I was checking out the Kings Indian Defense for black, having grown tired of the stodgy Slav Defense. The Slav is solid but it isn't as dynamic as the KID, I've learned. In choosing our opening repertoire, we have to consider our taste for combat. I thought I was well-suited for the Slav which is a great equalizer, solid but it can get cramped and slow. But I have been getting good results from the KID, playing to keep my pieces active and mindful of the traditional pawn breaks at e5 and c5. Anyway, here is a position where black has just played the 6...e7-e5 move. Kinda strange because for the hawkeyes among you it seems that black will lose a pawn. So, if you don't know theory, you wouldn't play this move. But you can play it because 7. de de 8. Qd8 Rd8 9. Ne5 you can play 9... Ne4 and you have gotten your pawn back with an open game ahead of you.

Joe Gallagher, author of Starting Out : The Kings Indian, comes down heavy on those who choose the Exchange Variation, above, and refers to them as wimps ( actually, the line without 9. Ne5 ). He claims that the Exchange takes out the wind out of the sails and makes the game drawish albeit black can still make white work for it. So, those who want to play safe and " wimp" out, that's 7. de for you. Anyway, I don't really like this macho/wimp talk in chess. Remember, we are playing nothing but a board game. The only time we make contact is when we shake hands. For those who appreciate macho, there is always rugby, football, soccer, and hockey.