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ERHAPS it is a good thing that Julian Hall became a lawyer and did not become a medical surgeon. For the knife he wishes to employ to cut out the cancer which he perceives to exist within the Progressive Labour Party Government is in danger of cutting too deep ? so much so that the patient could, in fact, be in danger of dying on the table.

This is not to say that as a PLP supporter I disagree with everything that Mr. Hall stated in his recent across-the-board comments about the state of the PLP Government.

In fact, on some issues I fully agree with him. However, I do not believe that a PLP Government which dies on the operating table, so to speak, in the name of the radical and wholesale reform Mr. Hall advocates would be in my political interests. Nor would such an outcome serve to further my personal aspirations ? namely, where I would like to see my country go in the future.

And I do believe that despite his best efforts to claim that he is still a PLP supporter, some of Mr. Hall's more corrosive comments have the effect of undermining both the party and the very concept of Parliamentary democracy itself ? hence the quotation from James Madison at the outset of this .

Nobody ? and certainly no political party ? is perfect. But there are degrees of imperfection ? and it is my view that Mr. Hall overstated the case when it comes to the PLP's shortcomings.

In fact, I think that some of his libertarian-sounding statements in this regard have much in common with the emerging political philosophy of Bermuda's third political party, although not yet officially constituted as such, the All Bermuda Congress.

The ABC too would seem to want a country that is governed less by a Government than the pure input of the people. It sounds all very good in theory ? except that it is human nature not to have full agreement on any issue and that would remain the truth no matter what form of governance exists here.

However, let's move on to some of the comments made by Mr. Hall that I most vehemently disagree with. I do not agree, despite the colourful and emotive language he used, that the PLP's inner circle is a band of hijackers with anti-democratic and authoritarian instincts. They certainly do not fit that ugly characterisation if you apply international standards.

the current PLP Government is on such an authoritarian course then, I would ask, where is its secret police? And how many political prisoners are there currently being held in Bermuda under the PLP Government? Could the Bermuda Regiment be depended on to suppress a political demonstration on our streets by Bermudians if ordered to do so by a PLP Government?

I think that before we throw around such emotive statements concerning the political situation in Bermuda, we must first assess the true state of affairs in this country.

And if we actually had such a despotic Government, then it is a given that Mr. Hall ? as a dissident ? would not be in a position to openly criticise the ruling political party without running the risk of being thrown in jail ? or worse.

I think that is what PLP spokesman Scott Simmons was alluding to in his response to the comments made by Mr. Hall ? although Mr. Hall went on to argue that Mr. Simmons had spoken in sinister and Orwellian terms, thereby confirming his original claims about creeping PLP authoritarianism.

I would think that Mr. Hall, like most of us, has far more to fear from idiotic drivers every time he crosses the street than he does from any strong-arm tactics on the part of the PLP Government.

Mr. Hall's statement that he does not wish to belong to an exclusively black political party is made out of context, in my opinion. What he either fails to recognise or to accept is the fact that the PLP does not exist in isolation. It is the legitimate political expression of black people in this country. But even so, the door has never been closed to other races. One need only to walk through it to join.

But what angered me the most about Mr. Hall's comments actually had nothing to do with his jaundiced views on the PLP. Rather, it was his statement encouraging Bermuda's young black males to leave their country and seek opportunities in another man's country ? and I think the underlying suggestion was that they go to Britain.

To me, Mr. Hall was indulging in the politics of surrender. And I, for one, am not prepared to surrender my rights in my country.

The most pressing circumstances that normally force citizens to leave their countries are when employment opportunities are non-existent and they have no other choice. I don't think that is the situation in the Bermuda of today. In fact, we have everybody and his brother clamouring to get in here to be employed by this ever-expanding economy.

If Bermudians feel that they don't have full employment rights in their country, then now is certainly not the time to put our tails between our legs and flee to another man's country for relief.

Instead, we should stand up and fight for those rights in our own country if it is felt that they are denied.

I trust that it is not felt that I have, in fact, shot the messenger with this response to some of the comments made by Mr. Hall, but it is my understanding that very rarely ? if at all ? can the messenger and his message be separated.