Idea - the "Inner Goddess"

From Barbara Walker's The Woman's Encyclopedia of Myths and Secrets

Idea
"Inner-Goddess."  Occult traditon said an idea emanated from the Female Soul of the World (Shakti, Shekina, Psyche, Sophia, etc.).  Her "ideas" were like personal Muses, "which forms she did in the Heavens above the Stars frame to herself."(1)

Medieval theologians disliked the Idea's feminine connotations and trned away from the ancient theory of the eide to the astral theology of Aristotle, that is, to astrological determinaton of thoughts.(2)  Feminine "idea" was replaced by masculine "concept," which used to mean the same as conception, from Latin concipere semina, a gathering-up of semen.(3)

Early Christian Gnostics however regarded God the Creator as a mere demiurge, child of the Mother who created in his mind all the "ideas" he used to make things in the material world.  His sin was that he arrogantly claimed all these ideas to be his own, because "he was ignorant of the ideas of whatever he created and of the Mother herself."(4)  This notion that God was guilty of the sin of hubris against the Goddess recurred again and again among early Gnostic sects, until the orthodox church declared the notion heretical and forcibly changed the minds of its adherents. 

Notes:
(1)  Agrippa, 65.
(2)  Lindsay, O.A., 102.
(3)  Potter & Sargent, 224.
(4)  Jonas, 191.

Will Harold Camping Be Prosecuted for Fraud - No End of World Today, Dude

That's what I want to know.  People have been sent to jail for claiming things as truth that weren't so - so, what about the 89 year old idiot who claimed that today was going to be the end of the world - the great RAPTURE (not scriptual, by the way) was going to happen and the beginning of the end was to start today and finish over the next five months.  Yeah, right.  Cough cough.  Gee, Harold Camping's websites May-212011.com and familyradio.com aren't working right now.  Wonder why?  Where they the ONLY ones to be raptured?  HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!

It never ceases to amaze me how people can get away with crap like this.  The Jehovah's Witnesses pulled a big boner in 1975 when their entire membership pretty much believed that the end of the world was coming per the Watchtower, and that is what they preached to anyone who would listen.  The Watchtower Bible and Tract Society leadership, tongue in cheek, never came right out and said that the END WAS NIGH, but it was in all other ways implied.  When 1975 came and went and the world did not end, more than a million JWs left the fold, never to return.  The Watchtower Bible and Tract Society learned it lesson and since then, the leadership have been much more obscure in hinting at THE END.  I think 1978 was pointed to, then 1984, and 1996.  And they're still selling the same old coolaid and at least some of their members are still drinking it too.  With no notice or fanfare, after 1996 came and went without the world ending, the JWs erased from their "for public consumption" magazine The Watchtower (now comes out in two versions, one for the ignorant general public and one for the insiders who are JWs) the old byline that went something like those who witnessed the events of 1914 will still be alive to see THE END.  The 1914 date was calculated by the first leader of the JWs, Russell, based upon numbers embodied in the Great Pyramid at Giza.  I'm not kidding.  Russell's successor, Rutherford, made millions off the byline "millions now living today will NEVER die" based on the same disproven time line using 1914 as the "beginning of the end."  With a few tweaks, it lasted until 1975, when THE END was supposed to come - and didn't.  Oh oh.

The Watchtower Bible and Tract Society is running into far worse issues today.  Yes, the "faithful" are whispering amongst themselves - okay, those who were BORN in 1914 will soon be 100 years old.  How many 100 year old people do you know?  Exactly -- despite its best efforts, the Watchtower Bible and Trace Society has not been able to erase from the minds of the older and oldest faithful members the point it stressed for so many years, that 1914 marked the end of "this system of things" and that people alive back then would be alive to see THE END.  Well, folks, it ain't happening.  But WT has other things to deal with, as I said - like millions and millions of dollars being shelled out in payment of judgments for sexual abuse by their male ministers - "elders" and  males who assisted in the congregations - "servants." The pot calling the kettle black - the JWs used to poke fun at the Catholic Church for their "pedophile problem."  Guess what - WT has the same problem, and had the same policies in place to squelch victims reporting the abuse to police, designed to protect the perpetrators of horrific sexual crimes.  Check out Silent Lambs.

There was also a big scandal surrounding the End Times and the founder of the Worldwide Church of God, Herbert W. Armstrong, also pointing to 1975 (COPYCAT?) as the date the world would end. He was another dude who thought he had a pipeline to God.  Har!  In reality, he was just another (accused of incest with his own daughter) rip-off artist who thought he could get away with crap (and he did, didn't he), raking in millions and millions during his lifetime, living the high life while preaching austerity and "the END IS NEAR" to his followers.

People, please educate yourselves.  Learn the Bible, and you will be armed to fight off the false teachings of all mainstream (and not-so-mainstream) religions and cults.  The Bible clearly says - and I quote -

Matthew 24:36 (King James Version) But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.

Matthew 24:36 (Living Bible, Tyndale Publishers) But no one knows the date and hour when the end will be - not even the angels.  No, not even God's Son. Only the father knows.

Matthew 24:36 (New World Translation, Watchtower Bible and Tract Society publishers - yes I have one!) Concerning that day and hour, nobody knows, neither the angels of the heavens nor the Son, but only the Father.

As for these false prophets - LIKE HAROLD CAMPING of Family Worldwide Radio (who raked in how many millions during this latest campaign???), why should they be protected from fraud charges just because they cloak themselves in the name of religion?  This sucks and is NOT justice.  Esther Reed, who never tried to persuade anyone to donate money to a cuckoo church or spend "what time was left" preaching to unrepentant strangers about "the end is nigh," she got sent to jail for fraud, and she never claimed to know the day and the hour that the world was going to end.  Geez.  Get real, people!  Who's really guilty of the bigger fraud here? 

2011 European Women's Rapid Chess Championship

The Rapid Chess Championship (MAIA CHIBURDANIDZE’S CUP - 2011) was held after the EIWCC, in Kutaisi, Georgia May 20 - 21, 2011.  Six rounds were held Friday May 20 and five rounds today, Saturday May 21.  Games were G-15 with 10 second increment.  Wasn't the world supposed to end today???  Anyway, the world didn't end to the best of my knowledge, and the Chiburdanidze Cup went on as scheduled.  The Muzychuk sisters and the Kosintseva sisters participated.  One of our friends, WGM Salome Melia, finished in second place, hooray! 

Rank Prize
1 2 000
2 1 500
3 1 000
4 800
5 700
6 600
7 500
8 400
9 300
10 200
11 190
12 180
13 170
14 160
15 150
16 140
17 130
18 120
19 110
20 100

Total 9 450
Euros 1000 set aside for prizes for players under 8 - 16 (not sure if this means age or ranking). All prizes will be subjected to 20 % Georgian Income taxes. (The usual 20% FIDE cut wasn't mentioned, but I assume that also applies).

Top three finishers receive medals and trophy cups.  Here are the final standings:

Rk.			Name	FED	Rtg	Pts.	TB1	TB2	TB3	TB4
1		GM	Hoang Thanh Trang	HUN	2456	9.0	2644	61.5	74.5	8
2		IM	Melia Salome	GEO	2444	8.0	2536	62.0	76.0	6
3		IM	Mkrtchian Lilit	ARM	2468	8.0	2503	59.0	72.0	6
4		IM	Ovod Evgenija	RUS	2404	8.0	2414	55.5	68.0	7
5		IM	Muzychuk Anna	SLO	2537	8.0	2338	55.0	65.5	8
6		IM	Kosintseva Nadezhda	RUS	2567	7.5	2527	62.0	76.5	6
7		GM	Dzagnidze Nana	GEO	2557	7.5	2517	62.5	76.5	7
8		IM	Khotenashvili Bela	GEO	2470	7.5	2343	53.0	64.5	7
9		IM	Gaponenko Inna	UKR	2455	7.5	2328	55.0	68.5	7
10		IM	Romanko Marina	RUS	2387	7.5	2304	53.5	66.0	7
11		WIM	Tsatsalashvili Keti	GEO	2280	7.5	2150	48.0	57.5	7
12		WGM	Charkhalashvili Inga	GEO	2373	7.0	2450	63.0	75.0	5
13		GM	Zhukova Natalia	UKR	2428	7.0	2380	60.0	73.0	6
14		IM	Muzychuk Mariya	UKR	2473	7.0	2378	54.5	67.0	6
15		WGM	Batsiashvili Nino	GEO	2399	7.0	2376	55.5	68.5	5
16		IM	Galojan Lilit	ARM	2377	7.0	2212	53.0	64.5	6
17		GM	Kosintseva Tatiana	RUS	2559	6.5	2425	61.5	76.0	5
18		IM	Javakhishvili Lela	GEO	2454	6.5	2375	59.5	72.0	5
19		WIM	Arabidze Meri	GEO	2277	6.5	2328	61.0	74.0	4
20		IM	Purtseladze Maka	GEO	2352	6.5	2321	57.5	71.0	6
21			Tevzadze Mariam	GEO	1900	6.5	2305	56.5	67.5	6
22		WGM	Aginian Nelly	ARM	2284	6.5	2291	54.0	66.0	6
23		IM	Lomineishvili Maia	GEO	2376	6.5	2276	56.5	68.0	5
24		WIM	Mikadze Miranda	GEO	2351	6.5	2263	57.5	70.0	5
25		WIM	Tereladze Sopiko	GEO	2177	6.5	2170	53.0	64.5	6
26		WGM	Nemcova Katerina	CZE	2294	6.0	2319	56.5	67.0	6
27		IM	Gvetadze Sopio	GEO	2330	6.0	2242	54.5	66.0	6
28		WIM	Isgandarova Khayala Ilqar Qizi	AZE	2143	6.0	2163	51.5	62.5	6
29		WGM	Shaydullina Sandugach	RUS	2160	6.0	2085	54.0	65.5	5
30			Ibrahimova Sabina Oqtay Qizi	AZE	2078	6.0	2077	49.5	60.5	6
31		WGM	Rogule Laura	LAT	2362	6.0	2064	53.0	64.0	6
32			Imnadze Nato	GEO	1962	6.0	2001	46.0	56.0	5
33		WIM	Khurtsilava Inga	GEO	2286	6.0	1978	47.5	60.0	6
34		WGM	Guramishvili Sopiko	GEO	2299	5.5	2283	58.0	70.0	5
35		GM	Cramling Pia	SWE	2468	5.5	2276	54.5	67.0	4
36		WFM	Fataliyeva Ulviyya Hasil Qizi	AZE	2105	5.5	2215	59.5	71.5	5
37		WIM	Nikoladze Sopio	GEO	2278	5.5	2204	57.0	65.5	5
38		WFM	Semenova Elena	RUS	2188	5.5	2183	52.0	62.0	4
39		IM	Khukhashvili Sopiko	GEO	2421	5.5	2138	51.5	63.0	5
40		WGM	Daulyte Deimante	LTU	2306	5.5	2095	53.0	65.0	5
41		WFM	Goryachkina Aleksandra	RUS	2103	5.0	2235	59.0	72.0	4
42			Gevorgyan Maria	ARM	2065	5.0	1991	48.5	58.5	5
43		WFM	Melashvili Nino	GEO	2104	5.0	1984	49.0	60.5	5
44			Parjiani Tekla	GEO	1878	5.0	1970	50.0	61.5	5
45			Rizhamadze Patman	GEO	2052	5.0	1918	50.0	60.5	4
46			Vasiltseva Mariam	GEO	1878	5.0	1895	44.5	51.5	5
47		WGM	Khmiadashvili Tamar	GEO	2204	5.0	1887	45.5	55.0	4
48			Khomeriki Nino	GEO	1832	5.0	1779	47.0	58.5	4
49			Chakvetadze Dodo	GEO	1789	5.0	1762	41.0	51.5	4
50			Choladze Mariam	GEO	1818	5.0	1711	40.5	51.0	5
51			Choladze Tea	GEO	1584	5.0	1708	40.0	49.5	4
52			Imnadze Nino	GEO	1766	5.0	1626	38.0	48.0	4
53			Chokhonelidze Salome	GEO	2043	5.0	1569	39.5	49.0	4
54			Kokhreidze Tatia	GEO	1578	5.0	1484	32.0	39.0	3
55		WIM	Makka Ioulia	GRE	2101	4.5	1907	49.5	61.0	4
56			Shamatava Ana	GEO	1917	4.5	1845	45.0	54.5	4
57			Chanturia Ani	GEO	1478	4.5	1743	42.0	51.0	4
58		WFM	Jalaghonia Nino	GEO	1562	4.5	1724	39.0	48.0	4
59			Dakhundaridze Nino	GEO	0	4.5	1697	42.5	52.0	3
60			Tedoshvili Ana	GEO	1469	4.0	1725	43.0	51.5	4
61			Khomeriki Ketevan	GEO	1512	4.0	1667	39.5	47.5	4
62			Kostava Elene	GEO	0	4.0	1655	46.0	57.0	2
63			Koridze Lile	GEO	0	4.0	1655	43.5	54.0	2
64			Javakhishvili Mariam	GEO	1491	4.0	1619	37.5	46.0	4
65			Mardaleishvili Ana	GEO	1711	4.0	1484	35.5	42.5	4
66			Chapichadze Meri	GEO	0	3.5	1732	43.0	53.5	3
67			Dolidze Mariam	GEO	0	3.5	1619	42.5	52.0	3
68			Tsulaia Mariam	GEO	1462	3.5	1550	42.5	52.0	2
69			Kikvidze Khatia	GEO	0	3.5	1448	37.0	43.0	2
70			Gumberidze Nino	GEO	1664	3.5	1432	38.5	46.0	2
71			Esadze Tamar	GEO	0	3.0	1515	38.5	47.0	3
72			Mzhavia Mariam	GEO	1470	3.0	1447	38.0	44.5	2
73			Cheishvili Mariam	GEO	0	1.0	853	33.5	39.5	0
74			Vakhania Alexandra	GEO	2189	0.0	0	49.5	60.5	0

Yayyyy! Judit Polgar Will Be Back in Action!

Judit Polgar, 2009 Hoogeveen v. Anish Giri

Judit has played in nearly all of the Hoogeveen Invitationals since its inception 15 years ago.  This year's version (October 14 - 22, 2011, including an Open and an "Amateur" event alongside the Invitational), the 15th, sponsored by Unive, has the following players to the Invitational:  Polgar, Vladimir Kramnik, young phenom Anish Giri (who lives in and plays for the Netherlands), and winner of last year's Hoogeveen Maxime Vachier-Lagrave.  Daarmee komt de vierkamp met een gemiddelde rating van 2726 uit in categorie 20.  I don't read Dutch but I was able to make out that this is going to be a powerhouse tournament with an average ELO of 2726, Category 20.  That's big!  Official website. 

Judit has an excellent record at the Hoogeveen:

1997 - finished in 2nd
1998 - finished in 1st
1999 - finished in 2nd
2000 - finished in 4th (In 2000 FIDE World Champion Alexander Khalifman took 1st place.  Judit had been outscored by Khalifman in the 1999 FIDE Knock-Out World Championship in the quarter-finals.  Judit went home and Kahlifman went on to eventually become Champion after defeating Vladimir Akopian.)
2001 - finished in 1st
2002 - finished in 3rd (Khalifman finished in 2nd place)
2003 - finished in 1st
2006 - finished in 2nd
2009 - finished in 4th.  Judit played a particularly tough field that year and only 1 point separated the top and bottom places!

So, I will have to wait all summer before the action begins.

Horrific Honor Killing Triggers Repeal of Lenient Laws in West Bank

As reported by Associated Press at Yahoo News.

Harsh West Bank `honor killing' brings tougher law
By NASSER SHIYOUKHI and KARIN LAUB, Associated Press Nasser Shiyoukhi And Karin Laub, Associated Press – Thu May 19, 3:40 pm ET

SURIF, West Bank – A 20-year-old Palestinian woman who was thrown into a well and left to die in the name of "family honor" has not become just another statistic in one of the Middle East's most shameful practices.

The killing of Aya Baradiya — by an uncle who didn't like a potential suitor — sparked such outrage that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas scrapped laws this week that guaranteed sentences of six months or less for such killings.

And in another sign of changing attitudes, the young college student is being mourned as a "martyr" and her grieving parents are being embraced, not shunned, by neighbors.

So-called "honor killings" are committed regularly in traditional Arab societies that enforce strict separation between the sexes and view an unmarried woman's unsupervised contact with a man, even by telephone, as a stain on the family's reputation. There were nine such killings in the West Bank last year, and Jordan reports about 20 every year.

Women's activists hailed Abbas' decision as a milestone in what they say is still a long road toward protecting women from such abuse.

"Such a tragic event managed to send a message that change is needed," said rights campaigner Hanan Ashrawi. "We have traction and we are going to move."

Suha Arafat, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's widow, emerged from self-imposed seclusion to praise Abbas. Speaking in an interview with The Associated Press, she said she tried to persuade her husband many times to take such a step, but was told the Palestinian people faced other pressing problems that needed to be dealt with first.

One of 13 siblings, Baradiya lived in the West Bank town of Surif near the city of Hebron, where she majored in English literature at Hebron University. She wore the traditional Muslim headscarf and classmates described her as chaste and noble-minded.

"She was lovely. She was intelligent. She had a big heart," said the woman's mother, Fatma, calling her daughter "the dynamo of the household."

She disappeared on April 20, 2010, and was killed that same day, though her body was not discovered until 13 months later, on May 6, after her 37-year-old uncle, Iqab Baradiya, confessed to the crime.

On the day of the killing, the uncle and two accomplices snatched the woman and tied her hands and feet, Hebron police chief Ramadan Awad said. The suspects told interrogators she screamed and demanded to know why they wanted to kill her, but the uncle said only that she deserved to die, he said.

She told them she had done nothing wrong, then her attackers dumped her into the well.

The water would have reached to her neck, Awad said, adding: "We can't be sure ... if she died immediately or it took her a long time to die."

Aya Baradiya's parents, Ibrahim and Fatma, said they reported their daughter missing within hours after she failed to come home from university but did not learn her fate until this month.

Fatma Baradiya said she barely left the house during her daughter's unexplained absence because she sensed her neighbors' disapproval. In Arab society, women live with their parents until they marry, and a sudden absence from home quickly causes gossip.

The police chief said suspects in honor killings often come forward immediately because they don't face serious punishment and a confession is part of the "cleansing" of family honor. However, Aya Baradiya's uncle remained silent, even saying at one point that his niece had called him and told him she just decided to go away.

Palestinian media say the uncle disapproved of the woman's suitor, who had approached the family through traditional channels, asking for her hand in marriage. One accomplice said the men talked about the alleged relationship as they planned the killing.

The woman's father, Ibrahim, said he had given his blessing to the union but wanted her to wait until she finished university.

Iqab Baradiya, who has been in custody since his confession, showed remorse in a television interview, saying he was influenced by town gossip about his niece, though he did not elaborate on what drove him to kill her. "I feel like a criminal," he said. "I wasn't thinking."

As the horrific details emerged, Surif residents and students at Hebron University staged rallies, demanding the death penalty for the killers. They held up signs calling Aya Baradiya a "martyr," the ultimate badge of honor in Palestinian society.

Palestine TV dedicated a program to her last weekend, and a senior Abbas aide, Tayeb Abdel Rahim, called in, saying the Palestinian president was watching and was saddened by the case. He said Abbas planned to scrap the laws guaranteeing leniency for such slayings.

Ashrawi, a former legislator, said Abbas had promised women's groups several years ago to scrap the laws, but put the issue on ice until the most recent killing.

Abbas delivered on the promise Sunday, signing a decree that scraps provisions that make killing for family honor a mitigating circumstance, Abdel Rahim told AP. Suspects could now even face the death penalty, he said.

Leniency for honor killings dates back to a 1960 Jordanian legal codex, parts of which are still in effect in the West Bank; the area was under Jordanian rule until it was captured by Israel in 1967. Awad, the Hebron police chief, said that under the old system, someone who killed for family honor would get a maximum of six months in prison.

In 2010, there were nine family honor killings in the West Bank, Awad said. In most cases, "family honor" was just a pretext, he added: Men would kill to clear the path for remarriage, get their wives' gold or because of problems in the family. The tougher new laws will likely reduce the number of such killings, he said.

In Hamas-ruled Gaza, at least 10 women were killed by male relatives over the past three years, according to a local activist, Majda Ibrahim. She said punishment is generally light, though in one case, a man was sentenced to death for killing his cousin after she rejected his marriage proposal. The man is on death row.

Jordan's King Abdullah II and his wife Queen Rania, a women's rights activist, have faced an uphill battle with the country's conservative tribal parliament to impose stricter penalties for honor killings. Even though perpetrators now face up to 15 years in prison, judges still hand out lenient sentences.

Arafat's widow, Suha, said that when she lived in the Gaza Strip with her husband in the 1990s, she used to hide women feeling threatened by male relatives and would help smuggle them to safer areas.

She said she and the wives of other leaders in the region, including Jordan's then-Queen Noor, tried in vain to persuade their husbands to do more to protect women. "I said, `Yasser, we have to do something'," Arafat recalled in a telephone interview from the Mediterranean island of Malta.

Jordanian activist Rana Husseini said change is coming, even if slowly. "I am really happy to see governments are moving," she said. "It's not the movement we are expecting, but better than nothing."

In Surif, Aya Baradiya's family wants the death penalty for her killers.

Her 29-year-old brother, Rami, welcomed the promise of tougher punishment, saying he hoped it would serve as a deterrent. "This is a victory for all of us," he said.

___

Laub reported from Ramallah, West Bank. Ibrahim Barzak in Gaza City and Jamal Halaby in Amman, Jordan contributed to this report.

Chess Femme News!

I have to laugh at the somewhat fractured English in this article translated from Chinese to English - but I also have to say that it is written in much better English than I've often read in the Comments section at Yahoo News!

From People's Daily (China) - the English version
Cmilyte enjoys unusual year with newly-crowned European chess title
May 19, 2011

The year 2011 must be somewhat unusual for Viktorija Cmilyte, in which she has won the European Individual Women Chess Championship on Wednesday since 2003 and got three silver medals for finishing runner-up at the continental level in 2003, 2008 and last year.

But it was this year when the worldwide 15th-ranked Lithuanian has finally added the elusive European championship title to her collection of competitive trophies, especially from major competitions.

"Happy. I feel very happy," said the 28-year-old mother of two, who has every right to feel that way, because the continental title had shunned her for so long and for so many times when she had come so close to getting it.

"I missed three (European) championship tournaments," added the newly-crowned champion. "But I took part in all the others up till today."

Born in 1983 at Lithuania's fourth largest city of Siauliai, Cmilyte started playing chess at the age of six, tutored by her own father who remained her coach during her formative years.

She soon made her presence in the chessdom felt when she won the European Youth Champion for Girls (under the age of 10), the World Youth Champion for Girls (under 12), two national championship (including one which she had to brush aside four male contenders to win), the Corus Reserve Group tournament, two Chess Olympiad gold medals, and the World Women Rapidplay Champion.

Apart from playing chess, the tall Lithuanian also plays basketball and volleyball to make the most of her born height.

Thanks to her mental strength, swiftness and stamina, Cmilyte has, between 1996 and this year, posted a winning rate of almost 62 percent off the more than 380 competitive games she has entered.

In May this year, FIDE, the world governing body of the sport of chess, has ranked Cmilyte a worldwide 15th, behind the Russian sisters Nadezhda and Tatiana Kosintseva (4th and 5th respectively), Nana Dzagnidze of 2011 European championship hosts Georgia (6th), Anna Muzychuk of Slovenia (8th), Kateryna Lahno of Ukraine (9th), Alexandra Kosteniuk of Russia (10th), Antoaneta Stefanova of Bulgaria (13th) and Elina Danielian of Armenia (14th).

At the Tbilisi championship, ninth-seeded Cmilyte met and beat top seed Nadezhda Kosintseva and seventh-seeded Elina Danielian but lost to eighth seed Antoaneta Stefanova. But en route to winning the final championship title, the Lithuanian played and defeated twice and defending continental champion Pia Cramling from Sweden, seeded 12th in Tbilisi.

"The most difficult game in Tbilisi I have played was the draw with Bela Khotenashvili (from hosts Georgia)," remembered the Lithuanian who described the eighth-round draw as very challenging.

Source: Xinhua

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Chessbase has a report (and photos of the ladies, of course), on the recently completed 2011 European Individual Women's Chess Championship (May 7 - 18, 2011 in Tbilisi, Georgia).  The report covers events through Round 8 (the tournament was 11 rounds).

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Chessbase also has a report on the 2nd Hainan Dangzhou (May 15 - 24, 2011) in which current Women's World Chess Champion GM Hou Yifan of China is going up against very strong male competition. So far, Hou is 1.5/3, starting out the tournament with a victory (with the white pieces) against comparatively rated GM Zhou Weiqi (at ELO 2610; Yifan's ELO is 2612).

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Lubbock Online has GM Susan Polgar's latest column:

Polgar: Questions from parents and coaches
Posted: May 19, 2011 - 3:56pm

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Another report on GM Viktorija Cimylte's victory at the European Individual Women's Chess Championshp:

From georgiatoday.ge
Lithuanian Cmilyte wins women’s chess championship in Tbilisi
Georgian medal challenge diminishes in later rounds
Sports
Issue #562
20.05.11 - 26.05.11

Lithuanian Grand Master Viktorija Cmilyte held off a competitive field to win gold at the European Individual Women’s Championships in Tbilisi on May 18.

In 11 rounds of matches, Cmilyte won eight, drew two and lost only one as she went one better than the previous year in Rijeka, Croatia where she took silver.

Her only setback came at the hands of Bulgarian Antoaneta Stefanova in round 6 but the Lithuanian recovered, most notably with a crucial round 9 victory against reigning champion Pia Cramling of Sweden.

Success in her penultimate match against Georgian-Scot Ketevan Arakhamia-Grant meant that the tie she earned in round 11 against Russia’s Svetlana Matveeva was enough to secure the Championship and the 20 000 EUR prize money.

The Lithuanian won her first European medal at the 2003 Championships at the age of just 19 when she claimed silver in Istanbul.

The 27-year old now becomes only the 9th different winner of the Championships since its formation in 2000.

It was a former champion in fact who claimed silver this year as 2002 champion Stefanova of Bulgaria finished half a point behind Cmilyte.

The Bulgarian drew her final match against Armenia’s Elina Danielian which was enough for the latter to secure a bronze medal, her first European accolade.

Despite a promising start, the Tbilisi-held Championships were to yield no medals for the strong Georgian contingent.

Bela Khotenashvili was the top home performer as she finished in 5th place, a mere half point from a medal position.

The International Master faired well against the top three, drawing with Danielian and Cmilyte and defeating Stefanova in round 7.

However, her results in the last three rounds were to cost her a coveted place on the podium at the Sheraton Metechi Palace.

Defeat in round 9 against two-time champion Kateryna Lahno of Ukraine was followed by draws against Russia’s Tatiana Kosintseva and Slovenia’s Anna Muzychuk as the Georgian star had to settle for 5th.

Two places further back, finishing 7th, was fellow Georgian Lela Javakhishvili for whom a round 9 loss against Stefanova was to prove critical.

She bounced back to defeat Russia’s Evgenija Ovod before a draw in the final round with Nadezhda Kosintseva kept the Georgian International Master out of the medal running.

Having been seeded 18th before the tournament this was still a very fine performance from Javalishvili.

The only other Georgian inside the top ten was Arakhamia-Grant as the adopted Scotswoman took 9th place after a respectable showing back on her home ground.

A round 7 success against Jolanta Zawadzka of Poland was followed by successive victories against Armenia’s Lilit Galojan and Russia’s Alexandra Kosteniuk as the Georgian-Scot made a late charge for a medal.

However, defeat to eventual champion Cmilyte in round 10 was a fatal blow to Arakhamia-Grant’s medal aspirations.

Elsewhere among the Georgian competitors, Nino Khurtsidze finished 18th, while Sopiko Khukhashvili took 22nd and Keti Tsatsalashvili 24th.

There was disappointment for Georgia’s biggest pre-tournament hope, Nana Dzagnidze, as the Grand Master finished well down the field in 30th place despite being seeded at number 3.

Dzagnidze drew seven of her eleven matches with her only defeat coming against fellow Georgian Nazi Paikidze in round 7.

A final round success against the Czech Women’s Grand Master Katerina Nemcova was scant consolation for the deflated Georgian.

Perhaps the pressure of playing at home was too much. Whatever the reason, the decade-long drought of Georgian medals at the Championships will go on for at least another year.

By Alastair Watt
20.05.2011

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The Hindu (Tiruchi, May 20, 2011) reported that B.S. Samyuktha (10 points)won girls' title after the 11th and final round of the State under-7 chess championship!

Important Results (11th and final Round):
Girls: K. Kiruthika 6.5 lost to B.S. Samyuktha 10; Rakshitta Ravi 6.5 lost to M.K. Poornasri 9; M.S. Dharsana 6.5 lost to V. Rindhiya 9; P.M. Sri Varshini 6.5 lost to K. Rithikaa 9; S. Shreya 7 bt A. Abisuga 6; N. Harshita 6 lost to V.K. Vidula 7; S. Rajalakshmi 7 bt B. Rakshanaa 6; S. Meena 6.5 bt A.S.J. Aruntamil 6; Sruthika 5 lost to D. Dharani 6; R. Krishika Vaishu 5 lost to Shivani Madhu 6.

Final Standings:

1. B.S. Samyuktha, 2. K. Rithikaa, 3. V. Rindhiya, 4. M.K. Poornasri, 5. V.K. Vidula.

Hooray! Danielyan Takes Bronze!

Elina Danielyan wins bronze at European Chess ChampionshipMay 18, 2011 - 15:45 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - On May 18, Armenia’s Elina Danielyan won bronze of the European Individual Women Chess Championship after she tied her last round game with Antoaneta Stefanova of Bulgaria, gaining 8 points.

Stefanova is the 2nd with 8.5 points. Victoria Cmilyte of Lithuania won the champion’s title.

Football and Chess!

Two of my favorite things :)  I once wrote about football being invented in ancient Egypt - I did, I did.  And that was before the Green Bay Packers won the Superbowl for the 2010 season.  Number 8 anyone???  Only the best young quarterback in the NFL today...

So I loved seeing this article today online:

(Philadelphialocal.cbs.com)
Hundreds Of Philadelphia Schoolkids Tackle Chess Challenge
May 18, 2011 3:00 PM

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - Football and chess an unlikely combination? Perhaps not.

The Philadelphia Eagles today hosted a youth chess challenge at Lincoln Financial Field, in South Philadelphia. More than 200 Philadelphia schoolkids in grades 2 through 12 qualified for the Philadelphia Youth Chess Challenge.

Sarah Martinez-Helfman is executive director of Eagles Youth Partnership, which is hosting the event. Chess Challenge is a program of the After School Activities Partnership (“ASAP”).

Martinez-Helfman says chess is more than a game.

“Chess teaches about risks and consequences, and a lot of kids live in neighborhoods where they are facing enormous risks every day just go to school or just to get home. So we want them to be thinking ahead, and these kids are truly thinking ahead.”

Corey Taylor, a 4th grader at Bache Martin Elementary School, has been playing chess for about two years.

“It’s all about thinking and making a move and to have fun,” he says.

There are 313 chess clubs with 4,680 students in Philadelphia, playing weekly at a variety of locations including schools, libraries, and recreation centers.

Reported by John McDevitt, KYW Newsradio 1060

2011 European Individual Women's Chess Championship

CMILYTE wins! 

Here are the top 10:

Rk.			Name	FED	Rtg	Pts.	TB1	TB2	TB3	n	w	we	w-we	K	rtg+/-
1		GM	Cmilyte Viktorija	LTU	2504	9.0	2692	64.5	78.0	11	9	6.57	2.43	10	24.3
2		GM	Stefanova Antoaneta	BUL	2506	8.5	2637	64.5	79.5	11	8.5	6.66	1.84	10	18.4
3		GM	Danielian Elina	ARM	2506	8.0	2629	64.5	79.5	11	8	6.25	1.75	10	17.5
4		IM	Matveeva Svetlana	RUS	2380	8.0	2413	48.5	60.5	11	8	7.17	0.83	10	8.3
5		IM	Khotenashvili Bela	GEO	2470	7.5	2580	66.0	79.5	11	7.5	5.81	1.69	10	16.9
6		GM	Lahno Kateryna	UKR	2530	7.5	2565	63.5	76.5	11	7.5	6.92	0.58	10	5.8
7		IM	Javakhishvili Lela	GEO	2454	7.5	2553	60.5	74.5	11	7.5	5.98	1.52	10	15.2
8		GM	Kosintseva Tatiana	RUS	2559	7.5	2539	60.0	73.0	11	7.5	7.69	-0.19	10	-1.9
9		GM	Arakhamia-Grant Ketevan	SCO	2462	7.5	2535	56.0	70.0	11	7.5	6.36	1.14	10	11.4
10		IM	Muzychuk Anna	SLO	2537	7.5	2533	63.0	76.5	11	7.5	7.46	0.04	10	0.4

An interesting championship.  The "old guard" (not necessarily old age-wise) held down the top 10 - experience counted plenty in 2011 over the rising stars; there were some outlyers, of course, but for the most part it seems that the rising stars could not quite cut it when crunch time came.

You can find the full standings here. 

GoddessSanctuary Discovered in Bulgaria

From novinite.com

Bulgarian Archaeologists Uncover Sanctuary of Greek Goddess Demeter
May 17, 2011, Tuesday

A temple of Ancient Greek goddess Demeter and her daughter Persephone has been discovered by a team of Bulgarian archaeologists near the town of Sozopol on the Black Sea.

The archaeological team of Prof. Krastina Panayotova found the Ancient Greek temple Tuesday during excavations on the Skamniy Cape where the archaeologists are exploring a fortress wall and a church that were part of a Byzantine imperial monastery.

Panayotova explained that the figurines and ceramics found in a concentrated spot are clear evidence of the cult for Demeter and Persephone.

"We have come across pieces before but this time the finding is concentrated in one location, in the wall of the tower that was built above it. It is connected with the cult for Demeter and Persephone. As there is a church here, we naturally expected a sanctuary from the Antiquity period," the archaeologist explained as cited by Focus.

The sanctuary is near the monastery complex "St. Apostles and 20 000 Martyrs" built in the first half of the 14th century by Anastasios Palaiologos, brother of the Byzantine Emperor.

Sozopol, whose name as an Ancient Greek colony was Apollonia, was a traditional Byzantine stronghold during the Middle Ages even though its hinterland was in Bulgarian hands. The town itself was conquered by the First Bulgarian Empire under Khan Krum in 812 AD but was later recaptured by Byzantium.

Sozopol was conquered by the Ottoman Turkish Empire only in 1459, six years after the fall of Constantinople; Bulgarian archaeologists have found evidence that the monastery "St. Apostles and 20 000 Martyrs" was set on fire and the town was ravaged during the invasion.

Sozopol appears to be one of the earliest centers of Christiniaty as in 2010 Bulgarian archaeologist Kazimir Popkonstantinov found relics of St. John the Baptist on the St. Ivan island near the town.

*********************************************

I don't care about the Byzantine church - tell me more about the Goddess sanctuary!  Christians always built their churches over or very close to former "pagan" temples and holy or sacred places, so I'm not surprised a christian church is on the site.  I suspect that this "discovery" is also something that's been under excavation for at least the last few years - the photograph used in the article states:  Professor Krastina Panayotova pictured during excavations near Sozopol in 2008.  LOL! 

Cmilyte Closes In On Title

From xinhuanet.com

Lithuanian closes her grip on European women chess championship title
English.news.cn 2011-05-17 10:39:23

TBILISI, May 17 (Xinhua) -- Three-time European runner-up Viktorija Cmilyte on Monday moved a step closer toward the highest of the medal podium at the 2011 European Individual Women Chess Championship by winning one more of her games.

The ninth-seeded Lithuanian beat twice and defending champion from Sweden, Pia Cramling, to claim the full point for 7.5 points out of nine games so far.

On Tuesday Cmilyte plays black with Ketevan Arakhamia-Grant, a Georgian who is now playing for her husband's federation of Scotland. A tie would secure the Lithuanian another silver medal while a win would almost guarantee her a gold medal for the first time in her appearances at the annual event.

Cmilyte took the silver medal at the European Individual Women Chess Championship in 2003, 2008 and last year.

After Monday's games, other gold medal hopefuls in Tbilisi included twice European titlist Kateryna Lahno of Ukraine (in 2005 and 2008), 2002 European champion Antoaneta Stefanova of Bulgaria and Ketevan who each has seven points from nine games.

Championship hosts Georgia can now pin its medal hopes only on 11th-seeded Bela Khotenashvili who shared the third medal-chasing echelon along with Armenia's Elina Danielian and the Russian sisters Nadezhda and Tatiana Kosintseva, all with 6.5 points from nine games, or rather a full point behind the sole leader Cmilyte.

A total of 130 players from 26 European nations and federations have been competing in the ongoing European championship which started on May 7 in the Georgian capital city of Tbilisi. The annual event first inaugurated in 2000 in Batumi, another city in Georgia.

Editor: Yang Lina

2011 European Individual Women's Chess Championship

Top standings after R 11 (full standings):

Rk.			Name	FED	Rtg	Pts.	TB1	TB2	TB3	n	w	we	w-we	K	rtg+/-
1		GM	Cmilyte Viktorija	LTU	2504	8.5	2731	52.5	65.5	10	8.5	5.90	2.60	10	26.0
2		GM	Stefanova Antoaneta	BUL	2506	8.0	2658	52.0	66.0	10	8	6.16	1.84	10	18.4
3		GM	Danielian Elina	ARM	2506	7.5	2642	51.5	65.5	10	7.5	5.75	1.75	10	17.5
4		IM	Matveeva Svetlana	RUS	2380	7.5	2405	38.5	48.0	10	7.5	6.84	0.66	10	6.6
5		IM	Khotenashvili Bela	GEO	2470	7.0	2587	54.5	67.0	10	7	5.40	1.60	10	16.0
6		GM	Lahno Kateryna	UKR	2530	7.0	2578	50.5	63.0	10	7	6.33	0.67	10	6.7
7		IM	Javakhishvili Lela	GEO	2454	7.0	2554	49.0	62.0	10	7	5.63	1.37	10	13.7
8		GM	Kosintseva Tatiana	RUS	2559	7.0	2554	48.5	60.5	10	7	7.00	0.00	10	0.0
9		IM	Muzychuk Anna	SLO	2537	7.0	2543	49.5	62.0	10	7	6.87	0.13	10	1.3
10		GM	Arakhamia-Grant Ketevan	SCO	2462	7.0	2538	44.5	57.5	10	7	5.95	1.05	10	10.5
11		IM	Bodnaruk Anastasia	RUS	2419	7.0	2484	45.0	57.5	10	7	6.02	0.98	10	9.8

2011 European Individual Women's Chess Championship

Top Standings after R9 (full standings) :

Rk.			Name	FED	Rtg	Pts.	TB1	TB2	TB3	n	w	we	w-we	K	rtg+/-
1		GM	Cmilyte Viktorija	LTU	2504	7.5	2705	41.5	53.0	9	7.5	5.34	2.16	10	21.6
2		GM	Lahno Kateryna	UKR	2530	7.0	2640	40.0	50.5	9	7	5.80	1.20	10	12.0
3		GM	Stefanova Antoaneta	BUL	2506	7.0	2626	41.5	54.0	9	7	5.69	1.31	10	13.1
4		GM	Arakhamia-Grant Ketevan	SCO	2462	7.0	2597	37.0	48.0	9	7	5.51	1.49	10	14.9
5		GM	Danielian Elina	ARM	2506	6.5	2602	41.0	53.0	9	6.5	5.33	1.17	10	11.7
6		IM	Khotenashvili Bela	GEO	2470	6.5	2591	41.5	53.0	9	6.5	5.02	1.48	10	14.8
7		GM	Kosintseva Tatiana	RUS	2559	6.5	2564	37.5	47.5	9	6.5	6.38	0.12	10	1.2
8		IM	Kosintseva Nadezhda	RUS	2567	6.5	2561	39.0	51.0	9	6.5	6.48	0.02	10	0.2
9		IM	Matveeva Svetlana	RUS	2380	6.5	2349	31.5	40.0	9	6.5	6.47	0.03	10	0.3
10		IM	Ovod Evgenija	RUS	2404	6.0	2538	40.5	51.0	9	6	4.32	1.68	10	16.8
11		IM	Javakhishvili Lela	GEO	2454	6.0	2530	40.5	51.5	9	6	5.06	0.94	10	9.4
12		GM	Cramling Pia	SWE	2468	6.0	2526	40.5	52.5	9	6	5.30	0.70	10	7.0
13		IM	Muzychuk Anna	SLO	2537	6.0	2518	40.0	51.5	9	6	6.19	-0.19	10	-1.9
14		IM	Khurtsidze Nino	GEO	2436	6.0	2508	39.0	50.0	9	6	5.08	0.92	10	9.2
15		IM	Foisor Cristina-Adela	ROU	2414	6.0	2457	38.0	48.5	9	6	5.41	0.59	10	5.9
16		IM	Bodnaruk Anastasia	RUS	2419	6.0	2453	36.0	46.5	9	6	5.49	0.51	10	5.1
17		IM	Muzychuk Mariya	UKR	2473	6.0	2450	34.0	43.5	9	6	6.22	-0.22	10	-2.2
18		WGM	Batsiashvili Nino	GEO	2399	6.0	2449	37.0	47.5	9	6	5.32	0.68	15	10.2
19		WGM	Zawadzka Jolanta	POL	2400	6.0	2427	36.5	46.5	9	6	5.55	0.45	10	4.5
20		WIM	Abdulla Khayala Mardan Qizi	AZE	2168	6.0	2348	30.5	39.0	9	6	3.82	2.18	15	32.7