outspokenness.

He has been quoted on several occasions recently citing his contempt for the Opposition, usually by saying something along the lines of: "We don't care what you think.'' On Wednesday, during the Senate debate on the Constitution, he expanded his view to include everyone who voted for the United Party when he said: "I don't care what 46 percent of the electorate think, I know what we are doing is correct, I care what the 54 percent of the electorate think.'' Opponents of constitutional change, especially those who worry about giving governments too much power, who question the current Government's integrity are in Sen. Burch's opinion racist; or at least the white opponents are.

And people at public meetings who ask questions of the Government about constitutional change make the Senator "sick''.

Sen. Burch is entitled to ignore the Opposition since his party is in the majority. He does not have to pay attention to their points of view, even if they are valid. That is democracy.

Nor does he have to worry about what those who voted against the Progressive Labour Party think; he owes them nothing.

But he has no right to decide that all those (white) people who oppose constitutional change are racist "if they can't find a tangible reason'' for opposing it. Black people who oppose constitutional change are not racist however, according to Sen. Burch. No doubt he has some other pejorative for them.

Sen. Calvin Smith made similar observations, but put them in context, and made a decent case for why he believed white people were afraid of change. Some will disagree with Sen. Smith, but the difference between his speech and Sen.

Burch's was the difference between reasoned debate and racial invective.

In the end, Sen. Burch's views will be tested at the polls, since there seems to be no likelihood that he will be chastised within his party. That, too, is democracy. His attitude, which can be disputed and questioned on many levels, is his own.

But Premier Jennifer Smith and Sen. Burch's colleagues should question the wisdom of having a loose cannon firing off in the Senate and elsewhere.

One would assume that at least a few of the 54 percent of voters who supported the PLP at the last Election will not do so next time (that's human nature) and that it is quite possible that some people who supported the UBP will be considering the PLP (human nature again).

To dismiss them so casually is bad politics and for that reason, if for no other, Sen. Burch should be advised that far from helping his party, he is hurting it and should cease and desist.