About pineapple pizza? Yes. About Nazis? No.

Don’t have an opinion. Have a code of ethics and empathy. That’ll dictate your opinions when they are needed

I have no strong feelings either way

It’s ok to not have an opinion, and also ok to be ambivalent about something.

Your time and attention are not unlimited resources.

I guess so, maybe. I don’t know, whatever.

I got a hell of a lot smarter when I allowed myself to not have opinions on things. Like if a friend asks me if I have heard of [thing], I am nowadays much better at saying “No, I havent, tell me more” or “I’m not sure. It sounds familiar though. Remind me?”. A big part of this is being in spaces where it feels safe enough to be vulnerable in saying “I don’t know”.

Yes

I pick my subjects based on how much I actually have a fair deal of knowledge about.

I don’t dare enter discussions that’s beyond my knowledge, like hardcore scientific shit.

It is ok to not have an opinion or not want to divulge it due to backlash. Not worth wasting your energy on people looking for a fight.

IDK man.

I think it’s better to be quiet on a matter you don’t understand.

It depends on what the opinion is on If you don’t have an opinion on whether strawberry or raspberry jam makes no difference

But if it’s something that affects you or people you care about (or people you should care about) and you don’t form an opinion that reflects badly

I’d say that if you do have an opinion and state an opinion on something, then you should also know enough to explain why.

Specifically about politics, it’s scary how many people have an opinion without knowing why. Politics is also something that everyone should have an opinion on, because it affects pretty much everything, so everyone do have an interest in something political. It shouldn’t be based on feelings or the charisma of the candidate or group pressure. It should be based on what affects you and how you’d want it done.

I mean, it’s okay to not have positions on a lot of things. People tend to get upset if the position you’re dithering over is whether they or their loved ones deserve to live or have equal human rights. Most other things, honorable people may differ.

How important is it to educate yourself and ask questions?

Very. Everything is political, and ignorance about politics is a luxury. It allows others to make decisions for you, often ones you wouldn’t choose yourself.

Of course, it’s okay. Being able to say “I don’t know” is a sign of intelligence in itself.

A huge number of people form opinions based on very limited knowledge, but these opinions then become part of their identity, and they feel compelled to defend them tooth and nail. I think the middle ground here is the idea of “strong opinions, loosely held,” meaning you have an opinion, but you understand it’s based on the best knowledge available at the time. You leave room for new information and allow your opinion to evolve. In fact, most opinions probably should be like that. There are very few views I hold that I feel are almost guaranteed not to change.

The Dunning-Kruger effect plays a big role here. When someone gains a moderate amount of knowledge on a subject, they often feel like they have a good understanding of it. But as they keep learning, they realize just how little they actually know. Uninformed people, by contrast, don’t know what they don’t know. These are the ones who write comments on social media pretending they’ve solved complex issues with simplistic solutions like “just do X,” while completely ignoring all the nuance. When you then try to introduce that nuance, they dig their heels in, taking it as a personal attack rather than a critique of their idea. This happens because they didn’t leave room for new information - they locked in their opinion, made it part of their identity, and threw away the key.