Khaberni - History narrates that the famous Greek painter Apelles once displayed one of his paintings publicly to gauge people's reactions. A cobbler approached, pointing out a mistake in the depiction of a sole, to which the painter agreed, correcting it with appreciation for the cobbler's precision. However, emboldened by his accurate critique on a small detail, the cobbler proceeded to criticize the entire painting, prompting Apelles to retort with his now timeless phrase:
"O Cobbler, do not exceed the limits of the sole."
That phrase was a powerful lesson in knowing one's limits in knowledge and respecting others’ fields. Were Apelles among us today, he would likely repeat it, though not to a cobbler this time, but to the many 'know-it-alls' who speak on everything: politics, economics, religion, society, even medicine and space! They leave no subject unexplored with the confidence of the ignorant and the ignorance of the confident.
Our Arab scene has filled with voices that analyze, issue decrees, and critique without knowledge or specialization, turning chaos of opinion into a barrier against the voice of truth. Those who confuse knowledge with impression, and experience with emotion, have contributed to distorting public awareness and confusing the national scene.
Indeed, criticism is a legitimate right, indeed a necessity to correct the course, but it requires it to come from knowledge and responsibility, not from a desire to appear or show off understanding. As our ancestors said: "Give the bread to the baker even if he eats half of it," because expertise lends weight to opinion, and ignorance strips it of meaning.
Managing a state, just like the art of painting, requires an expert eye that knows shadow from light, and understands when to hold the brush and when to leave it. When the voice of the expert is mingled with that of the ignorant, features are lost, and the painting is disfigured.
Let us then reclaim the wisdom of the painter Apelles in an era filled with speakers and lacking in specialists.
And let our enduring motto be: Criticism is a responsibility, knowledge is a trust, and bread is only baked by a baker.
