$.02

Ever wonder where that came from? Sometimes you hear people say something about their "two cents". According to Wikipedia (a bastion of useful, but perhaps not always accurate information), the term is used to preface the tentative stating of one’s opinion. By deprecating the opinion to follow the user of the phrase hopes to lessen the impact of a possibly contentious statement, showing politeness and humility. However, it is also sometimes used with irony when expressing a strongly felt opinion. The phrase is also used out of habit to preface uncontentious opinions.

So if you're here, reading this, then that's what you can expect. My two cents. I find that I express many of my own opinions better in prose rather than in person. That doesn't mean I'm unwilling to share an opinion in person, it just means that I will clarify my points if I have time to write and think crtically about a particular topic, idea, or situation.

You see, many times, people are called on the carpet for their opinions. The usual response, especially with public figures, is to retract the opinion in favor of political correctness. But there's the problem... people are no longer willing or comfortable to say what they truly believe out of fear of offending some other person or group. Well, I'm not one of those people. And if you know me, hopefully you have accepted that about me...and if you don't, hopefully it will be something you learn to appreciate by reading future posts. I do my best to be as respectful as possible and welcome the opinions of others, but understand that opinions are not necessarily wrong if they aren't shared.

Discourse can be healthy, but only if there is an honest exchange of ideas. In today's opinionated culture, there comes a point where people simply cannot agree to disagree. You may have noticed how people have hijacked the concept of "tolerance" - meaning you agree with them or you're wrong. Many people don't tolerate differences in opinions very well. That's when the conversation deteriorates into personal attacks because there are no valid arguments, rebuttals, or points to be made. I think you get the point.

The purpose here is to give myself an outlet to share opinions, make observations, and provide serious and witty analysis of much of what you see in the headlines. I like to think of much of my "rants" as based in common sense heavily influenced by my experiences. If you plan to read this regularly, be prepared to think and be challenged. I could care less about who is Dancing with the Stars or who sang what on American Idol. Most of what is on TV is relatively mindless and that's a major source of what I think is wrong with this country. I'm going to ask that you be informed. Know what's going on in the world. Analyze. Think critically about issues. Think about how you REALLY feel - and then express that... fearlessly. No "sound bite theology" or "regurgitation of talking points". If you don't know, I'm happy to share. Expect it to come with my "two cents"... but more likely with "both guns blazing".