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Sometimes it is okay not to have an opinion

Then there's politics and what goes on in the world of politics

Although I write this piece for the opinion column, ironically it is about opinion itself - when one should have it and when one should refrain from it.

In my opinion, and I hope some will agree with me, not every subject should be open for debates and opinions. I think individuals should rather strive to strike be a balance between their statements and the rights of freedom of expression or freedom of speech.

See, there are issues and subjects that one shouldn't speak about or comment unless they have a good command and thorough understanding of the subject matter. And here I emphasise 'thorough, deep and factual understanding'. A simple example would be we shouldn't give advice to someone who is sick on what they should do regarding their sickness without knowing anything about medicine or knowing the person's health history.

For instance, an older lady told her young son, "I can't eat carrots because I'm allergic." But, he offered it to her anyway and persisted saying, "It's good for you. A vegetable that helps improve sight, how could it harm you? These are just carrots." She reluctantly had it and a short while later was taken to the hospital.

This brings me to the subject matter that many people are eager to forge an opinion about: religion and politics.

I find it extremely rampant nowadays that people talk about religion when they are not practicing it, or are uninformed about particular teachings. Or, they are critical of a particular religion, and of those who practise it in ways they do not seem to agree with for merely personal reasons. These are simple biases or a product of their own opinion of what religion is without thorough knowledge and understanding.

Religion to those who understand is a very simple principle yet deep and very personal. We shouldn't be so opinionated about it and the way it is practised by others when we have not given ourselves the time to thoroughly understand it. It is definitely known to be a sensitive subject and our opinions can be offensive.

Then there's politics and what goes on in the world of politics. For some reason whenever the occasion arises everyone nowadays has the desire to cast their opinion; this is not about courage or the right to express an opinion when one does not know the history of politics or the many variables that contribute to its discourse. To simply toss opinion, which factually does not yield any benefit but more likely offends, harms or creates a rift between people, isn't the right thing to do.

While religion and politics are important parts of our day-to-day lives, one should take time to better understand, learn, and study from correct and reliable sources and consider all that should be considered before speaking on such matters, with the intent to bring about a better understanding by shedding light where it's needed.

In my humble opinion, not giving an opinion might feel like we are losing a right to voice on all that's out there. We all have a path that we have carved out for ourselves, whether it is the path of medicine, education, politics, business, or religion. When it's necessary for us to share our expertise and spread good knowledge, we should give our voice to subjects that need clarity. The intent should be to help, aid, enlighten, teach, guide and mediate in the most honest way to serve humanity and establish peace and justice.

Nasif Kayed is Founder and CEO of ?The Arab Culturalist