Walddk

Rest assured that you will be the first to know if I want your opinion as to what's appropriate to write or not write in the forums. I didn't even express my view. It was a 100% correct quote, and I find it interesting, whether you like it or not. "Israel is a terrorist state", you write. I do not agree, but you are certainly entitled to think and write what you want. Perhaps you would allow others to do the same? "I am not siding with anyone", is truly hilarious when you claim that the Israelis are terrorists and say nothing about what some of their neighbours are. Roland

Not only do we not support political manifestations in the lobby; they are against the Rules of this Site. The same applies to political views in player profiles. Threads in the BBO Forums are a different ballgame altogether. Almost anything is allowed in the Water Cooler, although Uday earlier has expressed doubts. Roland

I have a couple of links that you may find handy before and during our broadcasts from the European Championships: http://tinyurl.com/ke4xt --- for convention cards in the Open series. http://tinyurl.com/ebh7z --- for convention cards in the Women's series.

Some might find this interesting. A speech delivered by Ehud Olmert, the Prime Minister of Israel, on July 31: ..... Ladies and gentlemen, leaders of the world. I, the Prime Minister of Israel, am speaking to you from Jerusalem in the face of the terrible pictures from Kfar Kana. Any human heart, wherever it is, must sicken and recoil at the sight of such pictures. There are no words of comfort that can mitigate the enormity of this tragedy. Still, I am looking you straight in the eyes and telling you that the State of Israel will continue its military campaign in Lebanon. The Israel Defense Forces will continue to attack targets from which missiles and Katyusha rockets are fired at hospitals, old age homes and kindergartens in Israel. I have instructed the security forces and the IDF to continue to hunt for the Katyusha stockpiles and launch sites from which these savages are bombarding the State of Israel. We will not hesitate, we will not apologize and we will not back off. If they continue to launch missiles into Israel from Kfar Kana, we will continue to bomb Kfar Kana. Today, tomorrow and the day after tomorrow. Here, there and everywhere. The children of Kfar Kana could now be sleeping peacefully in their homes, unmolested, had the agents of the devil not taken over their land and turned the lives of our children into hell. Ladies and gentlemen, it's time you understood: the Jewish state will no longer be trampled upon. We will no longer allow anyone to exploit population centers in order to bomb our citizens. No one will be able to hide anymore behind women and children in order to kill our women and children. This anarchy is over. You can condemn us, you can boycott us, you can stop visiting us and, if necessary, we will stop visiting you. Today I am serving as the voice of six million bombarded Israeli citizens who serve as the voice of six million murdered Jews who were melted down to dust and ashes by savages in Europe. In both cases, those responsible for these evil acts were, and are, barbarians devoid of all humanity, who set themselves one simple goal: to wipe the Jewish race off the face of the earth, as Adolf Hitler said, or to wipe the State of Israel off the map, as Mahmoud Ahmedinjad proclaims. And you - just as you did not take those words seriously then, you are ignoring them again now. And that, ladies and gentlemen, leaders of the world, will not happen again. Never again will we wait for bombs that never came to hit the gas chambers. Never again will we wait for salvation that never arrives. Now we have our own air force. The Jewish people are now capable of standing up to those who seek their destruction – those people will no longer be able to hide behind women and children. They will no longer be able to evade their responsibility. Every place from which a Katyusha is fired into the State of Israel will be a legitimate target for us to attack. This must be stated clearly and publicly, once and for all. You are welcome to judge us, to ostracize us, to boycott us and to vilify us. But to kill us? Absolutely not. Four months ago I was elected by hundreds of thousands of citizens to the office of Prime Minister of the government of Israel, on the basis of my plan for unilaterally withdrawing from 90 percent of the areas of Judea and Samaria, the birth place and cradle of the Jewish people; to end most of the occupation and to enable the Palestinian people to turn over a new leaf and to calm things down until conditions are ripe for attaining a permanent settlement between us. The Prime Minister who preceded me, Ariel Sharon, made a full withdrawal from the Gaza Strip back to the international border, and gave the Palestinians there a chance to build a new reality for themselves. The Prime Minister who preceded him, Ehud Barak, ended the lengthy Israeli presence in Lebanon and pulled the IDF back to the international border, leaving the land of the cedars to flourish, develop and establish its democracy and its economy. What did the State of Israel get in exchange for all of this? Did we win even one minute of quiet? Was our hand, outstretched in peace, met with a handshake of encouragement? Ehud Barak's peace initiative at Camp David let loose on us a wave of suicide bombers who smashed and blew to pieces over 1,000 citizens, men, women and children. I don't remember you being so enraged then. Maybe that happened because we did not allow TV close-ups of the dismembered body parts of the Israeli youngsters at the Dolphinarium? Or of the shattered lives of the people butchered while celebrating the Passover seder at the Park Hotel in Netanya? What can you do - that's the way we are. We don't wave body parts at the camera. We grieve quietly. We do not dance on the roofs at the sight of the bodies of our enemy's children - we express genuine sorrow and regret. That is the monstrous behavior of our enemies. Now they have risen up against us. Tomorrow they will rise up against you. You are already familiar with the murderous taste of this terror. And you will taste more. And Ariel Sharon's withdrawal from Gaza. What did it get us? A barrage of Kassem missiles fired at peaceful settlements and the kidnapping of soldiers. Then too, I don't recall you reacting with such alarm. And for six years, the withdrawal from Lebanon has drawn the vituperation and crimes of a dangerous, extremist Iranian agent, who took over an entire country in the name of religious fanaticism and is trying to take Israel hostage on his way to Jerusalem - and from there to Paris and London. An enormous terrorist infrastructure has been established by Iran on our border, threatening our citizens, growing stronger before our very eyes, awaiting the moment when the land of the Ayatollahs becomes a nuclear power in order to bring us to our knees. And make no mistake - we won't go down alone. You, the leaders of the free and enlightened world, will go down along with us. So today, here and now, I am putting an end to this parade of hypocrisy. I don't recall such a wave of reaction in the face of the 100 citizens killed every single day in Iraq. Sunnis kill Shiites who kill Sunnis, and all of them kill Americans - and the world remains silent. And I am hard pressed to recall a similar reaction when the Russians destroyed entire villages and burned down large cities in order to repress the revolt in Chechenya. And when NATO bombed Kosovo for almost three months and crushed the civilian population - then you also kept silent. What is it about us, the Jews, the minority, the persecuted, that arouses this cosmic sense of justice in you? What do we have that all the others don't? In a loud clear voice, looking you straight in the eyes, I stand before you openly and I will not apologize. I will not capitulate. I will not whine. This is a battle for our freedom. For our humanity. For the right to live normal lives within our recognized, legitimate borders. It is also your battle. I pray and I believe that now you will understand that. Because if you don't, you may regret it later, when it's too late.

You do now. Roland

I claim no responsibility, Larry. The grook "The Eternal Twins" was translated by an Englishman; maybe not a poet, but English was his native language :huh: http://www.btinternet.com/~tsunamiblue/grooks.html Piet Hein wrote more than 10,000 grooks (grugs in Danish), and most of them are quite funny, with a touch of wit, irony and subtlety. Here is another I like very much: CONSOLATION GROOK Losing one glove is certainly painful, but nothing compared to the pain of losing one, throwing away the other, and finding the first one again. Making rhymes was not his objective. Besides, it's quite difficult to translate poems into another language without losing some of the subtlelties. Roland

People without a sense of humour must have a boring life, but after reading your view I realise that some don't know what it means. I think you should read the saint's post once more. Piet Hein, a Danish scientist, mathematician, inventor, author, and poet, was famous for his "grooks". Here is one, translated into English: Taking fun as simply fun and earnestness in earnest shows how thoroughly thou none of the two discernest. Roland

The schedule for the PABF is in the oven, Gary. I have sent it to Gerardo, and it's in his capable hands now. I'm sure he will list it as soon as he gets a little time. Time consuming it is, not least now that we have learned about significant changes to our schedule for Warsaw. Two nations have withdrawn from the open series at the last minute, and that will create quite a few changes. In the meantime I can tell you that the PABF Championships will be played as a double round-robin (11 matches twice) and that we will be covering the event from the word go. What we do not know at this point, however, is the number of tables we will be broadcasting from. Roland

1A: Shania Twain's records, CDs, tapes, DVDs, whatever, should be removed from the shelves until she realises that it is incorrect grammar to sing "That Don't Impress Me Much". Grammar, lesson 1: I don't You don't He, she, it, that doesn't ... if she really insists on abbreviating "does not". Roland

I now have our fixtures for Sunday the 13th. Since France, Italy and Poland will appear in every round, our matches will not come as surprises. Round 1: Denmark v France Italy v Estonia Poland v Belgium We may add Turkey v Scotland, but no promises at this point. Starting times are: 14.15 Paris, 1:15 pm London, 8:15 am New York, 10:15 pm Sydney. ..... Round 2: San Marino v Italy France v Sweden Belarus v Poland We may add a 4th match. Undecided at this point. Starting times are: 17.35 Paris, 4:35 pm London, 11:35 am New York, 1:35 am Monday Sydney. Roland

Examples of excellent planning. Our fixtures will appear here: http://bridgebase.pl/index.php?l=eng And Chopin will welcome you here: http://www.bridgebase.pl/warsaw/welcome.wmv Yes, they have promised to replace the photo of me with something more flattering. Roland

His/her name is Mr/Ms Planning. Planning can get you far even if you are short of financial resources - and if you remember to involve Mr/Ms Manpower and Mr/Ms Knowhow. Roland

I disagree with my learned friend from Canada. He can explain his views to his disgusting chocolate bars, and perhaps the Canadian seagulls who stay away from Hans Ø :) On a serious note, count is my preferred method. I give attitude on partner's leads and first discard, but the rest of the time I give count when my *partner* needs it. My count is random if I think it will benefit declarer. Roland

The 48th European Team Championships are our second major championship in August (we had the WYTC in Bangkok recently, and we will have the USBC and the PABF Ch'ships later). The ETC will start in Warsaw, Poland, on Sunday the 13th and last 2 full weeks. It's massive, not only regarding matches being played, but also as far as live broadcasts are concerned. The official web site is http://www.eurobridge.org/competitions/06Warsaw/Warsaw.htm Vugraph coverage on BBO will take us from one extreme to the other when you compare it to the WYTC in Thailand where we had 1 table throughout. In Poland they have more than 20 volunteer operators lined up, and they are prepared for most anything. We will definitely be broadcasting from 6 tables in every round, often 8, and if the local organisers can have it their way, we may see 10, 12, even 14 tables up at the same time! Remember that our limit of simultaneous broadcasts has been increased from 8 to 32. No matter what happens, it will be a new record for BBO regarding vugraph coverage. The Poles have been planning this for more than 2 years. We know we are in capable hands, because every broadcast we get from Poland is sublime. They have our most experienced operators to train newbies, and they are quick learners. In the last 6 months or so, those operators have been practicing regularly, invisible as well as from live tournaments, so they are already pretty experienced. We will have commentary in English, French and Polish in every round, and availability permitting we will try to get German, Spanish, Turkish and mixed Scandinavian occasionally. This is going to be huge and a treat for all BBO members. If you would like to have a look at our time schedule, go to http://online.bridgebase.com/vugraph/sched...?order_by=event Happy vugraphing! Roland

Sorry for the late reply; I have been quite busy, but here is the full layout: [hv=d=s&v=n&n=sj106hq1084dj1098ck6&w=sk872hd32ca987542&e=s953hj952da765cj3&s=saq4hak763dkq4cq10]399|300|Scoring: IMP[/hv] 1♥ (3♣) 3♥ (pass) 4♥ all pass Lead: ♣A and another club to dummy's king, East following with the 3 and jack. Assuming that trumps are 4-0, it's much more likely that East has them all; therefore it must be wrong to play a low heart to the ace. As has been pointed out by others, you can cope with 4-0 in either hand if only you know who has 4. I like Frances' line of a low spade to the queen at trick 3. We shall never know what happens if West ducks! It's a hand from BBO, and declarer went down when he played a heart to the ace at trick 3. Now he had to lose one trick in each suit. Roland

If you don't double with those cards, assuming that 2♥ is weak, I think your partner is entitled to look for a new partner. Because if you pass, the cards must scare you to death. I don't even think there is a significant risk, and even if there was, it usually pays off to run the active risk (double) rather than the passive one (pass). Roland

Congratulations to USA 1 from me too, and well done to Italy for putting up such a great fight when everything seemed lost. Rumour has it that the WBF is aware of the fact that they should spend more money on promoting youth bridge, for example earmark more resources on internet coverage. Better late than never. Roland

Semi-finals, juniors: Italy v Poland USA1 v Singapore Schools: Australia v Israel Latvia v Poland 4 segments of 16 boards in both series. Broadcast Sunday the 6th: Segment 1: Italy v Poland (juniors) * Segment 2: To Be Announced Segment 3: TBA Segment 4: TBA * 11.30 pm New York Saturday. Roland

Our fixtures for Saturday are: RR16: Singapore v France (juniors) RR17: To be announced. Last round-robin day tomorrow. The semi-finals (4 best qualify from both categories) will start Sunday, 4 segments of 16 boards. Finals: 6 segments of 16 boards. Roland

That "problem" is easily solved because you can switch matches at a break point if the current scores dictate it. Roland

Not sure why you think partner would understand this since he is not able to bid his suit at the 2-level, or if he has support for diamonds, support them at any stage. I usually shrug and pass when I don't understand a bid, and I certainly do not understand 5♣. He deserves to play there! :blink: It's pure guessing. Partner is punishing me, and I don't understand why. At the table I would likely bid 5♦. I have no idea of what's going on, but I am sure partner can enlighten me afterwards. Roland

I don't mind off-shape 1NT's, and this looks ok to me. However, I don't think it's wrong to open 1♣ and rebid 2♣. If I have 2-2 in the majors, I prefer to have honours in both, so if I change your example a little, 1NT stands out a mile in my opinion: ♠ KJ ♥ AQ ♦ xxx ♣ KQ10xxx Roland

Our fixtures for Friday the 4th are: RR13: Egypt v USA2 (juniors) RR12: USA Red v Poland (schools) RR15: USA1 v Israel (juniors) Roland

Doesn't that require a barometer? For better or worse, many locals (including most of North America) don't have the physcial infrastructure necessary to run a barometer. I don't know more than a handful of North American districts that have all the bididng machines, extra boards, and the like required to support this type of movement... Not sure how common the paraphenalia is in Britain. (Most types that I've played in a Baramoter were in Iceland) Yes it does, and I know that this is the organisers' intention because Mark and I had a chat about it. We agree that pairs events without "instant" result service are not suited for vugraph. I also know that Mark & Co. will have access to Bridgemate, so this should not cause a problem. Roland

It's quite common for supplementary regulations to require that boards be played in the same sequence at both tables. This is certainly a requirement in a number of Australia's major events. I think it creates a more "pure" result as it means that both tables will get the awkward hands at the same point of the match which if played in a different sequence may affect the "state of the match" mentality that a player may apply to a board. Exactly. It will be a big difference whether you miss a lay-down 7 NT in your first board or in your second-last. That's not a valid point. You may just as well miss it on board 1 rather than on board 15. Roland