THE WILL OF THE PEOPLE: Writing from London, Scott Norvell takes on the BBC for hypocrisy:

Case in point: a recent stunt by BBC Radio 4’s Today program. As an exercise in grass-roots lobbying, Today asked its 6 million weekly listeners to propose a new law for the new year. A labour MP, Stephen Pound, was drafted to front the bill when it was all over.

More than 10,000 new laws were suggested over the course of a couple weeks. Of those, five were short-listed and voted on via email and telephone by some 26,007 respondents. The results, as one wag put it, “blew up” in the face of Today’s producers and presenters.

Clearly expecting some sensible law mandating fat-free potato chips or renewed efforts to save the ruby-throated thrush of Upper Equatorial Guinea, the organizers were obviously aghast when the winner, with 37 percent of the vote, was a law allowing homeowners to use “any means” to defend their property from intruders. . . .

And while a few listeners of Today wrote in to express horror that their compatriots could “endorse vigilantism,” most nailed the real problem illustrated by the whole exercise. “Is it surprising that the public is disenchanted with politicians when they patronisingly treat clearly expressed majority democratic wishes like this?” one viewer wrote.

Martin’s Law is clearly not going anywhere anytime soon. Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott found the wishes of thousands of the citizens he ostensibly represents to be “amusing.” The Guardian called it “embarrassing.”

And people wonder why Brits are cynical about their government and media?

Well, some people wonder. (UPDATE: More here.)

MORE: Tim Lambert emails (as I expected him to) that the poll is unscientific. Maybe so — but that’s an argument against the BBC using it — not an argument for discounting it after it produced a result the BBC didn’t like.