess article notes that he and his wife, Susan Polgar, are involved in mutual lawsuits against the other USCF Board members and USA chess gadfly, Sam Sloan ( who unsuccessfully ran for the USCF board in their last election ). So he is not just a neutral observer when he describes the operations of the USCF board. This does not mean he is wrong - only that it must be taken into account that he is perhaps partly defending a position in a lawsuit. It would be interesting to hear the other side of the story from the other USCF board members.

Bob

Bob Armstrong
01-15-2009, 10:21 AM
From the Susan Polgar Blog today:

" According to the Chief Financial Officer of the USCF Mr. Joe Nanna, the US Chess Federation under the leadership of President Bill Goichberg, Vice President Jim Berry, Vice President of Finance Randy Bauer, and Executive Director Bill Hall, lost $419,968 in the first 6 months of this fiscal year. With the $374,626 bequests, the federation still lost $45,342 year to date! There are still 5 months left in this fiscal year! "

[ I would note that Susan, and her husband Paul Truong, both USCF board members, as I mentioned in a prior post, are involved currently in mutual lawsuits in USA with the other USCF board members. ]

Bob Armstrong
02-03-2009, 10:18 AM
From yesterday's Susan Polgar Blog:

Monday, February 02, 2009
The state of the US Chess Federation

" Under the leadership of USCF President Bill Goichberg, Vice President Jim Berry, VP of Finance Randy Bauer and Executive Director Bill Hall, the USCF lost another approximately 1,500 members (according to Mike Nolan) in the past 12 months and almost $420,000 (according to USCF Chief Financial Officer Joe Nanna) in the first 7 months of this fiscal year. "

An anonymous poster to her blog noted:

" Anonymous said...
The USCF needs to be disbanded.
It is way too dysfunctional.

I'm tired how we are held hostage to USCF simply because
- it has control of ratings
- it holds our national representation in FIDE.

USCF-run businesses (magazines, tournaments, store, etc) have all had financial problems.

Free our ratings and free our national representation from the shackles of the inept USCF!!!

Monday, February 2, 2009 5:42:00 PM CST "

Where have we heard this language before??!! USCF needs a satellite operation of the Grassroots' Campaign !


[ I would note that Susan, and her husband Paul Truong, both USCF board members, are involved currently in mutual lawsuits in USA with the other USCF board members. ]

Bob

Peter McKillop
02-03-2009, 10:47 AM
Hi Bob. Yes, everything is relative. If the USCF has an accrual loss of, say, $400,000, that's the equivalent of about $6 or $7 per member. I wish that the CFC's recent losses had been that small.

Jason Lohner
02-03-2009, 08:34 PM
I have been following the USCF politics for years. The main problem with the 'lawsuits' revolve around Sam Sloan and his failed bid to get reelected. As someone who has 'debated' with Mr Sloan for years I can say that (in my opinion) he is a complete nut bar. I truly feel sorry for Susan Polgar as she probably had no idea what she was getting involved in. The USCF board is completely dysfunctional and I was hoping that she would improve the situation. Unfortunately it looks like the 'old guard' is too entrenched and I wouldn't be surprised if the entire organization folds.