Need some advice?

Matt Walsh writes,

We are a society short on wisdom but flush with advice. We’ve got a scarcity of knowledge and understanding, but a surplus of “this is how you should do it” opinions. I recently went to a bookstore looking for a particular book by a theologian named Dietrich von Hildebrand. Much to my surprise, the store didn’t have a theology section — but it did have five rows of advice and “self-help” books. As a matter of fact, it didn’t have any shelves dedicated to astronomy or poetry or philosophy, either. But it had advice. Lots and lots of advice.

The only advice I will give is this: be careful whose advice you heed. Just because somebody is a parent doesn’t mean they have any business teaching a class on the subject. Similarly, just because you own a car doesn’t mean I should necessarily ask you how to fix my transmission. You don’t have to be a mechanic to simply acquire an automobile, and you don’t have to be a competent parent to reproduce. Personally, in whatever arena of my life — parenting, broadcasting, blogging — I’ve found a very select group of seasoned individuals, whose talents, experience and authority in these fields I respect, and I’ve intently listened to (but not necessarily followed) their guidance and instruction. To everyone else I give a polite nod, and then promptly ignore everything they say.