It is a truth universally acknowledged that there are certain gentlemen in our society whose primary ambition is to complicate the simplest of matters. Such is the case with the current skirmish between Mr. Dmitry Guberniev, a man of the press, and the sporting club known as the 'Krylia Sovetov'. One cannot help but observe the delightful absurdity of the scene: a clash of egos played out not with grace, but with the frantic energy of a street brawl in a foggy alleyway.

Mr. Guberniev, with a flourish of confidence that would make any dandy envious, has greeted the threat of a lawsuit with a most amused indifference. "If these gentlemen wish to drag me before the magistrates, let them proceed," he remarked, his tone suggesting he finds the prospect as entertaining as a small piece of confectionery at a dull tea party. He asserts that such a trial would merely increase his own renown, while casting the club in a light most peculiar and unflattering. Indeed, it seems to him that while he gains a certain public 'capitalization,' the club earns only the stain of a public scandal.

There is, however, a touch of wretched philistinism in the manner of the Samara club. Rather than addressing the gentleman directly—as would be expected in any decent salon—they have chosen the path of a schoolboy, whispering complaints to the higher authorities. Mr. Guberniev, with a sharp wit, notes that they have 'tattled' to their superiors, a behavior more suited to a nursery than a professional league.

The root of this unpleasantness, one discovers, lies in a most vivid comparison. During a match involving the 'Zenit' club, Mr. Guberniev ventured to suggest that the players of 'Krylia Sovetov' conducted themselves upon the grass with all the refinement of swine. When the club demanded a public apology for this breach of decorum, the commentator refused with a flourish of irony.

"I merely offered a judgment of value," he declared, suggesting that if the 'little wings' of the club felt so aggrieved, they might seek redress in some imaginary league of sexual reforms. One must admire the audacity; it is a rare thing to see such a spirited refusal to bow before the demands of the offended, though it leaves one wondering if the modern sporting world has entirely forgotten the art of a polite visitation.