ABSTRACT
A second source of discomfort concerns the way in which propositions or motions put before the legislature acquire legal authority. They do so by being enacted, i.e., by being passed or approved by the various chambers of the legislature and assented to by the head of state. That sounds all very solemn and dignified, until we recall that the particular mode of passage in a legislative chamber is voting and majority decision-a purely statistical determination of whether there are more members in favor of the bill than against it. Bills do not reason themselves into legal authority; they are thrust into authority with nothing more credible than numbers on their side.
