opinion; noun
a view or judgment formed about something, not necessarily based on fact or knowledge.
And it’s okay to have an unbased opinion, as long as you admit to it. “I don’t know why, but it smells wrong.” is a legitimate opinion. It may be ignored, but it’s legitimate.
There are vast differences between
- a statement of fact,
- a conclusion from data,
- a statement of opinion,
- a statement of belief, and
- a claim of Truth.
Nevertheless, there is a strong tendency, IMNSHO, to try to represent all except the first as at least one level higher in that ordering. For this purpose, the Logical Fallacy was born, and the pie fight followed on its heels. If you let things be what they are, you can avoid most of both. (Sometimes. If you’re lucky.)
Rule #1: Almost all political writing is opinion, no matter how strong the argument that it is more than that. That’s fine, as long as you realize it, state it up front, and remember it while you’re arguing.
Rule #2: An opinion does not have to be factually based — but it’s really useful if it is. If you wish to avoid endless queries, and arguments, about the basis for using it as the basis for an argument, it may be best to explain its origins, and provide cites to show plausibility.
Rule #3: There are no facts available about the future, or about alternate nows, no matter how useful you think it would be to be able to state them. There are dreams, goals, wishes, beliefs, simple and complex extrapolations, conditional possibilities — but no facts. If you make a statement about what human beings will do in some future, or should have done to produce a different present, the very most you can call it is an opinion.
Rule #4: Facts are very seldom proof of anything. They are themselves, like rocks in the road. They may, however, aid in the disproof of a thesis, if it depends on the road being smooth.
Rule #5: Statistics aren’t facts, and they don’t prove things, either; they can be incredibly useful, as long as you understand their limitations, but they’re a guide rather than a crystal ball.
Rule #6 (Or possibly Rule #0): There Is No One True Way. There is no perfect argument, and people don’t have to agree with you, no matter how convinced you are that they must.
Happy opining!