AN OPEN LETTER TO CARP..............

Sir , 
Like so many of the other run-of-the-mill players , I was appalled by your inference that given the numbers involved with soft cheating , the best thing clubs can do is to allow and approve such antics.
Are you stark raving bonkers , or what ? Don't you realise it's doing the forbidden , which gives the soft cheaters their biggest kicks. Being naughty is fun. We all know that the administrators subscribe to the notion that rules are rules , and that the game of bridge would become a pointless farce if rules are not adhered to , but that notion now belongs to a bygone age. One which needs to be scuppered for once and for all. 
With any competitive game the key objective is to win by circumventing , bending and breaking the rules. This is what any self-respecting , committed-to-win, sportsman and woman believes in. Golfers for instance see the game as having three major obstacles to overcome : the opponents , the courses, and lastly but not least.... the rules. 
Over here in England , cricket fans will remember a famous test match at Trent Bridge in 1992 , when the number four batsman hit a ball towards the mid-off boundary , only for a dog to run onto the pitch ,pick the ball up in its mouth and run off. For twenty minutes the canine dodger successfully managed to evade all attempts by the fielders to recover the ball. Meanwhile , the unsporting batsmen kept running between the wickets to clock up 89 runs in the process , before the ball was eventually retrieved and returned to the bowler's end. When the opposition captain was asked afterwards what he would have done in the same circumstances , he promptly replied : " I would have run a damn sight faster and clocked up a century ! " 
Clearly , dedicated sportsmen will seize any opportunity coming their way which could help them on their way to glory, fame , success ,and hero acclaim. The innate desire to exploit loopholes in the rules is as strong as the desire to ignore them. No one wants to get rid of the rules , but most people believe the rules don't necessarily apply to them. In fact , it is needs to be noted that the umpire correctly took the batsman aside to give him a lecture alongside a gentle reprimand , but then seemed more than happy to confirm with the scorer that 89 runs should be added to their total.
All games need rules to set boundaries, which ( for me ) are there to be crossed , when it seems sensible to do so. Therefore , the idea that we should allow and approve soft cheating is both repulsive and insane. The challenge that many bridge players relish is to see how far " they can get away with murder ", and how far " they can cheat without being caught ". Legalising soft cheating would simply turn the game of bridge into joyless and fun-starved activity.
Winning may be the ultimate goal , but it is the manner and way in which a player goes about the pursuit of success where the real pleasure lies. Pulling fast ones over opponents. Conning TDs. Developing and trying out new secret signalling codes. Being devious and deceptive. Being naughty in fact. 
Surely , no one can deny the fact that forbidden practices , like fruit , provide a much sweeter taste .....not to mention a much more rewarding experience. 


Yours at it more than most ,
                                      Ima Slighfox