FG Feburary 2015

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ELDERLY vegetarians whochoose to leave England andlive in Wales should still be ableto depend on a diet which suitsthem, a new director ofVegetarians for Life has said.The charity provides training for

catering staff in hundreds of carehomes for the elderly in England.Now it is determined to carry its vital

task to neighbouring Wales, wheremore and more people are choosing tosettle down in their twilight years.In an exclusive interview with FG,

Mike Ashford newly-appointed Welshdirector at VfL said: Many of them[elderly people] might drop it[vegetarianism] without consciouslyknowing theyve dropped it.It might be that for people who have

dementia and find it hard to explainwhat they dont eat, that they just getlocked in with everyone else. [Wewould want to] try and make carehomes [aware] that you need to respectwhat their wishes are.No matter if they cant express them

now. They have lived a life based onthat belief and you should respect that.

Basically its about caring forpeople.A lot of people choose to retire in

Wales.If youre in your 50s or 60s in the

past if you sold your house in Englandand moved there, immediately youdbe mortgage free. I think thats goingto grow, the number of vegetarianswho retire in Wales." Ashford, 55, lives in Pembrokeshireand speaks Welsh, a requirement forthe job.

FRIENDS GAZETTEYour articles look at moral reasons for being vegetarianor vegan which is a very interesting mix and unique

Charity bossaims to guardveggie choice

GRAB YOURFREE VEGFESTTICKETS HERE

E-mail: friendsgazette@gmail.com - Tel: +44 (0) 7710 692550 - Victoria, London SW1P 1HJ - Tavel 30126, France

FEBRUARY 2015 ISSN: 2053-4426

Tim Barford - VegFestUK founder

Peoples lifestyles should be respected - new Welsh director says

continued p. 4

LUCKY readers of Friends Gazettecan get in free to one of Europesbiggest and best Vegetarian andvegan shows.In a special deal with organisers the

FG can offer two tickets on eachday (March 28 and 29) which will getfree entry into the show venue (seeabove). This year promises to be thebiggest and best with a politicaldebate, comedy show and stallsgalore. All you have to do to claimyour tickets is state why you likereading Friends Gazette and send italong to friendsgazette@gmail.comby March 20. First entries out the hatwill win. Continued on page 4

MikeAshford

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Spiritual meeting isscrapped as gurushealth back in doubtTHE HEALTH of Indian guruGurinder Singh has been throwninto doubt this month with thecancellation of an internationalgathering in Spain in the spring.

The shock news leaves thousands ofdisappointed followers, all strict veg-etarians, holding useless airline tick-ets which cannot be refunded. Many wanted to go anyway as a markof respect only to learn that provision-al hotel and transport arrangementshave been scrapped without notice. The unwelcome development comesjust weeks after the guru, the head ofthe Radha Soami Satsang Beas (RSSB)group, seemed to be making a suc-cessful recovery from throat cancer. Upbeat and optimistic emails passedbetween hopeful followers talking uphis condition, describing him as'spritely' and 'relaxed'. But in a bland and disturbing an-nouncement posted on its Spanishwebsite bosses at RSSB in the Punjab,India have turned all that on its head.The notice reads simply that the

programme at Malaga, Spain in April2015 has been cancelled as per in-structions.This is the second time a large inter-

national gathering of this group alsoknown as Science of the Soul has beenshelved at the last minute.

In November 2013 a trip to Bangkok inThailand was scrapped less than 24-hours beforehand leaving disappoint-ed followers shocked and confused.They immediately turned in their

thousands to Friends Gazette whichcarried a front page report on thematter. It fell to the guru himself to revealto a dismayed and distraught audi-

ence shortly afterwardsthat he has been diag-nosed with throat can-cer and is being treatedby doctors.Since then it is under-

stood he has had sever-al bouts of intensivetherapy under top med-ical supervision in lead-ing hospitals both athome and abroad.April's meeting was set

to be held at one of thegroup's largest centres,

in Malaga and is an annual eventthere. That region of Spain is home toa large and growing Indian ex-patcommunity and is the location wherethe guru himself lived and workedbefore taking up his spiritual duties inIndia in 1990. There are more than 30centres worldwide.FG has learned that a planned visit

to the UK centre in Bedfordshire inAugust is still on the calendar, withmost other meetings between nowand then unofficially scrapped.This development comes on the

heels of an unprecedented privatevisit by Mr Singh to the Golden Tem-ple, the Sikh holy shrine in Amritsar,northern India last December.He attended prayers and devotions

at the world famous building, eschew-ing any trappings of elitism and queu-ing up with regular worshippers to payhis respects. His group is seen by someas an off-shoot of Sikhism and tradi-tional dress is worn by many.

(See Friendly Comment p.12)

Gurinder Singh visited the Golden Temple in Amritsar northern India in December.

FG Feburary 2015

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FG Feburary 2015

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His first task will be to raise the profile of VfL inWales.The most exciting thing about it [my job] is to

try and raise the profile of this charity andpromote its work.Its a young charity and its not as widely known

as the Vegetarian Society and the Vegan Society orViva.I really want to push it that way so we can do

our job better."The charity which numbers vegetarian cookery

writer Rose Elliot MBE among its patrons, goes intocare homes and helps train staff and others toprepare and provide vegetarian and vegan mealsfor their clients.It currently has 825 UK establishments on its

books with only 25 of those in Wales.Director Amanda Woodvine said VfL was

delighted to have appointed Ashford.She said the charity was chuffed to bits to have

had almost 40 responses to its ad, which appearedin a number of publications including Friends'Gazette.We are looking to enhance our charity's

presence in Wales, she told FG.

Charity boss . . . Continued from page 1

VfL shows staff how to cater for vegetarians

Veggie breaksin the south of

FranceWe can help organise vegetarian and/orvegan-friendly bed and breakfasts andrecommend restaurants and places to

visit. We even meet and greet at stationor airport.

To find out moreemail: friendsgazette@gmail.com

Or call:

07710 692550

Free shave and showerfor Romes homeless

THE colonnades of StPeters Square, Romeis to be the site for anovel new service forhomeless people. For the square, wherethe Pope addresses mil-

lions of Cath-olics on aregular basis,is where freeshowers,shaves andhaircuts willbe providedfor thosedown on theirluck. Local hair-dressers vol-

unteered their servicesafter the Pope, himself,sanctioned the idea. The service is availa-ble Mondays, when bar-bers shops in Italy aretraditionally closed.

Short back and sides in St Peters Square . .

FG Feburary 2015

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COPENHAGENHORROR

I am a child, a teenager and a woman ofCharlie. Thats the message from French com-mercial artist Pascale Marcq as a Muslim terroriststruck in Copenhagen this month in a bid to assas-sinate Danish cartoonist Lars Vilks. The gunman who sprayed the building with bulletskilled one person and injured three but missed LarsVilks who was a guest speaker at a free speech debatein the city centre venue.

In two other separate attacks, also in Copenhagen,Jewish economist Dan Uzan was killed and film makerFinn Norgaard also perished.

Vilks who has faced death threats over his cari-catures of Muhammad told the Associated Pressnews agency that he believed he was the in-tended target of the attack."I'm not shaken at all by this incident," he said. "Not in

the least.''

The gunman was later killed by police in a battle onthe outskirts of the city.

Ms Marcqs words (see full letter on page 12) come inresponse to the massacre of seven Charlie Hebdo jour-nalists at the French satirical magazines offices in Par-is last month.

We are all for the liberty of the press, the liberty tolaugh at everything and above all against all extremism.I am writing to say, I love Charlie, she says (p.12).

As reported in last months Friends Gazette theFrench massacre which included a separate butunrelated strike at a Jewish supermarket,sparked solidarity marches across France.These were reflected in Denmark this month, in sup-

port of Vilks and of the principal of freedom of speechin general.

Danish prime minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt de-scribed it as a "politically motivated" act of terrorism.

Lars Vilks

Chilling take on terror

Special report byFG writers

A CHILLING picture of adisenfranchised familyof Algerian origin wherethe father uses violenceagainst wife and kidsalike at the leastprovocation, is thebackground of thisbook, writes MireilleJoffe.

'Mon frere ce terroriste'is written by AbdelghaniMerah.

It is a biographicalaccount of the lives ofthe family, and aboutMohamed Merah, theyoung fundamentalistresponsible for killingseven people inToulouse, France overeight days in 2012.

Education is not valuedand for the most partabsent in the lives of the

children. Stealing issomething to be praisedunless they, the kids, getcaught.

There is almost anentire absence ofaffection or love and thefamily associates withothers who spend mostof their verbal energydenouncing Jews.

I feel the author couldhave done more andtried to explore in depthsocial influence anddevelopmentalpsychology.

Even so, as it is, thebook offers ampleinformation which couldassist members ofgovernments to developpolicies to counteractthe growing threat ofterrorism.

FG Feburary 2015

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Enigmatic BenedictsDarjeeling adventure

ACTOR Benedict Cumberbatch was nominatedfor a BAFTA this month for his portrayal of AlanTuring in The Imitation Game. Turing, a mathsgenius who invented the computer and went onto crack the Germans deadly enigma code,studied at Kings College, Cambridge. But itssomething else about Cumberbatch that catchesFGs interest he meditates something Mr Tur-ing, it seems, wasnt able to tap into.

It was during a spell at a Buddhist monastery in India thatCumberbatch, 38, unlocked the secrets of meditation.

Swapping the hurly burly of life in the west for a spell inDarjeeling he took up a post teaching English to the monksand others.

I meditate a lot, he told the American showbiz pressrecently.

Thats a huge tool in trying to calm myself, get awayfrom the crazy circus of it all, have a focused mind as wellas be a kinder, considerate person in the world.

I took a lot of stuff away from my experience in Darjeel-ing, West Bengal, right at the Nepali border. It was TibetanBuddhist monks in a converted Nepalihouse in India, with a view of Bhutan.

It was a profoundly formative experi-ence at a very young age.

Its something Ive tried to keep in mylife. It features already, he told the Hol-lywood Reporter.

The TEFL gig came in the shape of a gapyear in 1968 before studying drama atManchester University.

His pupils were mostly Tibetans.Coincidentally the area was where the

actors paternal grandmother was born.When I heard about the gap year of

teaching English at a Tibetan monastery, Iknew I had to do something about it real-ly quickly otherwise it was going to getallocated.

I worked for six months to drum up thefinance as it was voluntary, there was noincome. I worked in Penhaligon's the per-fumery for almost five months and I didwaiting jobs.

The monastery was a fantastic experi-ence; you lived your life by very limitedmeans, although you were given boardand lodgings, Cumberbatch told the BBC.

Cumberbatch is set to record anotherseries of Sherlock Holmes the hit tv show

(Continued on page 10)

A special FG feature

Come and meetus at VegFest

Brighton28/29 March

Benedict Cumberbatch

FG Feburary 2015

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YOUNG Christians took a leaf out ofChrists book recently and mounteda protest against big business andtheir own church.

Quoting the old testament they putfossil fuel companies in their sightsand slammed the Church of Englandfor investing in them.

Their protest took them to ChurchHouse in London during the generalsynod where they unfurled a protestbanner from the public gallery andheld a prayer rally in the streetoutside (see pic).

The group, from Christian ClimateAction (CCA), claim the CoE isinvesting in energy companies such asShell and BP.

These companies are fuelling theclimate crisis, and they are notshowing any signs of stopping theextreme search for even more fossilfuels.

Theyre even going so far assearching for oil deep under the Arcticand exploiting Canadas tar sands,the group claims.

The message to church bosses wassimple. As a church community, wecannot continue to invest in fossil fuelcompanies.

So we ask you, on our behalf, todivest now. May God defend theafflicted among the people and savethe children of the needy' (Isaiah24:2-5), they said.

Up and wonder

TRYING to find the meaning of life is part of themix at a London rugger club these days, it seems.

For members of Saracens, top north London side,have taken to thrashing out the meaning of life and allthat instead of, or perhaps as well as, the other team.

And they recently "scrummed down" with members ofthe capitals philosophy meet-up group to share theirenthusiasm for all things meaningful.

In a message to members organiser Jules Evans said:"I really encourage you to go to hear about Saracens'unique approach to philosophy in the workplace.

"Saracens rugby club (one of the top rugby clubs inEurope) is unusual among companies and professionalsports teams in having a regular philosophy club, where

players sit and discuss ideas from Aristotle, MarcusAurelius, the Buddha and others and how they relate totheir lives on and off the pitch.

"The club tries to put values and well-being beforeprofit and success, and the philosophy club is a part ofthat."

Chris Wyles (see Friendly Commnt on page 12) whoplays full back for the top league team was one of theguest speakers to make things go with a crunch!

The event happened at the Escape the City school inFrederick Place in the financial district of London.

David Jones, head of the personal developmentprogramme at Saracens, as well as Wyles, spoke aboutthe role of philosophy in helping elite sportspeople, aswell as what role it can play in companies in general.

Christiansmount fossilfuel protest

FG Feburary 2015

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ARTIST IN BAGSNATCH SHOCK

Exclusive report by Steve Ward

A PROVENALEartist was leftflabbergastedand shockedafter cheekydrive-by thievessnatched hershopping bagfrom the streetas she looked onin disbelief. FelicityRobertson wholives in PernesLes Fontainesnear Avignon inFrance, and aregular FGreader, had leftthe bag outsideher studio as shepopped in for aminute. But when she came back out she couldn'tbelieve her eyes as a thief leapt out of a blackcar, snatched the bag and drove off at speed.She told the FG: I was flabbergasted, shocked,amazed. When I saw the black car was movingaway I tried to focus on the licence plate.

There must have been two of them [thieves].But Flea who is a strict vegetarian and a

dedicated meditator isnt vindictive about theincident. Because they are young lads, I don't in myheart of hearts blame them at all. At that ageyou have a very strange moral compass. Itsexciting and easy to take something [whenyoure] out for a Sunday jaunt.

What made things worse was that the stolenbag wasnt hers, she explained. She had picked itup because it looked identical to hers.

The contents were eventually returned thoughthe money, about 60 euros, was missing.

Although fairly common in Paris, as in mostother European capitals, street crime is stillrelatively rare in urban France.

Often put down to non-French immigrants fromRomania, street crime takes the form of pick-pocketing or mobile phone or bag snatching.

Groups of Romanian gypsies can often be seencleaning windscreens at traffic lights in suburbanAvignon. It is not unknown for one or two to usesleight of hand to boost their meager earnings.

Got a story? Has something happened to you orsomebody you know you think our readers wouldlike to know about? Then dont hesitate tocontact us on friendsgazette@gmail.com

Felicity Robertson

FG Feburary 2015

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is set to click with10,000 more readersTEN THOUSAND or more veggiesand vegans are set to becomeFriends' Gazette readers byclicking on to a pioneering newwebsite. For FG has become a'media partner' of VegFestUK oneof the country's foremostalternative lifestyle festivals.

Visitors to the hugely popular eventwill be able to click straight throughto the latest edition of the i-magwhen booking VegfestUK tickets orsearching for more information.

They will also be able to access backcopies of FG dating to 2013.

The pioneering festival featureshundreds of stalls of products andservices for vegetarian and veganswith annual shows in Brighton, Bristoland London.

VegFestUK held in Olympia, Londonin September drew 10,000+ visitors injust two days.

A VegFest spokesman said: "We arehappy to proceed with mediapartnership. [I] have had a look at theonline version of Friends Gazette andit's got some interesting material."

FG editor Steve Ward said: "We arehappy to back VegFestUK which is aninspiring and pioneering phenomenonof the 21st century."

FG is a registered UK publicationwhich deals seriously with alternativeissues including diet.

Many readers write in or phone withcomments on articles and oftensubmit ideas for future issues.

Freelance journalists contributeregularly and experts are sometimesinvited to pen comment pieces ontopical subjects.

The i-mag started in April 2013 witha short article about a vegetarianbirthday party.

Over the months and years since ithas covered stories on protestsagainst the arms trade by a Christiangroup many of whom are vegan;development of egg-free and meat-free products in the US backed by thelikes of Bill Gates and Tony Blair; andfears that UK government dietaryadvice is 'not fit for purpose'. VegFestUK is one of the top

vegetarian andvegan events in thecountry.

A spokesman said:"Over 10,000committed veggies,vegans andalternative life-stylers visitVegFestUKs flag-ship event heldevery autumn atOlympia in London."And many morechange their dietand lifestyle duringor soon after theshow." The nextVegFest is to beheld in Brightonnext month.

The show is set tobe the biggest sofar.

To grab your freetickets to this greatevent go to page 1of this edition.

Closing date isMarch 20.

Pictured top: visitorsqueue up to get into aVegFest show.

COME ANDWRITE FOR YOUR

FAVOURITEI-MAG?

Friends Gazette is lookingfor reporters and advertising

sales people* to join ourteam - the right rewardpackage and word rateawaits the right people

Send a covering letter and cv statingclearly why youd be the right person for

the job to friendsgazette@gmail.com

*See separate ad on next page

FG Feburary 2015

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in which he plays thetroubled but inspiredVictorian detective.

Buddhists pursue medi-tation as part of a pathtoward enlightenmentand nirvana (Buddhistheaven). Their medita-tion encompasses a vari-ety of techniques thataim to develop mindful-ness, concentration, su-pramundane powers,tranquillity and insight.

But could these tech-niques apply to actingtoo where actors have tograpple with the rela-tionship between theirown personalities andthe personality of thecharacter they are play-ing?

In The Ego-Less Actor,Matthew Harrison writes:And what the actormust get clear is that shemust set boundariesbetween the self and theself-in-the-work. Theseare two distinct peoplewith two completelydifferent roles.

And British actor JohnGielgud famously said:Acting is half shame,half glory. Shame atexhibiting yourself, glorywhen you can forgetyourself.

And an anonymousquote reads: Thegreatness of an actor liesin the fact that heforgets himself in theportrayal of hischaracter.

Cumberbatch himselflooks at it as being inthe present: Onceyou're in the present andyou're not worried aboutthe wig, or the special-effects suit, or thedialogue, or the accent,or the moralresponsibility, when youare lost in the momentand you're in the presentis when the stuff that'sreally good comes onscreen.

Cumberbatch wasnominated in the leadingactor category in thisyears British Academy of

Film andTelevisionAwards(BAFTA). Thewinner wasEddieRedmayne forhis role asStephenHawking inThe Theory ofEverything.

CORRECTIONS ANDCLARIFICATIONS

Something not quite right? If you spotan error, misinterpretation or generalgoof-off then get off your backside and

let us know onfriendsgazette@gmail.com

Enigmatic Benedict . . . Continued from page 6

Open wide . . .Gielgud andHoffman in Marathon Man

Meet us on stand B12 at VegFestUK Brighton

FG Feburary 2015

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Ingredients

2 lbs. peeled, diced vegetables: carrots,rutabagas, turnips, onions, celery

lb. butter or vegan margarinesalt to tasteFreshly-ground black pepper1 cup rolled oats2/3 cup hazelnuts chopped or slivered1 small onion; peeled and grated1 garlic clove; crushed t/s dried thyme or herbes de Provence

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Broil the vegetables in water to cover for15-20 minutes, or until tender.

Drain, reserving the water.

Blend about one-third of the vegetables with2 tablespoons of the butter or veganmargarine and enough of the reserved waterto make a puree in a food processor orblender.

Add this puree to the rest of the vegetables.

Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Spoon the mixture into a shallow ovenproofcasserole.

To make the crumble topping, put the oatsinto a bowl with all the nuts, the onion,garlic, herbs and salt and pepper.

Add the rest of the butter or veganmargarine, and mix with a fork until thetopping mixture resembles coarsebreadcrumbs.

Sprinkle the crumble mixture evenly overthe top of the vegetables.

Bake for 30-40 minutes, until topping is crispand lightly browned.

Vegetable OatCrumble

Women moreaware of foodissues - reportWOMEN are moreconcerned than menwhen it comes to foodissues, a survey hasrevealed.

The finding comes from thegovernment Food StandardAgency (FSA) which conductsregular twice yearlyinvestigations into foodmatters in the UK.

According to its BiannualPublic Attitudes Trackersurvey women continue toreport a greater proportion ofconcern than men about foodissues.

The survey preparedaccording to officialguidelines goes on to state:

Women were generalmore likely than men toreport concern for individualfood safety issues; thisincluded:

food hygiene wheneating out (42%compared with 36%of men)

use of additives (35%compared with 24%)

the use of pesticides(31% compared with22%)

and date labels (31%compared with26%),

the survey reported. Other top issues, generally,according to the report were:

food prices (50%) food waste (48%) and the amount of

sugar in food (47%).The FSA has conducted its

Public Attitudes Trackersurvey since 2001 in order tomonitor key agency issues.

After a review in 2010, thetracker was redeveloped infull and since then has run ona biannual basis. This is theninth report since then.

Questions cover a numberof topics of interest for theagency, including concernabout specific food safetyissues, awareness of hygienestandards in eatingestablishments, awareness ofthe FSA and itsresponsibilities, and trust inthe FSA.

Fieldwork for this wavetook place in November 2014and a representative sampleof 2,684 adults in the UK wasinterviewed.

Alternative films? Theres a CosteTWO FRENCH filmmakers have toldhow they lost friendsand colleagues whenthey made a docu-mentary about alter-native lifestyles. There was standingroom only at the Uto-pia cinema in Avi-gnon, Provencerecently when NathanaelCoste and Marc de La Menar-diere took questions abouttheir film En Quete de Senswhich looks at how big busi-

ness is killing off the littleman. "We lost friends whenwe said we were making thisfilm," Coste revealed. "But wemade plenty of new ones."

Nathanael andMarc

FG Feburary 2015

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FRIENDLY FEEDBACK

Dear Stephen,

I have had deep concernsregarding Baba Gurinder SinghJi's health from the verybeginning (see page 2 story).I have prayed each and every

day and continue to do so, for hiscomplete recovery from this veryserious health issue.Hopefully Baba Ji Gurinder

Singh will take proper rest.Following the physicians advice

[to] overcome this illness soonerthan later.I marvel at these mystics love

and compassion; and how theysacrifice their lives and healthknowing in advance of theirministries; that they will stand asransom for our sins.We have a great respect for

Baba Gurinder Singh Ji Maharajand his ministry.He, like all true mystics, take

upon themselves an incredibleload.As has been voiced by every

mystic: "Forgiveness of sin has itsprice and its paid off throughthe physical body."It is for this reason that these

great lovers of the Lord suffer so.Baba Ji Gurinder Singh Dhillon is

a great lover of God; nephew toour perfect master Charan SinghJi Maharaj whose brilliancecontinues to shine, lighting ourpath and lives; without which ourdays would be abysmally darkindeed.

Doug Brooking, New Jersey, USA

Cher FG,Je suis Charlie (p.1 FG January)On est tous l pour la libert dela presse, la libert de rire detout et surtout contre tous lesextrmismes.Ce journal a contribu ouvrir

mon esprit, il m'a offert desfentres vers une faon depenser, ils ont donn du plaisir,je suis un enfant' une

adolescente et une femme deCharlie.En humour je suis de ceux qui

sont contre toute censure.Des artistes sont partis, des

travailleurs et cela me rendtriste, choque et bouscule etje suis aussi en colre contre cescons qui se donnent le droit detuer au nom d'un dieu.C'etait des hommes, des

femmes qui vraimentdefendaient la lacit etouvraient leur gueuleRien ne justifie.Je suis venus pour dire je t'aime

Charlie. Nous sommes Charlie,ensemble contre l'intolranceOn est ici tous ensemble pour la

paix et la libert. On est debout.Il faut continuer avec courageOn n'a pas peur nous ferons

face

Pascale Marcq,Villeneuve des Avignon, France

We are all for freedom of thepress, the liberty to laugh,above all, against all extremism.This magazine (Charlie Hebdo)has helped open my spirit. Itoffered me a window on to away of thinking which I amhappy with. I am a child, a youthand a woman of Charlie. I amone of those who are againstcensure. The deaths of theseartists (the murdered staff) hasleft me sad, shocked and upset.And I am also angry. Angry withthose who think they can givethemselves the right to kill inthe name of God. It was thesemen and women (the Charliejournalists) who defendedsecularism and gave it voice.There is absolutely nojustification [for whathappened]. I am here to say Ilove Charlie. We are Charlie together taking a stand againstintolerance, peace and liberty.We have stood up. We mustcontinue with courage. Withoutfear we go forward.

Feel strongly about an article or related subject?Tell us about it now! friendsgazette@gmail.com(Annonymous letters not published but contact details can be witheld upon request).

S**T happens!THERES nothing to fear when it does.But the speed with which French RSSB

bosses scrambled to cover over the traces ofthe scrapped international meeting in Spainin April seems positively unseemly (p. 2).Hotel bookings cancelled, shuttle busses

scrapped, airport taxis scrubbed.All without so much as a phone call or email

to hundreds of ordinary punters who mighthave wanted to go along anyway. It's likenothing ever happened.Like a blundered attempt to re-write

history. Even the official announcementlacked the simple courtesy of a basic reason.Everyone hopes it'll all be all right in the

end (see FF p.12). But this kind of behaviourleaves an awful bad taste in the mouth.One it may not be easy to clear.

FRIENDLYCOMMENT

The opinions and views expressed here are those of the authors only. FriendsGazette does not necessarily agree or disagree with them or any part of them andapart from Friendly Comment holds no opinions or views of its own throughout.

THIS picture of Sarries Chris Wyles issplashed here courtesy of Pink Rugby theon-line mag about rugby for guys and girls.It also relates, were keen to point out, to

our story about rugger buggers meeting upafter a muddy scrawl to chat aboutphilosophy - hopefully after they all get outof the tub!With the perfectly-well illustrated article

on page 7 theres no real reason to use it.But we simply had to. As they say in the

field, muddy or otherwise, a little of whatyou fancy always does you good!