Perverse Logic

As it's the holiday season, I can only imagine an entry in a hotel guestbook that goes something like this:

I have had a lovely stay at your hotel. I have spoken to all the guests whilst here, and each and every one of them had something that they too have enjoyed about their stay here. Therefore, might I suggest that you withdraw some of your more popular activities, otherwise everyone paying to stay here will be happy about it. 

Yours hopefully

John Whittingdale

When put in another context the logic that the Secretary of Sate for Culture Media and Sport appears to be applying to the BBC is easily shown for what it is: entirely illogical. If he wants the BBC to act like a commercial company then it has to generate content that maximises viewers/listeners and therefore revenue. If he thinks it should remain a publicly funded broadcaster, then it surely has a duty to provide content to the broadest section of the population that fund it.  

The right wing like to get their way by re-framing the language of the debate so that any argument against their position is made to seem unreasonable. However this does rely on the argument for their position sounding rational. Unfortunately John Whittingdale's hatred of the BBC is irrational and so doesn't really work.