The Demise of Common Sense

JLM
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#1
I read the following obituary this morning...........

Subject: An Obituary You Really Must Read




An Obituary printed in the London Times - Interesting and sadly rather true.

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 4 stepbrothers;
I Know My Rights
I Want It Now
Someone Else Is To Blame
I'm A Victim

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.
 
AnnaG
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#2
lol That's been around the net for a long time. Funny.
Common sense is still live and kicking.
Good sense seems to be on the endangered species list, though.
 
gerryh
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#3
This is OLD....I remember something similar if not the same when I was in my late teens/early twenty's..... and that would be around 30 years ago.
 
AnnaG
#4
Quote: Originally Posted by gerryhView Post

This is OLD....I remember something similar if not the same when I was in my late teens/early twenty's..... and that would be around 30 years ago.

You antique, you. lol
 
JLM
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#5
Quote: Originally Posted by AnnaGView Post

lol That's been around the net for a long time. Funny.
Common sense is still live and kicking.
Good sense seems to be on the endangered species list, though.

Oh, I guess it takes a while for us old hill billies to catch up.
 
AnnaG
#6
Quote: Originally Posted by JLMView Post

Oh, I guess it takes a while for us old hill billies to catch up.

lol I thought old hillbillies called it horse sense?
 
Checkmate444
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#7
Bravo!
I've never read this piece before, it really is quite good.
Thank you, JLM, for posting it for us to read.

Checkmate
 
barney
#8
I would have to disagree with the premise of the article: Common Sense has been dead for a very, very, very long time. Aside from a reflex action every now and then, Common Sense has been a rotting corpse since the days of Babylon.
 
gerryh
#9
Quote: Originally Posted by AnnaGView Post

You antique, you. lol

No.......... I'm JUST a furnace installer.
 
Niflmir
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#10
In my experience, common sense isn't very common and usually doesn't make much sense.
 
AnnaG
#11
Quote: Originally Posted by gerryhView Post

No.......... I'm JUST a furnace installer.

I know. And I like you anyway. lol
 
VanIsle
#12
Quote: Originally Posted by gerryhView Post

No.......... I'm JUST a furnace installer.

Well - I hope you are a lot better at it than the person who installed the one in the house I am just leaving. BTW - what is the name of the site you said that you could see your wife in the window in?
 
VanIsle
#13
Quote: Originally Posted by JLMView Post

Oh, I guess it takes a while for us old hill billies to catch up.

That's why you live on a hill JLM! LOL That was good. Haven't seen it in a few years. It's a good reminder. Sometimes common sense should dictate when it's time to back away from something instead of being a bit of a jerk to someone but all too often, not many people get that. Seriousness should be added to that list. People are also too serious too often and forget to laugh. Maybe we should take a lesson from Spade's 101 reasons about women and list 150 reasons to use common sense or just plain old "sense".
You are all packed and settled into your new home. So I now have a few min. to relax and then I need to pack up a few more boxes as we move into our new digs in 4 more sleeps!
 
jambo101
#14
Quote: Originally Posted by VanIsleView Post

what is the name of the site you said that you could see your wife in the window in?

Probably Google "Street View"
--
Last edited by jambo101; Oct 25th, 2009 at 05:37 AM..
 
VanIsle
#15
Thanks. When I get home tonight I will try that.
 
Cannuck
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#16
Common sense is still alive. What we have lost (or failed to teach) is proper problem solving techniques. It seems rather simple but most people don't know that the first step in problem solving is identifying the problem. We try to solve symptoms and when that fails we blame it on a lack of common sense.
 
barney
#17
I suppose there is a kind of bedrock common sense that keeps people from nuking the planet (and even that isn't certain) but generally speaking, common sense is pushing up daisies these days.

If by problem-solving you mean logic, then sure it would be great if problem solving skills were developed in early schooling to produce a rational population. But the problem is that the people who are in a position to make that happen have a very casual relationship with common sense. In other words, the solution to the problem is dependent on the problem...meaning this irrational bs will in all likelihood continue to god knows what end.
 
JLM
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#18
Quote: Originally Posted by CannuckView Post

Common sense is still alive. What we have lost (or failed to teach) is proper problem solving techniques. It seems rather simple but most people don't know that the first step in problem solving is identifying the problem. We try to solve symptoms and when that fails we blame it on a lack of common sense.

Good point there, Cannuck.......your astuteness is getting scary. One good example today is substance abuse, the substance is the result of the problem, not the cause. It's like trying to get a person to stop drinking water with no provision to take care of the thirst.
 

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