Sir : Simon Raven's common sense (3 January) has already
been advocated in a number of Hollywood 'B' movies. The more colourful version of the argument is presented by one tough to a lot of toughs, as follows: `See here. There's somethin' I don' take kin'ly to, an' you know what I mean!' (Yeah'). `There's too many strangers.' (`Yeah, yeah!'). `Hear lotta fancy talk—'bout right an' rorng mostly. Ain't no one doin' nu'in'.' ('Yeah'). 'Cain't think why not; 's purty clear to me—'s all a matter o' numbers.' (`Yeah, yeah: where's the rope?'). 'Jes' a minute, men. There's some- thin' we gonna do first. This is a democratic cun'ry an' we gonna do this decen'. We gonna vote.' (`Vote!?!) 'Yeah, vote! Ain't no one gonna say afterwards this was irresponsible mob rule . . (`Yeah, yeah, yeah . . .') What the• majority wants may sometimes settle a purely practical question; though surely even there it's no guarantee of practical wis- dom. But you can't use mathematics to resolve your moral problems. What the majority wants will clearly have to be borne in mind; but when it becomes the consideration, and 'what- ever the theoretical rights and wrongs,' then you don't have a democratic system, you have mob rule. Votes can't stand in for the real rights and wrongs: not even decent British ones.
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