Opinion is Bias!

Recently I had an interesting conversation with a friend of mine on email which started as a simple comment and flared into a discontent. Without getting into the details of what the issue was-there was a learning for me. We cannot make a comment on a non verbal medium without making it look like we are opinionated. The consequences are immense as if it indeed is true then we can have communication breakdowns as the others may view it with their screen and color.
There are no written rules in informal communications (as if you have rules they cease to become informal) but sensitivity of people needs to be respected at all times. Some may say this is against freedom of expression as if we cease to express opinions then we are suppressing our feelings. I would agree to this too. Is this a paradox we have to live with or is this another situational stuff which as most others use-the answer is yes. To comment on everything is a human urge-like a baby tries to stamp on a moving ant purely instinct (not a bad one as it is not an intention but an instinct) but to control the language is maturity. What is written with a comic intention (in our best moods) can be viewed as an insult by someone who is not in the same best mood. Who cares-there are always finnicky people you may say. My point is if you don't care you loose a great learning opportunity. There can be opinions which stems from biases but opinions should not be rooted on biases as the worst of all biases is " Not to listen to feedbacks". Worser still if the other person has the bias and you seem to mirror his bias 180 degrees as we start loosing friends with this zero win game. Is this a compromise..not really. Sometimes it is better to accept that there are situations we need to correct our statements as it is our ego which needs to be tied in. For sure this does not challenge the statement that "Opinion is Bias". Indeed it is-try to have a positive Bias is all I say.

Donkey and the Horse!

There lived a happy, enthusiastic donkey who enjoyed whatever he did. His enthusiasm got him a lot of friends-not just other donkeys but other animals too. He used to hum his favorite music when carrying dirty clothes-others used to smile not at the quality of his music but at his attitude. One fine day all the kings horses came to the river for having a bath. The donkey was talking non stop to his friends while one horse a rare breed was attracted to it. So it went to the donkey and proposed. The donkey was thrilled at this. He said he will think about it but was already floored. He went around to trumpet his glory and next day when the horse came again, he willingly accepted the offer. The beautiful horse had all the grace of royal but did not have friends as she thought she is much above other horses. She used to be finicky about small things and get angry with small provocations. Only when the king was around it behaved tame and ensured that it gets the royal treatment other times.
When the donkey started to live with the horse it realized it had to make compromises. First was it had restrict its laughter. The horse said "Why do you always have the toothpaste smile? Are you really genuine?" The donkey tried to look serious. Inspite when it met old friends and shared a joke it used to laugh loud on which the Horse thought "The donkey is telling something about me to his friend and laughing. Let him come back home." The horse used to push non issues on the donkey. Frustrated the donkey used to lie low and avoid friends. The horse then said " Stop carrying the dirty clothes. You smell really bad. I will look for something better after I speak to the king." It really did. Donkey was given the job of carrying army tools instead of dirty clothes. The horse used to remind the donkey that it is her power that got him a better job though donkey used to like the earlier job better. One day on old habit the donkey was humming a song..the horse said "will you please shut up. you or your family have no relation to music. Why do you create headache for me?" The donkey just shut up. The donkey used to eat anything earlier including paper. The horse asked to stop it and eat only the most healthy stuff provided by the palace. The donkey was very depressed as one by one its freedom was lost. So it decided to go alone and stand for a few hours near a low wall pushing and scratching its back. But alas the horse found him and said "Who are you waiting for? I love you so much but you are not reciprocating it". Donkey went back to the palace patiently. One day when the donkey was not really well the Horse said " I think you are becoming lazy thinking you are a horse breed like me and just because you are my husband does not deserve you a royal treatment. So better get up and wash the whole stable so that other horses know I am the boss". The donkey objected and started to fight. The horse said " Why can't you be nice to me as you have been to your friends? I know you are an egoist and I spoilt my life by marrying a donkey who knows no comfort, no character and no taste." The donkey was stunned. Afterall it did not know what ego was till it got exposed to the horse. It wanted to list the freedom it lost by agreeing to live with her but decided that it does not help anyway. So it started to clean up the stable with tears in its eyes. The Horse got a promotion when the prince chose it as his favorite and from then on the donkey lives a servant life in the stable. It tells other horses it is proud of his wife and the kids are so special. But it cries every night silently in the stable praying God to get freedom as though he wants to run off he resists the thoughts. He knows that he made the decision and he should own the consequences till the end even if it means enduring a life time of mental suffering.
There is no moral of this story but philosophically a lot can be concluded.