public speaking

Don’t be afraid of having controversial

opinions
Socrates died. By being forced to drink poison. Galileo was
put in jail for a life time. And this might make you wonder, what
cruel and atrocious acts have they committed? What horrible
crime have they been accused of that caused them to lose their
freedom and their lives? Well, the first spoke rationally against
myths and false beliefs. And the second claimed that the earth
orbits the sun and that it wasn’t the center of the world.
Ridiculous right? How could they claim such heretical ideas?
How dare Galileo challenge the beliefs of their grand parents?
Well, unfortunately, speaking the truth and standing by the side
of reason is what cost them their lives and freedom. Because as
we all know and let’s be honest, not all truth fits in society in a
velvet glove. Society was and still is, I would argue,
judgmental. Even with claims that are supported by evidence.

But, if you think about it, this is natural. Changing society

and its attitudes is unfortunately neither up to me nor do I
possess the capability of doing so. This is why my intention was
never to change society. Rather, my intention is to change you,
dear listeners. So my message to you is this; Do not be afraid of
having controversial opinions. Because whether your opinion is
liked or not, this does not affect its truth. Right? Society does
not alter the truth upon which we should base our beliefs.
Whether society supports the fact that you’re vegan does
nothing in anyway to the fact of animal suffering. And by the
way, this is not to claim that veganism is the way to go.

We ought to be rational under any circumstances. That is, we

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 We ought to be rational under any circumstances. Thatspeaking
public is, we
ought to recognize that nothing whatsoever can alter the truth,
and nothing can take precedence over the act of perceiving it. A
rational man is a man who is guided by his thinking, a process
of reason. Not his emotions and desires. Rationality is about
asking your self; “why do I believe this? Is it because I want it
to be true? Have I ever examined this belief of mine rigorously?
Why don’t I believe in such and such? Is there good evidence
for that which I disbelieve?” Because, we shall not choose our
beliefs, but rather, our beliefs are supposed to be fully
determined by reason and this powerful tool called logic. As
Socrates said; “ follow the argument wherever it leads”. just
hope it won’t lead you to your death.

Rationality is about avoiding logical fallacies when

processing a logical argument. And it is sometimes hard to be
rational because it opposes the very human side of us.
Sometimes we want to believe this and disbelieve that. But we
need to realize that in order to do the right thing, we must stand
by the side of logic and reason, and neither obey our misleading
desires nor be afraid of the critics of society. So, don’t be afraid
of having controversial opinions.

I personally trust that you will start following this advice of

mine once you realize the positive or possibly negative effect
your opinions have on the world. Even though you will
probably come across multiple times where your opinions are
incorrect. The world in which we live is indeed shaped, in some
sense, by our own thoughts and beliefs. So let it be based upon
truth. And don’t be afraid of having controversial opinions.