their way and therefore unable to "keep their cool'' but high emotion will not assist the debate. And Bermuda will have a debate, like it or not, simply because the division of opinion is great.

We have seen the Premier threaten the obvious UBP supporters at the Bank of Bermuda with foreign bank competition because of the anti-Independence views of its chairman, Mr. Eldon Trimingham. At the same time, the Leader of the Opposition Mr. Frederick Wade has denigrated and virtually demolished the PLP's supporters, the Committee for the Independence of Bermuda and Mr. Walton Brown because they urged voters to vote in the Independence referendum.

The fact is that people will have differing opinions and many of them will have opinions which differ from the elected politicians but that is not a reason for politicians to threaten them when they express their views. It is also grossly unfair to imply that people are damaging the Country when they express an opinion which differs from someone else's.

As Bermuda approaches a highly emotional referendum there are great dangers which need to be addressed. Some of those dangers were pointed out in yesterday's editorial having been expressed by Mr. Peter Lloyd. Mr. Lloyd raised our concern over preserving Bermuda's democratic safeguards, such as judicial appointments, if ties with Britain are severed. It seems to us that appointments to the bench are questionable now and it is frightening to think that the bench might become a job for lawyers who fail in private practice.

The bench must be protected from becoming a political payoff.

Any constitution which might be written should also contain as many guarantees and safeguards as can be provided. Otherwise Parliament "in its wisdom'' might change the Constitution at will to suit its purposes and those purposes might well be undemocratic or suspect. No one knows what the future might bring. To say that things are all right now and to expect them to remain the same is highly dangerous.

There are also great dangers in the promises which are being both made and implied about what Bermuda will be like after Independence. We are concerned that some politicians are promoting an expectation which can never be met no matter how successful an independent Bermuda might be. There is no politician in this Country who possesses a magic wand. Every problem will not disappear and if the Union Jack comes down Bermuda will still be what Bermuda is today, warts and all. It will simply have a new flag and a new song and a new dispute over which Bermudian should be living in Government House. Those who are led to think that everything will be better might well find that many things are worse.

Things will be much worse if we approach Independence with a totally divided Country riddled with mistrust. Right now the two political parties mistrust one another so completely that cooperation towards a unified and better Bermuda after Independence would be virtually impossible. If the PLP cannot cooperate with the Government on drugs, which it agrees is a national concern, then any cooperation would seem to be impossible.

Approaching Independence with such divisions might well be folly.