Permitted to disagree with my opinion . . .

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

Opinions? Have I missed something? I was under the impression that opinions were something everybody was allowed to have, and that everyone else respected our right to have.

Sharing these opinions was considered to be a form of debate that gave us the ability to analyse our own and other people’s opinions, and correct any misinformation we may have had.

Respecting other people’s rights to their opinions and expecting the same consideration is what makes this airing of views constructive.

These rights did not come with an obligation to embrace opinions we do not agree with.

There seems to be a faction contributing to “our” opinion forum who believe that their own opinions are the only correct opinions, and that anyone who does not agree with them should be verbally flogged in public.

We, the uninformed, are supposedly incapable of having an opinion about anything of importance, be it spiritual, philosophical, intellectual, political, sexual or any of the other “als” — therefore “we” need to be publicly shamed into submission.

If this public shaming includes insults, it seems they consider it to be justifiable for the greater good.

This is just my opinion and I consider that I am entitled to it. Anyone is permitted to disagree with me — there is no compulsion to embrace my opinion.

These people are also able to exercise that privilege but they do not have the right to cast unfounded doubts on my ability to form an opinion, just because it does not conform with their opinions.

Phil Newdick