[jonottawa]

I was thinking that it would be a nice idea if there was a third category of 'special people' on Bridge Base besides just 'stars' and 'moderators.' They could be called 'ambassadors' perhaps, or perhaps somebody else could come up with a better suggestion, but new players could identify them by either a symbol or the color of their name.

These 'ambassadors' would be Bridge Base regulars who epitomize the values and attitude that Bridge Base seeks to encourage in all its members. I think there should be a bridge-ability component to the title as well, but maybe it should be open to anybody with the 'right stuff' regardless of playing ability. It could even be objectively awarded using a function computing how many hours are spent playing times the ratio of people with you on their friends list to people with you on their enemies list (or simply requiring minimum amounts in both categories.) I'm thinking of people like Michael Lucy (just to name one, there are surely many others) who are on Bridge Base all the time, top-notch expert bridge players, incredibly cordial and friendly at the table (no matter how often disaster strikes or how badly partner messes up), and who epitomize everything that is great about our game and this site, but who, for whatever reason, haven't happened to either represent their country in international competition or win an NABC event.

I can hear the objections to my idea already in that it might foster competition or resentment between those who have the title and those who don't but think they deserve it (and, in case you were wondering, I am well aware that I am far too 'testy' to ever deserve such a title, this is not a self-serving endeavor on my part.) Others might add that new players can find the 'unidentified ambassadors' easily enough simply by going to the table where all the kibitzers are. Maybe those concerns outweigh the value of my suggestion. I'd be interested to hear what others think.

Jonathan Ferguson "jonottawa"