Common Sense is Dead!!!

[anyaka21]

An Obituary printed in the London Times.....Absolutely Dead Brilliant!!

Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, Common Sense, who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was, since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape. He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as:

- Knowing when to come in out of the rain;
- Why the early bird gets the worm;
- Life isn't always fair;
- And maybe it was my fault.

Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spend more than you can earn) and reliable strategies (adults, not children, are in charge).

His health began to deteriorate rapidly when well-intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place. Reports of a 6-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition.

Common Sense lost ground when parents attacked teachers for doing the job that they themselves had failed to do in disciplining their unruly children.

It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer sun lotion or an aspirin to a student; but could not inform parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion.

Common Sense lost the will to live as the churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims.

Common Sense took a beating when you couldn't defend yourself from a burglar in your own home and the burglar could sue you for assault.

Common Sense finally gave up the will to live, after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot. She spilled a little in her lap, and was promptly awarded a huge settlement.

Common Sense was preceded in death,
-by his parents, Truth and Trust,
-by his wife, Discretion,
-by his daughter, Responsibility,
-and by his son, Reason.

He is survived by his 5 stepbrothers;
- I Know My Rights
- I Want It Now
- Someone Else Is To Blame
- I'm A Victim
- Pay me for Doing Nothing

Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone.

If you still remember him, pass this on. If not, join the majority and do nothing.

[lucred]

So much is right with this... The only exception I would make is the woman that WON against McDonalds was the one that required 2 square feet of skin grafts because the lid had melted off the cup due to a severely malfunctioning coffee machine that the manager was too cheap to fix... I REALLY wish the media had bothered mentioning that part. Everything else here was spot on.

[Kasierith]

Common sense is the ignorant supposition that cultural knowledge is inherent knowledge, and is based on an absurd lack of sociological insight rather than intellectual prowess. There is no such thing as "common sense."

[Blueobelisk]

It's humorous but doesn't really make me laugh. Or smile. People are idiots, what do you expect?

[Kuntantee]

Common sense is the ignorant supposition that cultural knowledge is inherent knowledge, and is based on an absurd lack of sociological insight rather than intellectual prowess. There is no such thing as "common sense."

I think "common" in "common sense" is not on a cultural basis. Being sensible is an inherited trait of humans, thus, it's common.

[Felya]

It's humorous but doesn't really make me laugh. Or smile. People are idiots, what do you expect?

People are idiots. Thank god I'm a rabbit...

[Kasierith]

I think "common" in "common sense" is not on a cultural basis. Being sensible is an inherited trait of humans, thus, it's common.

And numerous sociological studies have demonstrated that what we see as "common sense" is 1) not very common, at all, and 2) subject to so many exceptions that they become nothing but empty platitudes that people hold on to thinking they actually mean something. When moving away from internet memes, common sense is derived from personal experiences, based on personal reflection and reaction according to what we individually comprehend of the world around us. It is extremely individual based, and just so happens to have some societal correlation based on shared experiences (ie people who live in the desert have some shared "common sense" about surviving in the desert).

People are idiots. Thank god I'm a rabbit...

The fuzzy kind of rabbit, or this kind of rabbit? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pi133lOVoLY

[Pull My Finger]

Meh, I don't like these enraged citizen diatribes. MMO-C OT is also full of them. The rage of the peasant and the moral superiority of the petit bourgeois.

[Garnier Fructis]

Good. Common sense is full of shit.

Invoking common sense says to me that the person just doesn't want to engage in a little critical thinking.

And besides, it's not even common. How can you call something common when everyone has a different idea of what constitutes common sense?

[Gheld]

Common sense is constantly dying. Because most people have the COMMON SENSE to adjust their behaviours based on the best and most recent available evidence rather than what is passed down to them.

Yes, dumb shit happens every day, nearly all of it isolated incidents, but most of "divergence" from common sense is more about the evolution of the collective human knowledge based on empiricism.

Not 30 years ago it was common sense that homosexuals were sexually depraved lunatics that would give you aids if you hung out with them.
Not 100 years ago it was common sense that if you couldn't get your baby to go to sleep you just give them a little bit of whiskey (because it works for adults too, duh).

Should women be allowed to vote? Duh, of course not. Their brains don't grasp the subtleties of politics, just ask any phrenologist.

[Foosha]

While I see where people get mixed up, the hot coffee lawsuit wasn't frivolous in any means. It was too hot, at 88 to 90 degrees Celsius, causes severe burns if spilled. Most coffee is somewhere between 71 degrees celsius (185ish F to 160ish F).

[Kasierith]

Good. Common sense is full of shit.

Invoking common sense says to me that the person just doesn't want to engage in a little critical thinking.

And besides, it's not even common. How can you call something common when everyone has a different idea of what constitutes common sense?

On top of that, even if common sense were a thing where common sense = the tyranny of the masses in logical processes, where it is a representation of the perspective of the majority... wouldn't the population moving away from old viewpoints mean that common sense is now these new perspectives? A concept that is inherently dependent on a transient process, by its own nature, cannot "die," and thus all the things the OP is unhappy about as being the death of common sense would, in all actuality, be the new version of common sense.

[Julian Rayne]

In my day we common sense'd twenty miles in the snow uphill both ways.

That orbit is stupid.

[eja216]

FW: FW: FW: FW: Soooooo Funny!!1 Love, Grandma. PS. You won't BELIEVE what he said next!

[Itisamuh]

On top of that, even if common sense were a thing where common sense = the tyranny of the masses in logical processes, where it is a representation of the perspective of the majority... wouldn't the population moving away from old viewpoints mean that common sense is now these new perspectives? A concept that is inherently dependent on a transient process, by its own nature, cannot "die," and thus all the things the OP is unhappy about as being the death of common sense would, in all actuality, be the new version of common sense.

You might be right from a philosophical standpoint, but none of the specific examples he gave could possibly be viewed as a sensible improvement. Common sense might simply be the wrong terminology here, but either way his point stands that society is getting pretty pathetic.

[Kasierith]

To further illustrate how common sense, which is essentially flawed syllogistic logic, is inherently flawed,, here's a little puzzle that I noted recently.

You are drifting downstream on a river as wide as the Mississippi. Your sails are down; you are just floating on the 6 mph current, watching the far shore leisurely pass you by. Suddenly there's a cry of alarm. One of your guests has realized you're out of cold beer, and the nearest store is 20 miles downstream!

Assuming the local weather report accurately states that there is zero wind, would you be wise to try hoisting your sails and trying to sail? Why or why not?

Now "common sense" would be fairly clear in this. Converting to syllogistic form:
Premise A: Sails require wind in order to blow
Premise B: There is no wind right now, assuming the report is perfectly accurate.
Conclusion: Sails would provide no benefit in this situation.

Is this actually the case, though?

- - - Updated - - -

You might be right from a philosophical standpoint, but none of the specific examples he gave could possibly be viewed as a sensible improvement. Common sense might simply be the wrong terminology here, but either way his point stands that society is getting pretty pathetic.

The "examples" he gave were essentially based on ignorance and generational bias. Trying to say that the preceding generations did not exhibit these characteristics is extremely silly; they most definitely did. In addition, things like "Pay me for Doing Nothing" are based on a fundamental ignorance of socialistic principles. There's a difference between a full and comprehensive understanding of modern principles of government leading to the conclusion that a society geared more towards socialism than capitalism is not as good, and simply ignoring how socialism works and what it brings to a society, especially in terms of macroeconomics. And the fact that a good number of European nations are both more socialist than the US, and yet progressing much better in comparison to their current positions (as opposed to the US which has been relatively stagnating in the past decade or so, especially compared to its booms in the last 20th century) is essentially a real life case study as to how socialist principles can strongly benefit a society.

[Foosha]

-snip-

Spinned a common sense thread into a socialism/US vs EU thread. Nice one moderator, surprised me with that spin there. This board never fails to amaze me

[Kasierith]

Spinned a common sense thread into a socialism/US vs EU thread. Nice one moderator, surprised me with that spin there. This board never fails to amaze me

I would suggest you actually read my post thoroughly if you are under this assumption, rather than simply seeing a few key words and immediately jumping to conclusions based on preexisting biases.

[Deleted]

Well my experience with humanity is that common sense is actually growing, I have good hopes for the future of our race when I observe everyday interactions and when I see how people treat each other.

And then I visit this forum, wich is basicly the dark place of unspoken toughts that the human mind puts forth.

[Independent voter]

While I see where people get mixed up, the hot coffee lawsuit wasn't frivolous in any means. It was too hot, at 88 to 90 degrees Celsius, causes severe burns if spilled. Most coffee is somewhere between 71 degrees celsius (185ish F to 160ish F).

McDonalds required the franchiser to keep the coffee at 180F. Now they've lowered it but it's still hot. It is a frivolous case won by aggressive lawyers who picked the right jury, the defense didn't know what they were doing. There are literally dozens of things you have in your house that will injure you if used improperly, should you be awarded money each time you cut yourself on a carving knife or burn yourself with a clothes iron?