SLOW BRIDGE PLAYERS : THE INVISIBLE CHEATS......
( Article by Carp )

Slow players are in my humble view the invisible cheats in the world of bridge: unrecognised and ignored by those in authority. Their personal torment of course is never knowing what to bid or which card to play next. Their world is one of confusion , self-doubt and dithering. Yet their nightmare is nothing compared to the torment they inflict upon their embarrassed partners and distraught opponents. Slow players  test everyone's patience to such an extent maintaining self-control becomes almost impossible. Yet nothing is ever done to root this evil from this game.
So let's look at the consequences of slow play and the way it sullies this cherished and hallowed game :
1. The stress levels for those at the table is akin to a boiling pot with the lid pressed down
2. Unwanted pressure is put on others to hurry their decisions simply to recover the lost time
3. By being cheated out of their fair share of thinking time , other players are now far more to
    make uncharacteristic mistakes
4. The game takes on an unfavourable reputation of being painfully boring
5. Starting times for the next round can be held up risking the cancellation of the final round
6. Any poor souls following a slow pair often find themselves half-a-board down before they
    even get to the vacated seats
7. Slow play might well be used as a psychological weapon to rattle the opponents, which 
    clearly amounts to another form of invisible cheating

Indeed , slow play represents acts of gross selfishness , which warrants both warnings and stiff penalties. If cricketers can be fined for slow play then so should all other kinds of sportsmen including bridge players. To see a player um and arr over a decision in circumstances where
the bog standard choice is obviously right , it's no wonder why those adversely affected by these unnecessary delays tend to blow a gasket. So can anyone please explain to me why zero tolerance policies choose to ignore the shocking behaviour of slow play.