In reading, watching and listening to news and sports on the internet, radio and television, I've seen thousands of statements people make that they pass off as their "opinion," because it's much easier to avoid being labeled a fool if you can just say, "well it's my opinion." "I'm entitled to my opinion." More often then not, statements like those appear immediately prior to, or right after a moronic notion of one kind or another, that is then covered under the blanket of, "opinion."
The one thing that most people forget about when they make these idiotic statements or take a fools position, under the guise of it just being their opinion, is the existence of something called a "false fact." What is a false fact? Why is it different than an opinion? let's take a look at an example.
If I state that, "George Washington was the first American President," I am stating a fact that can be checked and PROVEN to be True. When you check this out, you find I am correct and therefore you might consider me a pretty wise guy.
If I state that, "George Washington was the greatest American President," we find that statement to be an opinion, since it can not be proven true or false. You may think James Madison was the greatest American President, and we can discuss or argue our selections, citing evidence that backs up our opinions. But, at the end of the day, we may both end up tired from the debate but, neither having the "proof" that would make our statement of opinion, a fact.
Thirdly, and the one view that many don't consider is, whether the statement is a "false fact." For instance, if I state that George Washington was never an American President, or that George Washington was the third American President, we can both go look it up and find that I can be proven wrong and that my statement, though stated as a fact, was a false fact or a wrong fact or whatever term you prefer. In this case, you may think I'm a fool for stating such an obvious error but, I can't run and hide behind the statement that, "it was just my opinion." Therefore I'm not wrong. NO, I was wrong and I need to be held accountable for being wrong.
This is the one that gets many of the "experts" off the hook. They operate under the guise of giving us opinions, when in reality they are feeding us false information. Saying things that are blatantly false but, they attempt to portray as an opinion. They must be held accountable for this trickery. Perhaps at the voting booth? Perhaps, not getting that promotion or raise? Or perhaps, being booted out of those positions under whose guise they hide their true agendas?
IN MY OPINION, I believe it to be a good idea to be aware of these distinctions, as we are swamped with so many statements of FACTS, SUPPOSED FACTS, and OPINIONS, under the guise of TRUTHS. These are distinctions that many people are unable to make and it explains why so many can be suckered by slick talking shysters, at the carnival, the car dealership, on the news, during political campaigns, or even speaking from the White House. It is important to pause to consider the statements made to us, and to take the time to analyze whether they are stated to us as a fact, or just someone's OPINION, or perhaps even more clandestine, a false fact, floated out to control the minds of the foolish?
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