‘opinion’s’ - THE RIDGEWOOD BLOG.

Daniel Lattier | January 13, 2017

It’s commonly believed today that “Everyone is entitled to their own opinion.”

What nonsense.

Where does this “entitlement” regarding opinions come from? Who has bestowed it?

The statement is a decidedly modern one. No person until very recently in history would have dreamed of saying something so silly. It’s usually attributed to the American financier Bernard M. Baruch (1870-1965). The full quote reads: “Every man has a right to his opinion, but no man has a right to be wrong in his facts.” (I’m really not sure why the former imaginary “right” wouldn’t also entitle one to be wrong in his or her facts.)

https://www.intellectualtakeout.org/blog/no-not-everyone-entitled-their-opinion

Reader says There’s a big difference between ‘opinion’s’ and ‘slander’.

There’s a big difference between ‘opinion’s’ and ‘slander’.
If someone makes a statement about a particular individual that is false and or defamatory, I’d say they could be liable for it. (one would have to prove damages in court and that’s a difficult and expensive task)
A ‘public person’ *elected official, govt employee* vs a ‘private person’ also has certain definitions and parameters of what is acceptable and expected to be written about them.
If I recall, one of the earlier online blogs set a legal precedent where online posters could state opinions, but not false accusations and slander.
The blog owner was sued and the problem there…and im not 100 percent certain…had to do with his editing of posts or selectively allowing some posts and not others vs. allowing all posts.
It was “emerson eye’ or ‘eye on emerson’… something along that name.