Stupid Opinion #2: that All Opinione are Equal - and, of course, we are not to Judge
By Elsa Schieder

I seemed so self-evident to me, that all opinions are not equal in value, in validity, in worth. I had no idea it was something worth discussing. And then there it was - THE WALL. I had a whole class of college students rigidly against my opinion. They held onto their opinion, that every opinion was equal, as if to believe anything else was to be some kind of bigoted monster.

But what about the quality of people of all races, of women and men, I asked, thinking that for sure they would agree. And they did - but were adamant that it was just a matter of opinion. So there I stood in front of the class, with black students agreeing that they too believed, like me, that all races were equal, but they were at the same time absolutely sure it was just a belief, an opinion. And women students likewise held that, like me, they believed in the equality of women and men, but unlike me, they were convinced it was just an opinion, and all opinions were equal.

But what about slavery, I asked, wasn't that wrong?

Opinion. Just an opinion. Of course they were against slavery, but it was just an opinion.

****

I tried logic. If all opinions were equal, then things would be both true and not true. So women would be both equal to men, and not equal to men. Slavery would be both right and wrong. Beating children would be both right and wrong. That was the same as saying two and two equaled four, and did not equal four. A contradiction.

Forget it. Contradictions were irrelevant - or worse. Students looked at me as if I was mad to say that if things contradicted themselves, they could not both be true. What mattered was not attacking the sacred cow (and equally, I would hold, unsacred cow) of THE ABSOLUTE EQUALITY OF ALL OPINONS.

I was stunned, as stunned as if I had suddenly found myself in a society which looked exactly like mine, but where people believed parents had the right to kill babies at birth.

****

Who are we to judge what is right and wrong, they held. It's all a matter of opinion - and then ANOTHER SACRED COW: everyone is entitled to their opinion.

Okay, I said (though I am not quite convinced of that).