What has happened to common sense?

12 years ago

Like mah Granpappy used to say...

"I don't know why they call it Common Sense, cause if it was so Common, everybody'd have it! :rolleyes:

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MissTerraK

12 years ago

I understand that not everybody has always had it. That's not the issue.

The issue is why more and more people don't have it lately.

It used to be that a few simpletons here and there didn't have it, the minority in other words. But now it seems the majority don't posses it.

Why do you think that is?

Terra

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HeySal

12 years ago

Originally Posted by MissTerraK

I understand that not everybody has always had it. That's not the issue.

The issue is why more and more people don't have it lately.

It used to be that a few simpletons here and there didn't have it, the minority in other words. But now it seems the majority don't posses it.

Why do you think that is?

Terra

I don't think that's really true, Terra. IF it were, our country (and the world) wouldn't be in the mess it's in. The word "common" didn't mean "most people" -- it meant the type of intelligence you can't be taught in schools.

The only reason it seems more lacking than it always was is that those without any are able to more widely spread their idiocy.

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MissTerraK

12 years ago

Originally Posted by HeySal

I don't think that's really true, Terra. IF it were, our country (and the world) wouldn't be in the mess it's in. The word "common" didn't mean "most people" -- it meant the type of intelligence you can't be taught in schools.

The only reason it seems more lacking than it always was is that those without any are able to more widely spread their idiocy.

True, I do remember people saying You may be book smart, but you have no common sense whenever we visited down South.

It just makes me wonder if common sense doesn't actually stem from an inherited gene that unfortunately has also been destroyed by the toxins continually dumped into our environment and food sources.

Hmmm...

Now where did I put my tinfoil hat.

:p

Terra

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Steven Wagenheim

12 years ago

There are varying degrees of common sense Terra.

For example, to most people, it's common sense not to stick your hand into a
burning fire on a stove.

However, for everybody who is looking for some kind of "bargain" that to many
may seem to good to be true, such as buying a second hand car from Shady
Joe's for $10 an expecting it to run like a new Buick, that's more subtle. Maybe
they think they'll get lucky or that the cost of fixing the car, over the long haul,
will be less than buying a new car, not taking into account the cost of the
inconvenience of having a car that breaks down on you all the time, forcing
you to miss work, appointments, and who knows what else, and ultimately end
up costing you a lot more (maybe even your job) in the long run.

In other words, with some things, one person's "common sense" is another
person's "I really thought this was a good idea" and who is to say which is
which.

We're not all born with the same intelligence. And with things that are
borderline "sensible" some people will get it and others will have to learn from
experience.

A great example is people first looking to make money from home.

They see an ad that says "Guaranteed Income."

How are they supposed to know that this is bogus when they come from a
world where they worked a job and DID have a guaranteed income for doing
that job?

This is particularly true for younger people who have to learn from their
mistakes.

So I guess in a way I'm defending people who, to us, make bad choices that
appear to be from a lack of common sense, because the line is blurred when
it comes to things that really ARE common sense.

Because even that 5 year old has to stick his hand into the fire at least once
before he figures out that fire burns like hell.

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MissTerraK

12 years ago

Steve,

So are you saying that common sense is measured by degree of need or desperation?

Terra

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Daniel Evans

12 years ago

Naivety and lack of common sense is an entertaining cocktail.

Several years ago, a not so street savvy friend of mine plucked up the courage to don his newly purchased rollerblades to go skating up a not so upper class area of the neighbourhood.

Upon skating a car passed and a lad stuck his head out of the window to shout "Oii! Skaterboy!!".

My friend asked me "Do you think he was taking the piss or just telling me what I was doing?"

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MoneyMagnetMagnate

12 years ago

Originally Posted by Daniel Evans

Naivety and lack of common sense is an entertaining cocktail.

Several years ago, a not so street savvy friend of mine plucked up the courage to don his newly purchased rollerblades to go skating up a not so upper class area of the neighbourhood.

Upon skating a car passed and a lad stuck his head out of the window to shout "Oii! Skaterboy!!".

My friend asked me "Do you think he was taking the piss or just telling me what I was doing?"

This reminded me of a lawsuit going on right now in Berkeley, Ca., where a website is being sued for negligence and encouraging recklessness, because it posted the lowest times it takes to go down a hill in a park on a racing bike there...

The 'High score' was bested, and in trying to retrieve the best time, the cyclist lost it on a corner, and crashed into a car coming up the road, and killed.

My first thought at this was (other that he knew it was dangerous) 'if you have a website dedicated to unsanctioned racing (of anything) wouldn't you have a disclaimer to protect yourself from this kind of action?

I looked after reading the story, but did not find anywhere where he did - big mistake - he is now being sued for being negligent in protecting his negligence against the negligent...

Found the link...
Flint's family is suing San Francisco-based Strava -- a company that hosts virtual races and rewards winners who use a GPS system to track their own time and that of competitors.
http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?sec...rld&id=8706844

It is a slippery case...do you think the fact that they encourage racing is negligent? Or is it the responsibility of the Racer?

It could certainly be argued that it is, and was 'contributory negligence'...

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Steven Wagenheim 12 years ago

Originally Posted by MissTerraK

Steve,

So are you saying that common sense is measured by degree of need or desperation?

Terra

That's part of it. Another part of it is simply, some people don't give a ****.
They'll do whatever, regardless of the possible consequences, even if they know
what they are.

This has nothing to do with common sense. It has more to do with the arrogance
that some people have that makes them believe that they're indestructible and
that anything they do, they can get away with.

So, like the kid who is being picked on by a bully who then turns around and
taunts him and eggs him on even though the bully is 6 feet 2, 200 pounds
and the kid getting picked on who's 5 foot nothing and 110 soaking wet,
doesn't care or think about getting his ass kicked. He just wants to piss this
bully off as much as possible just to see his blood pressure go through the
roof.

It's not logical and it's nowhere near common sense, but it makes some
people feel good because of the particular situation.

Like telling a boss you've worked for, for 15 years to go **** himself because
he's been a total dick and you can't take it anymore, even though you know
you have no skills and are totally unemployable anywhere else. You just don't
care at this point. You just want the satisfaction of telling this SOB where to
go.

In short...sometimes common sense doesn't matter because the greater
need is to do the thing that you want to do, regardless.

I quit my one job knowing I was unemployable but it didn't matter because
I couldn't take it anymore. It didn't make sense. It was a totally stupid
and irresponsible thing to do with a family to support, but I did it anyway.

Turned out to be the best thing I ever did with my professional life, but I
didn't know it at the time.

Truth is, few "common sense things" like putting your hand into an open
flame are cut and dried.

Some of them walk a fine line between common sense and insanity and you
really can't judge that person's actions until you've walked a mile in their
shoes.

Something to think about anyway.
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MoneyMagnetMagnate

12 years ago

Well...maybe it's not that they don't HAVE it...they just don't USE it - like the bread-maker we get for X-mas, or the exercise machine in the corner...you know...the one your jacket is hanging on...:rolleyes:

Or it might be that they are afraid to use it - like the tag on the mattress no one ever removes, because it says "do not remove under penalty of law" :p

So they expect the law to cover them if they were the stupid - "Well NOBODY TOLD ME my eyeballs would pop if I stuck my head in a microwave to see what would happen!!!"

:rolleyes:

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MissTerraK

12 years ago

Originally Posted by MoneyMagnetMagnate

Well...maybe it's not that they don't HAVE it...they just don't USE it - like the bread-maker we get for X-mas, or the exercise machine in the corner...you know...the one your jacket is hanging on...:rolleyes:

Or it might be that they are afraid to use it - like the tag on the mattress no one ever removes, because it says "do not remove under penalty of law" :p

So they expect the law to cover them if they were the stupid - "Well NOBODY TOLD ME my eyeballs would pop if I stuck my head in a microwave to see what would happen!!!"

:rolleyes:

I think you're on to something there, 3M.

Thank you.

Terra

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sloanjim

12 years ago

and what makes you say "not as used today as it was in the past?" How far in the past? By whom? When......????

"how long is piece of string?"

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MissTerraK

12 years ago

Originally Posted by sloanjim

"how long is piece of string?"

No longer or shorter than the length you cut from the ball, the spool, the knot, etc. Duh!

That's just common sense!

Terra

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MoneyMagnetMagnate

12 years ago

Originally Posted by MissTerraK

No longer or shorter than the length you cut from the ball, the spool, the knot, etc. Duh!

That's just common sense!

Terra

Aha! But how strong is that string? It says "strong string" on the package...but is it strong enough to lower Aunt Zeldas' Grand Piano from the 4th floor?

(let's try it...what do we have to lose?)

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MissTerraK

12 years ago

Originally Posted by MoneyMagnetMagnate

Aha! But how strong is that string? It says "strong string" on the package...but is it strong enough to lower Aunt Zeldas' Grand Piano from the 4th floor?

(let's try it...what do we have to lose?)

Of course it isn't, if it were, it would be called rope.

Uh, not only Aunt Zelda's grand Piano, but any amount of innocent bystanders who were in the wrong place at the wrong time beneath Aunt Zelda's window.

Well that and our reputation for using common sense.

Terra

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whateverpedia

12 years ago

Originally Posted by MissTerraK

Why isn't common sense common anymore? :confused::confused:

Terra

Was it ever common?

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TLTheLiberator

12 years ago

I think we have many more opportunities ( to say the least ) to see the lack of common sense in action so many people tend to think that there is a shortage of it - as compared to the past.

I'm not so sure there is.

All The Best!!

TL

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Dennis Gaskill

12 years ago

What is common sense but a response to our understanding of reality?

Reality is different for everyone. What happens "out there" is filtered through our emotions, beliefs, mental programming, experiences, biases, and many other factors, including our health.

There are about 7 billion people on this planet, and the same number of realities. Perhaps what we perceive as a lack of common sense in others is nothing more our lack of understanding in someone else's personal reality.

Nah...

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Halcyon

12 years ago

I agree that the particulars of common sense are relative. While I consider myself pretty bright, to a Bushman hunter I'd probably seem like the dumbest women alive. Why even a baby Bushman knows not to put arrow in there

So I think common sense is more about learning from the signs/lessons that are in front of you and taking heed or making adjustments as needed. As my aunt always says: " A Mack truck ain't supposed to hit you if you see it coming!"

Unfortunately, many folks will see the truck, know it's a truck, understand that trucks run people over - yet stand there and wonder how they got run over.

That's lack of common sense in my book.

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Kurt

12 years ago

A big part of it is that we are much more driven by emotions, instead of intellect, than we admit. All of us make decisions based on emotion, then use intellect to justify our emotional decisions.

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KimW

12 years ago

In today's society it is an oxymoron.

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MissTerraK

12 years ago

Originally Posted by KimW

In today's society it is an oxymoron.

With the emphasis on moron?

Terra

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MissTerraK

12 years ago

I found this on organicMD (dot) org

Common sense means paying attention to the obvious. This is not as easy as it sounds. We all have vivid imaginations, and we tend to get lost in our fantasies.

When fantasy replaces common sense, life becomes farcical and even tragic. Life is a series of ordinary events that follow the laws of logic and probability. These ordinary events are indifferent to our fantasies and require the careful, accurate navigation of common sense.

I learned the lesson of common sense as a third-year medical student. I was doing an internal medicine rotation at a Veterans Affairs (VA) hospital and working with interns, residents, and attending physicians.

One day, on morning rounds, we examined a patient with a black tongue. The intern assigned to that patient had researched all the causes of a black tongue and was eager to demonstrate his new knowledge. As the intern started to lecture us, the attending physician interrupted him and asked the patient if he uses black cough drops. The patient smiled, opened the drawer of his night table, and took out a package of Smith Brothers black cough drops.

The intern's face turned red, and we all laughed. The intern was so focused on being a doctor, that he forgot to ask his patient an obvious question. It's been over forty years since I was a third-year medical student, but I still have a vivid memory of that day and that lesson: use common sense and pay attention to the obvious.

My forty years of medical practice have taught me the lesson of common sense again and again. Eventually, I realized that society in general, and modern medicine in particular, lack common sense.

I like it!

Terra

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Halcyon

12 years ago

It is a slippery case...do you think the fact that they encourage racing is negligent? Or is it the responsibility of the Racer?

It could certainly be argued that it is, and was 'contributory negligence'...

Even if he posted the disclaimer there is a good chance that he would've been sued. It's hard for people to accept that their deceased loved one was a moron and will look for someone to blame. It's a quirk of human nature to protect our family reputations.

In my opinion, it's definitely the fault of the racer, he was 41 years old.

Even kids know that racing downhill is dangerous. I have a 2in scar on my right thigh from racing down a hill on a 10 speed when I was 17. I knew it was dangerous but I didn't care, I wanted to feel the wind and I did when I flew over the handle bars and into the bushes.

Had I missed the bushes and died, someone would've peeled me off the pavement and called me an idiot. My parents would've cried and then called me an idiot and that would've been the end of me and the story.

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MoneyMagnetMagnate

12 years ago

Originally Posted by Halcyon

Even if he posted the disclaimer there is a good chance that he would've been sued. It's hard for people to accept that their deceased loved one was a moron and will look for someone to blame. It's a quirk of human nature to protect our family reputations.

In my opinion, it's definitely the fault of the racer, he was 41 years old.

Even kids know that racing downhill is dangerous. I have a 2in scar on my right thigh from racing down a hill on a 10 speed when I was 17. I knew it was dangerous but I didn't care, I wanted to feel the wind and I did when I flew over the handle bars and into the bushes.

Had I missed the bushes and died, someone would've peeled me off the pavement and called me an idiot. My parents would've cried and then called me an idiot and that would've been the end of me and the story.

Exactly - I had a great friend who I grew up and went to school with - he was the guy who always was a risk taker...always went for broke, always testing the limits - always won. He also took some really crazy risks in his life...

He used to live just off a hairpin corner, and he drove a Triumph TR6...you can guess the rest of the story - He often saw how fast he could take that corner...anyway, one night, he missed the curve.

He left behind a successful business and a beautiful wife - at his wake, another friend raised a glass and said what a "sad accident" it was...I said "BS" - you knew Mac as well as I did - you knew he just took one risk too many - that's the way he was. He took the risk, and he screwed up. Am I mad he did? Sure - mad as hell, but I'm not going to cry boo-hoo about any "accident"...he made the accident happen - that was Mac. He was just reckless once too many...oops. They all reluctantly had to agree.

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What has happened to common sense?

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