It isn’t Intelligence, it is Common Sense

Common Sense is the ability to see a situation, to weigh the alternatives, and come to the most rational decision.  It doesn’t matter if one has more degrees than a thermometer or can not read, common sense is not taught, and probably can’t be learned.

I will give you an easy example.

Kris, whom I’ve mentioned before, spends hours on Facebook.  He is always posting.  It isn’t that he’s networking articles posted on paying sites, or even sharing important bits.   He is writing short ‘articles’ on topics which could be long and interesting.

Each day, he posts thirty or more of his observations.

Suggesting he write for this site or Mylot, which would swallow his short posts and give him a few cents, he replies the he ‘doesn’t have time.’

Now you have to pull back from the computer screen when you read that, because if he stayed off of Facebook and posted on Mylot he’d be making money and getting attention.

If he were someone who had to take off his shoes to count over ten you would shrug, but he is quite intelligent.

What is the problem?   A complete lack of common sense.

If you read his posts,  you’ll see a bit of ‘gap’ between comprehending and extrapolation.   By this I mean,  you see a balloon.   It is fully blown.  You are aware that there is some ‘air’ inside of it which is why it is inflated.  You see that it is light, but not enough to float to the ceiling.  So it must be filled with the same kind of air that is around it.

You can understand that if it had ‘lighter’ air, like helium, it would float to the ceiling.  If it had ‘heavier’ air,  like carbon dioxide, it would sink to the floor.   You don’t need the words, you don’t need to know the names of the gases, you see the balloon and, if you have common sense, the reality of what is inside of the balloon seems obvious.  That is because you see, and you comprehend what you see.   And you can imagine what would happen if a lighter or heavier gas was inserted.

People like Kris will see the balloon and not be able to grasp these simple facts.

He does not recognise the time he wastes, for what he puts on Facebook is a total waste, if he posted here or on Mylot he would get a few cents.

The other day I was at Seekyt.com, cracking up.  Why?  Because Seekyt does NOT pay writers AND takes their copyright.  It says so right there in the Terms of Service.   So if you write a brilliant piece, post it there, then want to take it back, YOU CAN’T.   You have lost your copyright.

Now how can any one who is capable of writing an article of some sense, not have read the Terms of Service, not have considered posting on a pay site?

A lack of common sense.