Do you have to have an opinion?

Seems like everybody has an opinion about everything. Except me. There are lots of things I don't have a clear opinion on. Why? If I don't know enough about something, I don't have an opinion about it. I dread telephone surveys about the "local issues" or the "local politician" who is up for election. I cringe, because I usually really don't know enough about the issues. I know. this is my failure. That is, in part. It's difficult to get the truth sometimes in a PR world.

Sometimes, on the other hand, I have clear opinions that are later proven to be spurious. They are arrogant. Here's what I mean. I'm an artist, I paint a certain way. I paint that way because I like the style of certain artists. Now, when I was young (I'm old as the hills now), I used to reject most art that didn't conform to my style.

But art is a communication. It can be of many kinds. It can be of many qualities and at various proficiency levels. I am charmed, often, by the paintings produced by my students — efforts which they reject as not coming up to their standards for proficiency. They reject because of an opinion.

Well, it's an opinion. Opinions are free. Here, have some!