Poll: Can opinions be wrong?

[SlowShootinPete]

This is something I often think about - especially when I'm on these forums - as it often results in debates becoming arguments

Arguing is not bad. In fact, debate and argument are essentially the same thing. I think the word you want is "bickering".

No, the word I want is arguing. Debating is not arguing.

Debate is a form of arguing. [http://www.thefreedictionary.com/argue] Argument [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argument] is unfairly maligned because many people don't fully understand how to use proper rhetoric in discussions, and get angry and unreasonable when they have trouble coming to an agreement. Proper argument requires that a person use logic fairly and accept the risk that their claims could be shown to be false. It's a method of persuasion.

 

[Giest4life]

What kind of question is this? EVERYTHING is a opinion, and every opinion is just as good as any other. No exceptions.

 

[The Austin]

No. Everybody with half a brain knows that an opinion can't be-

WHAT? Everyone voted "Yes" in the poll?
What the fuck?

How can you have a wrong opinion? YOU CANT!
An opinion can't be wrong, because it's not a fact!

It boggles my mind that people actually think that an opinion can be wrong!

 

[Acton Hank]

An opinion is what someone thinks of something therefore he can't be wrong, someone else can THINK he's wrong but that's really that someone's opinion.

 

[Danny Ocean]

EDIT: This has come up quite a few times now, and I think that a far better word to use is "invalid" as opposed to "wrong".

It depends if the opinion is a premise or a conclusion. If the opinion is used as a premise up which a conclusion rests, it is debatable but probably always right, as opinions are entirely subjective. If the opinion is a conclusion, it can easily be classed as invalid or valid depending on the credibility and validity of the premises, assuming they are not also opinions.

Take this argument:

I dislike any film featuring Leonardo Di Caprio
Leonardo Di Caprio is in Inception
So, I do not like Inception.

Is valid, because the starting premise is an opinion which leads to another, equally valid opinion.

This one, however:

It's been shown that the majority of terrorist attacks outside the middle east are not committed by Muslims.
It is logically impossible for all Muslims to be extremists.
I still think that all Muslims should be deported because they are all terrorists and extremists.

Is invalid, because the conclusion is an opinion which the premises do not support. Hence, contradicting evidence can render an opinion invalid.

You can scream that you can unbake a cake until you're blue in the face, but if the evidence shows that you cannot, and the evidence is reliable, then your opinion is wrong.

I just made all that up on the spot, but it sounds sound. What do you think?

 

[korgilee]

This is something I often think about - especially when I'm on these forums - as it often results in debates becoming arguments. And I'm guessing that most people's gut reaction to the question will be, "no, of course they can't."

"Well that's just my opinion," seems to have become a get-out-of-jail-free-card for anyone from racists to the mythical beings that say they don't like Mafia (it's OK my friends, they're not real). In some cases that's a perfectly valid response when talking about an opinion on something subjective (a film/game/book, etc.) but in other instances that doesn't work.

If I said I hate Australia because they invaded China, then my opinion is wrong; that never happened (at least, I don't think it did...) and so my opinion is based on a false fact which in turn makes my opinion wrong.

So to me, an opinion can easily be wrong - of course, that's just my opinion.

Does anyone agree or disagree?

EDIT: This has come up quite a few times now, and I think that a far better word to use is "invalid" as opposed to "wrong".

There's a difference between fact and opinion.

Facts are statement that can be proven and opinions are ones that cannot be proven by scientifically, statiscially, etc. means. They're based on someone's thoughts, their feelings, and their understanding.

Stating "I hate Australia" is an opinion.
Stating that they invaded China is contradicting a given fact.
Anyone who says the sky is red is just dumb.

 

[Woodsey]

This is something I often think about - especially when I'm on these forums - as it often results in debates becoming arguments. And I'm guessing that most people's gut reaction to the question will be, "no, of course they can't."

"Well that's just my opinion," seems to have become a get-out-of-jail-free-card for anyone from racists to the mythical beings that say they don't like Mafia (it's OK my friends, they're not real). In some cases that's a perfectly valid response when talking about an opinion on something subjective (a film/game/book, etc.) but in other instances that doesn't work.

If I said I hate Australia because they invaded China, then my opinion is wrong; that never happened (at least, I don't think it did...) and so my opinion is based on a false fact which in turn makes my opinion wrong.

So to me, an opinion can easily be wrong - of course, that's just my opinion.

Does anyone agree or disagree?

EDIT: This has come up quite a few times now, and I think that a far better word to use is "invalid" as opposed to "wrong".

There's a difference between fact and opinion.

Facts are statement that can be proven and opinions are ones that cannot be proven by scientifically, statiscially, etc. means. They're based on someone's thoughts, their feelings, and their understanding.

Stating "I hate Australia" is an opinion.
Stating that they invaded China is contradicting a given fact.
Anyone who says the sky is red is just dumb.

This thread is 13 months old. Also: the point was that your opinion is invalid if you base it upon a false "fact".

 

[Aaron George]

An opinion is a statement that has insufficient evidence known to the person stating it to qualify a true or false statement. That does not mean that the evidence does not exist. It only means the person stating the opinion does not know of that evidence. A person can state an opinion to another person and have that other person demonstrate by way of the evidence they know that the opinion is either true or false.

 

[General Twinkletoes]

An opinion is a statement that has insufficient evidence known to the person stating it to qualify a true or false statement. That does not mean that the evidence does not exist. It only means the person stating the opinion does not know of that evidence. A person can state an opinion to another person and have that other person demonstrate by way of the evidence they know that the opinion is either true or false.

Y'know, it's OK to start a new thread if it's been 2 years.