Oh Lord this is why charity gets such a bad name in the first place. And why the left is constantly tearing itself to pieces to such an extent that they can't win an election against the real enemy.

The real enemy in this case is poverty, right? And to work and prepare a meal for others assists in the struggle against it, right? End of story.

Why is the LW so paralysed with self consciousness about what he does afterwards when no one else, including God I bet, cares? Does the LW never have a treat? Or drive a car? Or drink a mimosa? Or does he do that evenings and it's the timing of this brunch that he objects to.

I think it's great these people have found a way to provide something needed and also make friends with one another and have fun. It's all good. Not to mention the benefit to the hotel they go to and all the people who work there.

Who is the LW to judge what the point of other people's charity work is? Or to judge these people at all? Why doesn't s/he judge the people who are eating the free food? What if he were to discover one or two of them occasionally - gasp! - had a cocktail themselves. Would he then like to snatch that free meal away?

Jesus said comparisons are odious. And they are. Get over yourself LW. Do what feels right and set others free to do what feels right to them. I would prefer to be with these others who are sharing friendship and love with others and then with each other.

I get this all the time because I've been vegetarian since the year dot. Well occasionally I 'slip' and eat fish or a sausage or whatever and you should see the gleefull righteousness of people when I do. It just amazes me that people care about the state of my soul so much.

People in glass houses shouldn't throw stones, and we're all in glass houses, aren't we? But a lot of us aren't even volunteering in soup kitchens.

In all cultures, as far back as records show, human beings have felt the need on occassion to let their hair down and get crazy drunk/stoned/whatever. In some ancient cultures it wasn't just condoned, it was promoted, (in contemporary cultures too of course) and there is evidence of many pagan rites and festivals that involve a whole community, for one night, getting off their faces and acting out of character.

The reasoning being, I think, that the next day when they get back in character they feel so much more light and free.

Plato (I think - one of those smart Ancient Greek guys anyway) talked about the Apollonian aspect in our personalities - rational, achieving, hard working and sober - and the Dionysian aspect - free, wild, creative, sexual. They need to be in balance, both in a person, in a relationship, and in a community, for that entity to be healthy and its potential to be reached.

Sadly our culture, surprise surprise, has polarised these forces and made a false enemy out of one of them. Losing control? Having an out of body experience? Acting irresponsibly (for one night) - bad bad bad bad. But why?

It's a terrible shame that both legally and in people's crazy little minds, occasional drug use is conflated with addiction. It's also a terrible shame that there aren't more legal and safe ways to express this need to go crazy every onbcec in a while.

I can say for myself that the benefits of occasional drug use have been profound and helpful, which is why I am convinced of the ongoing need for Dionysian acts of release every now and again. The drawbacks have been nil. And yes I am high achieving responsible blah blah blah.

I would suggest that the letter writer try it before being so judgemental - of all people it sounds like he needs to do something fast.

All this 'feeling sorry for her' is just another chapter in the patronising derogation of her and women like her.

By not holding Britney Spears, a 25 year old multi millionaire showbiz professional and mother of two, responsible for herself and her choices aren't you saying she's still not a real person?

i say she's not a victim and never was. She's a HUGELY successful brand who has had a huge impact on the culture. I hate the impact that she's had and I hate what she stands for. But I assume that if she hadn't stepped up to the plate to go through this there were a million other pushy mothers thrusting their barbie doll daughters into her place.

So she's not smart enough to make good choices - that's no surprise. So she's no longer sexy the way she once was - no female over 20, let alone one whose had a baby or two, is.

Britney Spears hit the jackpot and I can't feel sorry for her in any way. I am very sorry for her children though and all the other children influenced by her image.