So, this quote is from my favorite movie- The Big Lebowski. It is the topic of my blog today. What prompted me to choose this topic is a conversation I had with my husband last night. We were discussing why more people don't express their opinions- are they afraid, don't they care, or has it just become "politically incorrect" in our society. I must say that it is my opinion that our government has trained us (in the past 8 years) to comply and follow the rules. It has displayed little tolerance for those who oppose them. Call me liberal, call me pinko, but it's the truth.
It was on my mind because I thought about my blog and how I often talk about controversial topics and voice my strong opinions. But then I quickly realized that is what this is all about..it's a forum for discussion. That's what I hope to do, stimulate discussion. Voicing our opinion lets people know who we are and what's important to us. It's not agreeing or disagreeing, it's about feeling confident enough in ourselves to state what we believe.
I strongly respect people who aren't afraid to say what they think. Now, I might not agree with them, and I may retort, but I respect them. Let me make one distinction- I respect those with educated opinions. This doesn't mean that one has to have "higher education" this means that one knows why they believe what they believe and can back it up.
There are exceptions to this rule:
1. Racism- never acceptable, this tells me that you aren't educated right of the bat.
2. Sexism- same as above, and this goes both ways.
3. Religious prejudice- you know my opinion on religion. With that being said, It is pure ignorance to "hate" a religion because they have a different God than you or different beliefs.
I'm sure that in my mind, there are others, but they fall under the category of my opinion. The above fall under the category of ignorance.
OK, so now let's move on to offending others. It is my belief that one should not apologize for what they believe in (with the exceptions of the above). If someone is offended, they should just realize that it is your opinion and they have the opportunity to state theirs. If they don't, they have no reason to complain. I am friends with a number of individuals who don't share my beliefs, (and you know who you are) but what makes them my friends, is that they listen. They listen to me, they educate themselves on the topic, they form their opinion. I also have friends who don't listen, don't know why they think what they do,form an uneducated opinion. They lose me at hello. They are still my friends, but I don't engage in conversations that they know nothing about. Sounds harsh, I know, but it's just the truth. Honestly, they probably don't want to hear my opinion anyway.
So, I guess my message is:
1.Have Opinions
2.Form Educated Opinions
3.Don't apologize for your Opinions
Let me know what you think.......
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
4 comments:
Good post Tricia. Your inquisitive mind will take you far in life!!!
I heard this recently, and I think you'll appreciate it:
"think for yourself. no one else is qualified"
You could probably switch out "think" for "speak" depending on the situation.
I have to say the reason I typically keep my opinion to myself (especially when it comes to politics) is because I don't like to debate/argue about things.
You make a good point Jill. I should clarify and say that if one chooses to voice their opinion they do so in a non confrontational way. But, know what you are talking about.
It can get heated and we need to know when to say when...a skill that I can work on. But, I also have to say that you make a lot of very good points when you do discuss your opinions and they are usually right on.
Thanks for the comment
"I must say that it is my opinion that our government has trained us (in the past 8 years) to comply and follow the rules. It has displayed little tolerance for those who oppose them. Call me liberal, call me pinko, but it's the truth."
I certainly agree with your views regarding racism, sexism, and freedom of religion. In repsonse to your remarks above, I find it hard to believe that in the span of 8 years (I'm certain you weren't referring to the current Administration), a society as free as the one we live in can be "trained" to think a certain way. If however that is the case and people can be so easily persuaded, it speaks volumes to how weak minded those individuals truly are and blame shouldn't be placed on a specific entity.
As you well know, a more liberal governement will tend to play a larger role in our day to day lives and decisions. Whereas a more conservative government is intended to protect the people and their rights and leave the decisions to be made by the people themselves.
BC
Post a Comment