A
male
age
26-29,
anonymous
writes:A lot of my friends are posting about the United States Supreme Court decision at overturning Roe vs Wade (abortion law). I am pro-life but I never talked about my views with my family or friends. Part of me feels like I am a coward for not expressing what I think but the other part of me do not want to share what my opinions are because I do not want to risk losing my friends. I am one hundred percent okay with my friends having different opinions than me and I am okay with them expressing their opinions on social media. I do not know if they will feel the same if I agreed or disagreed with them.Even through I consider myself pro-life, honestly, I also feel like I do not have enough knowledge on the subject to call myself pro-life or pro-choice in a public setting. So I also feel like I should gain more knowledge before I even think about joining in on the conversation of abortions. Is there anything wrong with me keeping my opinions to myself in this situation?
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reader, anonymous, writes (26 June 2022): Friendship shouldn't be firmly stipulated on always agreeing on everything. It's pretty much the reality of life these days that people can take the most extreme views on politics, religion, and racial issues. Sometimes you are forced to consider whether you can accept the views of others; especially those views born of hatred and ignorance. However, you shouldn't have to live in hiding; while you are forced to allow others to shove their beliefs and opinions down your throat.
It's a matter of principle, courage, and fairness. People now use intimidation and violence to uphold their beliefs; no matter how far-out, unjust, and cruel they may be. If you have a different point of view, you should be as open about your views as your so-called friends are. To call them friends might be debatable, if you fear they'll drop you for not seeing eye to eye on everything. Yet there are things we must remain steadfast about; like human rights, civil rights, and gun safety, to name a few. There are radical and uncompromising diehards who will steamroll over the rights and opinions of others; because your fear is used as silent approval of their stance on things. If you can't use your freedom of speech as others do, why do you call these people friends? Vote according to your beliefs, and you don't have to justify yourself to uncompromising thickheaded people who refuse to allow others the same rights as they have.
I served in the military to protect and assure your rights, the rights of my loved ones, and those too weak to defend themselves. If your friends disown you for having a difference of opinion; you're compromising your own right to speak you heart, and freedom of speech. Silence is how many countries have lost their democracies. We Americans are just as vulnerable, and if you look at what our nation has become; it's hard to just sit-back in fear. Voice your opinions while you still can. If they drop you for speaking your mind, find yourself new friends.
I've embraced my Christianity. I believe in the triune of God; The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit. People think that's wacko. I'm not ashamed, and I refuse to deny it. I can do that and still listen to the opinions of other people. I can't force people to believe what I believe; but if they can't accept me for my beliefs, they simply have to go. If I can't tolerate how they think, and it doesn't fall in alignment with the scriptures in the Bible, I can still love them; but I don't have to keep them as my friends. The world is populated with approximately 7,868,872,451 people. If you lose a few friends, that number assures you of plenty of options and replacements.
A
female
reader, Ciar  +, writes (26 June 2022):
 I agree with Honeypie. There is nothing wrong with keeping your opinion to yourself, and if more folks did that, the world would be a happier place.
You're not obliged to share your thoughts. Most people at some point think things they won't share with others.
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A
female
reader, anonymous, writes (25 June 2022): No , there is nothing wrong in keeping your opinions to yourself, you are not under no obligation to share them , and you get to choose how, when and with whom. It is also a good that you want to want to educate yourself before giving your opinion about a matter which you know very little about.
Then again , while you do not have to volunteer your opinions , I feel that if directly asked by your own friends, what do you think about the subject, " oh nothing " is a bit too evasive . If they are really your friends they should be able to respect your opinion even when it differs from theirs (and viceversa ) , that's sort of assumed among friends , and when your opinion comes out in future, they could be negatively surprised to see that you did not trust them enough to tell the truth. But I guess you can always say, when asked ,that you feel you do not know enough about the issue to offer an informed opinion , so you want to educate yourself before commenting.
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A
female
reader, Honeypie +, writes (25 June 2022):
 "Is there anything wrong with me keeping my opinions to myself in this situation?"
None.
Everyone is allowed to form their OWN opinion. Whether you want to share them or not, is ALSO your choice. You do what feels right for you.
People these days don't understand the term - "agree to disagree". I get your worry about losing friends for having a different opinion. On many topics, there isn't just ONE right opinion. Some people don't seem to get that.
Educate yourself if it's a subject you want to know more about. There is so much misinformation out there already.
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