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I believe

It is not safe to let strangers in.

How do I ask people and find out if they have the same opinion as me?

  1. Is it safe to let strangers in?: It feels like to me that I have no opinion.
  2. Isn't it safe to let strangers in?: It feels like to me that I believe it is safe to let strangers in.
  3. Is it not safe to let strangers in?: Many resources [1][2][3] claim this form is merely a formal form of option 2.

Someone told me to say

Is it unsafe to let strangers in?

How about this one? Is "unsafe" equal to "not safe"? Can you rephrase the question using "not"?

  1. https://www.englishgrammar.org/negative-questions/
  2. Why do not we ask negative questions without a contraction on the not after the verb?
  3. "Do you not" vs. "Don't you"
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  • Question tags are helpful for this.
    – Cascabel_StandWithUkraine_
    Commented Nov 8, 2020 at 17:02
  • @Cascabel I know question tags if you are referring to "It is not safe to let strangers in, is it?" Is there a way to not directly state my opinion but hide it in a question?
    – Gqqnbig
    Commented Nov 8, 2020 at 17:04
  • 1
    Do you also feel it is not safe to let strangers in?
    – mplungjan
    Commented Nov 8, 2020 at 17:12
  • It isn’t safe to let strangers in, right?
    – Jim
    Commented Nov 8, 2020 at 17:19
  • 2
    I think this question is based on a false premise. None of OP's examples actually give any indication of whether the speaker thinks something is safe or not (the default assumption is He doesn't know - that's why he's asking). The way to convey the fact that you have a prior opinion in English is either by posing a "rhetorical" question, or by including a "tag" question: It's not safe, is it?, or It's safe, isn't it?
    – FumbleFingers
    Commented Nov 8, 2020 at 18:09

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