Today begins the A to Z blogging exercise. This is my first year participating in the event. I look forward to reading other entries and meeting fellow bloggers. I hope that you enjoy my inaugural entry.
A definition of the word "Authority" is An expert whose views are taken as definitive; This definition is based upon a subjective assessment of the expert in question.
The effectiveness of one's authority is determined, in large measure, by that authority being recognized by those who are subject to that authority. Often, people refuse to recognize authority and as a result negative consequences often follow that refusal.
An example is doctors who tell their patients that they need to stop smoking, exercise more and eat less, that they are endanger of suffering a heart attack and/or stroke. Whether the patient follows that medical advice is determined by whether or not the patient recognizes their doctor's opinion as being authoritative or even credible. The negative consequences of refusing to recognize the doctor's authority may very well be a heart attack, stroke and possibly death.
When it comes to recognizing the authority of experts I tend to be more critical , if not outright cynical. How often have experts stated one thing and months later reverse themselves or were found to be 100% wrong. How often have experts been found to be skewing the facts or to be lying outright? This has happened all to often on a variety of subjects.
I urge all of you to NOT blindly accept one's views as authoritative no matter how well credentialed they may be. I urge you to examine any claims by those who claim to be authorities.
Have a wonderful day!
You are quite right, we should always question. I do tend to be a follower of authority though, although I do question and think I generally do as I'm told.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you as well. I ask questions a lot and then decide what is best. I also pray about it.
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