1.   But he took a gratuitous slap at Levy, characterizing him as a union puppet and a purveyor of retrograde thinking.

2.   But the memo was taken as a gratuitous slap by agency chiefs.

3.   Detractors denounce the film as presenting a one-sided view of homosexuality that takes a gratuitous slap at Christianity, portraying Christians as violent oppressors of gays.

4.   Mugabe, for his part, repeatedly takes gratuitous slaps at gay men and lesbians.

5.   Others see it as a gratuitous slap at the United States that wins no material or moral benefit for the country and the Mitchell government.

6.   They were part of a corps that helped Marino avoid not only a sack but even a gratuitous slap.