THE profile of the whip has been raised above shoulder height again of late. Everybody with a keyboard and a screen and a 56k modem appears to have had his or her say.

It’s an emotive issue. But the day that we allow policy in any walk of life to be governed by the perception of the peripheral masses, instead of endeavouring to educate said peripheral masses on the reality, which is probably at odds with their perception, is a sad day.