A Note on Opinion

OPINION; is in my view and to coin a prosaic cliché, a matter of mind. Mind, it matters little. After all,
is not it just each of us considering, commenting, and contending obsessively over beliefs, thoughts,
notions, feelings, sentiments, and judgments; thus, leading another into a position where they
consider, comment, and contend over us and based on their opinion and then by a kind of
legerdemain, prestidigitation, shell game or theoretical sleight of hand, not to pull a fast one on the
reader; posture opinion onto another as well? Opinion, from my viewpoint, thus achieves nothing. It
does not; change one’s way of thinking, another’s articles of faith; it doles out no advice, creates no
popular or public advantage or disadvantage, and does not tell it like it is or anything else as a
matter of real alacrity and indifference. Concisely; it does not add or detract from human life,
experience or values. All it does is: opinion.

Countless hear and read these opinions, to be sure. And countless more (these days at least)
consider, comment, and contend with all manner of candor and counterfeit expertise, as if their
opinion, in the end; makes all the difference. And we opinion over everything, and worse yet, we
write, talk and make opinion on views, beliefs, positions, ideas, thoughts and notions that are at the
very least hazy, vague, and ill–defined, and at most, not defined at all, placing our utmost confidence
in these ideas, notions, etc that are all so reasoned through and through. Imagine commenting on
each thought, each idea, each notion; acting as if and speaking with complete authority and all the
while believing, positioning, thinking we truly know what it is we have in mind. For example, I once
heard a person bellow, “Opinion is all out of reason!” “Of course,” I said. Granted, this is simple
minded and pleonastic, but it does contain at least the spirit and viewpoint of opinion.

These days opinions are becoming crueler and much more divisive, public and popular opinion being
mostly to blame: that is, the more you opinionate badly or badly opinionate publically, the bigger will
be your popularity and public, opinion that is. If your opinion is silly, ridiculous, ludicrous, or just
plain idiotic, you’ll be inundated with more opinions, afterward appearing in the national spotlight
and on talk shows, laying as it were your now much and more valued opinions at the public’s feet,
making you an instant and outright clamorous, boisterous and above all, noisily and vainly
opinionated success.

And here in regards the overarching problem, the one whose consideration adjusts and makes for
our unique and tempestuous times. The impressionable Opinion. We believe and are sentimental
about, the opinion. Not only as a model or paragon of sentiment and point of view, but too for its
constantly begging of certainty, surety and fact. We insist, by giving advice and with utter conviction,
that what we are urging is indeed—persuasive—and that this persuasion entice, beguile and charm
its way into the public and popular mind. We are in love with the opinionated self. Adoring fatuous
reasoning, lack of education, poor parental upbringing, and blissful paradisiacal hastiness and
laxity, all the while convinced these are virtuous truths. We believe them honest fact. In fact, we
voice with empurpled and grandiloquent language and until appearing blue in the face that opinion
is clearly and indubitably reality.

And so the sentimental nature of opinion. To keep giving advice, taking a stand, doling out two cents
worth; all the while expecting the others’ outlook and attitude to change right before our eyes. And
they keep coming these opinions; coming, and coming and with nothing changing; expect, people’s
opinions and accordingly, people’s opinions of others’ opinions, of course, making those opinions
obsolete, defunct and above all highly advanced; in the end putting the highest and most current of
acumen and aptitude right at one’s fingertips. After all, it’s really difficult to be opinionated. It’s hard
to say something, open one’s mouth, pick some topic, something hip, cool or stylish and begin
talking, writing and ridiculing and soon and with much obnoxious and insufferable effort become an
opinionated wit or wag. Requiring so much modesty, wisdom and intellectual knowhow. Taking so
much willingness, willingness with obstruction, objection, and possibly proposing that orange be the
new blue or short the new tall, the difficulty being in creating a new phrase (hint: use “X is the new
Y” and you’ll be a hit) that becomes so ubiquitous that just hearing it makes you want to hit yourself
over the head with a sledgehammer, scratch your eyes out and then pull out all your hairs one by
one.

But I suppose I’ll keep right on reading and hearing others’ opinions and considering, commenting,
and contending obsessively over them as such. Yet, not because I am bored, not because I have a
bone to pick, not because I’m in love with any belief, idea or notion of sorts—but merely and for the
fact, that it is—my OPINION.

© 2020 Kenneth Myers

About the author, Kenneth (K.) Myers. Occasionally K. writes, mostly junk, but K. tries. K.’s
profession, before he retired had absolutely nothing to do with writing, especially satirical and or
otherwise. Too, his work history and education are completely superfluous. But, if you must know,
K. was a computational scientist working for some unnamed but highly regarded companies and has
degrees, BA (magna cum laude) and MS in mathematical physics from many moons ago.