Extremely well put. I agree with every word.

Terry Newton played 2 games while using banned substances. I'm sure most people will remember that he was a very good player who played hundreds of games without cheating rather than as a 'drugs cheat'.

I didn't know Terry Newton except as an RL player and via the media.

I do however have 1st hand experience of what depression can do to people even though they appear "normal".

Now because I am not a qualified "mind expert" I really cannot get into detail but suicide is seen as perhaps the only way out, not in all cases it has to be said ,but when you face that, it really brings home just how bad things are for people.

The situation I was involved with fortunately "resolved" (it never really goes away) and the person is living a normal! life.

I understand everyones viewpoint on here. Until you really face it you are quite literally living in ignorance of the subject.

So don't go on at each other about it in such a way.

It's tragic that people take ther own lives and the effect it has on others but I have also listened to the specialist who dealt with the situation I was involved with and the comments about suicide surprised me. I shall however keep them to myself.

Just be vigilant!

Excellent attempt at spin. Unfortunately the only reason he only played 2 games whilst cheating was because he very quickly got caught! Unless you are telling me, of course, that after those 2 games he had already decided to confess the crime to the appropriate authorities?

Actually I will remember Newton more as a bit of a thug..you could excuse the drug taking (perhaps) because of depression and desperation...but deep down he was a dirty player and few would argue against that.

Wasn't aware HGH was prescribed for depression! Infact didn't know it was a drug, always thought it was a naturally occurring hormone, but there you go, learn something new every day!

I've read through all the posts on the various threads on this topic. I haven't seen a single one by Mintball that I would class as disrespectful.

Not one.

As I said, it seems that the definition of respect when it comes to speaking about the recently departed seems to have shifted a great deal from anything I recognise.

Likewise. I've not seen anything from Mintball which is substantially different in content or tone than anything I've written. What I have seen is that she was the first to break with the whitewash approach, and was jumped on by some posters, really viciously, for daring to write anything which wasn't bland and meaningless.

Since then, all her posts I've seen have not been gratuitously criticising Newton, but merely defending her right to post her more nuanced views.

I've really not enjoyed seeing this happen over the last week. It really felt at times like I was witnessing some sort of lynch-mob mentality, where someone was being vilified simply because they differed from what many posters believed to be "respectful" - itself an entirely subjective concept.

exactly - given the chance he would have played for at least 2 seasons using HGH, maybe more.

So you haven't read the "higlights" thread????

I have. Not sure what point you're trying to make though.