religious grandmasters?

Originally posted by PsychoPawn
It's not definite that he had a clinical illness, first of all.

I am not condemning him for being ill. I am condemning his statements and saying they were immoral and prejudiced no matter what the reason he uttered them. I think whether he was ill or not, his hateful and prejudiced statements still mar his legacy.

I don't see it as a matter of con ...[text shortened]... uldn't be excusing them away or seeing them as somehow "ok" no matter why he uttered them.

oh its quite definite, if you have ever had experience with anyone who has or does suffer from either the symptoms of schizophrenia or paranoia then its quite clear that Fischer was ill. this is testified to by many who were close to him, plus it was suspected that he had Asperger syndrome when young. Fischer was a very kind, generous and considerate human being, no question, but something happened to him, or developed rather, in the early sixties which progressively worsened and reached a critical level later in life, he has quite clearly therefore a diminished responsibility! i am not making excuses for what he said, but you must be fair and objective, these were the comments of an ill individual. but it is in vain now, he has entered the realms of chess legend, and deservedly so, for him, chess was above adulteration, it was truth itself! this is why he despised the Russians who were cheats, they brought the nobility of the game into reproach, chess owes him a huge debt of gratitude, my only regret is that i never actually got to meet him, but Iceland is not that far away from Scotland, and i may yet pay my respects!

Originally posted by robbie carrobie
oh its quite definite, if you have ever had experience with anyone who has or does suffer from either the symptoms of schizophrenia or paranoia then its quite clear that Fischer was ill. this is testified to by many who were close to him, plus it was suspected that he had Asperger syndrome when young. Fischer was a very kind, generous and considerat ...[text shortened]... got to meet him, but Iceland is not that far away from Scotland, and i may yet pay my respects!

He was paranoid, yes. Paranoia in itself is not necessarily debilitating.

Asperger's syndrome is also VERY manageable. Bill Gates has asperger's syndrome and he is in full capacity as a productive member of society.

Yes, people do testify to Fischer's paranoia, but testimony doesn't equal a diagnosis of his illness incapacitating him or preventing him from being responsible for his actions.

Originally posted by PsychoPawn
He was paranoid, yes. Paranoia in itself is not necessarily debilitating.

Asperger's syndrome is also VERY manageable. Bill Gates has asperger's syndrome and he is in full capacity as a productive member of society.

Yes, people do testify to Fischer's paranoia, but testimony doesn't equal a diagnosis of his illness incapacitating him or preventing him from being responsible for his actions.

ok then, if you will not accept a diagnosis of mental illness, how do you account for these inconsistencies within his psyche?

Originally posted by robbie carrobie
ok then, if you will not accept a diagnosis of mental illness, how do you account for these inconsistencies within his psyche?

I don't doubt that he was mentally ill, but mentally ill doesn't mean that he has no control over himself. It's not an on-off switch of control or responsibility.

It's just not a case of either he's mentally ill or he's responsible for what he says. I'm saying he was mentally ill AND he was responsible for what he says.

What we do not know without resurrecting him and putting him under psychiatric scrutiny is exactly how bad his illness was. What I do know is that he did seem to be capable enough to be functional in society and didn't seem to just be completely out of control.

Originally posted by PsychoPawn
I don't doubt that he was mentally ill, but mentally ill doesn't mean that he has no control over himself. It's not an on-off switch of control or responsibility.

It's just not a case of either he's mentally ill or he's responsible for what he says. I'm saying he was mentally ill AND he was responsible for what he says.

What we do not know without ...[text shortened]... enough to be functional in society and didn't seem to just be completely out of control.

mmmm, for example being so paranoid that you would refuse dental or medical treatment and ultimately die as a consequence of the latter, that's not really a functioning member of society is it?

Originally posted by robbie carrobie
mmmm, for example being so paranoid that you would refuse dental or medical treatment and ultimately die as a consequence of the latter, that's not really a functioning member of society is it?

Yes it is a functioning member of society.

Could he feed himself? Yes.

Could he keep his own house? Yes.

Could he keep a job? Certain jobs, yes.

I'm not saying he didn't have some serious problems, but he wasn't incapable of any kind of reasoning. After all, he could still play chess, right?