Digging your toes into the diamond holes of chain-link fences brings a certain satisfaction. There’s freedom in lacing your fingers through the metal netting and pulling yourself up onto the top bar.
But the jump down is never as rewarding for me as the climb up. I like to just perch on fences, swinging both feet to one side.
However, there seems to be a misconception about fence-sitting. To be a fence-sitter is to be branded as reluctant or hesitant. It means you are unable to pick a side – as if being indecisive is a sign of a weak will, as if having firm conclusions on everything in life is healthy.
But what if the best way to pick a side is to go higher up? I’ve found that sometimes you get the best perspective in life from the top of the fence, because not knowing what you believe isn’t wrong. Not caring what you believe is.
And that’s where the importance of opinion comes in.
To get one thing straight, opinion isn’t the opposite of fence-sitting. Opinion is just what follows from observing on the fence for a while. I almost fear for those who choose a side of the fence without ever sitting on top of it to see the big picture.
But in an ask-Siri world that wants just the facts, ma’am, opinion seems trite and unnecessary. In a culture that wants the who, what, where and when, the “why does this matter” is often shunted out of the way. Opinion writing helps us recover that meaning behind the facts so we can better process them.
It allows us a broader perspective. Without a formed opinion, facts are just facts. But we need to internalize and understand those facts. We need to know the consequences of those facts. We need to know how they will affect us and our circumstances.
Opinion certainly isn’t meant to pit two exclusive sides against each other. It’s meant to help all answers on the spectrum better understand themselves and one another. Articles that force you to wipe the steam off the mirror with your sleeve and see things more clearly are vital to understanding the world around us.
Opinion is meant to help us better comprehend ourselves and those we may disagree with. The logos of argument, combined with the pathos of how those arguments are presented, can be lethal when joined together. The rhetoric alone can take the hard, cold facts and with some warming and seasoning make them more palatable to the ordinary person.
Conversations that need to be held can stem from a well-handled opinion. They can involve people from all sides of an argument and engage with those from every background. Discussions about human rights, the broader implications of political choices and even what it looks like to be a daily follower of Christ can come from a graceful yet strong opinion.
To be honest, this can initiate some pretty tough talks, but choosing to discuss controversy is better than muffling it with the sound of the next piece of news.
Opinion writing is not griping about politics or championing causes for their own sakes. That’s ranting. Opinion doesn’t come from the passion of the moment. It usually comes from a seasoned fence-sitter who’s seen both sides of the chain-link.
Simply put, opinion is gracefully using rhetoric to thoughtfully and intelligently start conversations. One of those conversations possibly asking why I have these holes in my jeans? I’ve been climbing fences.