Tag Archives: opinions

Opinions are like belly buttons

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I have never had much faith in my ideas.  I used to think my opinion wouldn’t be worth the air used to expel my thoughts.  But I’ve come to realize through blogging that there will always be at least one person who shares my opinion.  Some of my thoughts may go against the grain and rub people the wrong way, but opinions are like belly buttons, everyone has one.  Inevitably the words I put into cyberspace will resonate with someone and that, alone, makes the time it takes to write a post completely worthwhile.

There are days when I receive comments that completely argue the other side of the coin and that, too, makes the effort worth it because it always gives me another way of looking at a subject that perhaps I was viewing in too linear a way.  Those comments may help me to form an alternate opinion and see a point of view that I may have never considered.

my-opinion

(image courtesy of Google)

Sometimes the opinions I express quickly get the most profound reactions.  I could spend hours trying to piece together a meaningful post, one that comes from the depth of my writing soul, and it inspires nothing.  But a collection of sentences that I didn’t over-analyze and spend hours interrogating spurs discussion and controversy and keeps the comments flowing.

It’s difficult to know what will grab the attention of other people, but I can only write with the hope that my opinion matters.  And the most important person it should matter to is me.  I have to give myself permission to stand behind what I believe, whether the masses agree or they differ in that opinion.  Perhaps what urges me to continue in this quest is the love of a healthy debate – being able to hear arguments from both sides to come to a healthy consensus.

That is the true joy of expressing a thought.  Regardless of what thought it is, an opinion will undoubtedly weigh heavily on at least one person and make them think.  Maybe that one person will be me, and maybe it will be you, but whomever that person is, it was worth putting the words on the page.

What’s your opinion?

Here’s my opinion…. and keep the change

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On February 4th of 2013, the Canadian Mint will stop distributing the penny to financial institutions and eventually take them out of circulation altogether.  This decision instills a small fear in me.  Not the fear of change, (pardon the pun), but the fear that my opinion may no longer count.  And yours too, for that matter, if you live in Canada.  You should all be concerned that friends and family may no longer ask us how we feel, because there will be less of a way to measure our input.  Putting in our two cents worth will become either non-existent, or result in a much higher cost.

(photo courtesy of Google)

And what happens to all those two cents worth we have volunteered in the past?  Are they negated because the currency of their voice no longer exists?  By changing the essence of the Canadian economy, they are creating instability in the people’s method of voicing their opinions.  Does my two cents worth increase in value because they are rounding up?  Does what I have to say really equate to five cents?  And, is what I have to say really worth that extra three cents?

And what about “a penny for your thoughts”?   Will we now be subjected to soliciting free advice, or will those seeking outside recommendations be paying more for what they thought was only worth one cent?

The monetary value on the weight of our words, when asked for, will no longer hold any financial worth.  Either that or it is going to become increasingly costly to ask for outside counsel.  What once would have cost a penny for a thought will now be rounded up to a nickel, and someone’s two cents worth will now become a dime.  This may have a long-term effect on mortgage rates and interest rates – this could lead to financial anarchy!

Perhaps this is the Bank of Canada’s way of insinuating its salacious attempt to create more wealth amongst those willing to bestow their wisdom upon others.  What would have once earned you a penny, will now net a profit of four more cents towards a retirement account and bring an earlier date of financial freedom.  And if you are willing to give up what would have once been your “two-cents worth”, your net profit is now a substantial increase on your original remuneration.

Perhaps the powers-that-be have converged to agree that our opinions truly do matter, and perhaps they see more value in that inference than we had originally anticipated.

For what it’s worth, that is my two-cent conjecture.  This blog post will no longer be worth anything on February 5th, 2013. (or you may owe me a few cents!)