I was recently surprised that my father didn't realize you could have locks re-keyed. His gardener accidentally took their hide-a-key rock and he was nervous in case it wasn't really an accident. He was going to buy all new locks for the 3 exterior doors on his fairly new house and pay a locksmith to install them. I helped him remove the mechanisms and sent him 2 blocks to the hardware store. My father used to be in real estate and considers himself to be very knowledgeable about all things. I was surprised.

Where I used to work, when people applied for public assistance we were required to ask if they wanted to register to vote. One woman told me no, because she heard if you were registered but didn't vote you would go to jail.

Most recent common sense snafu...it was really cold out one day and a guy I know didn't have on his jacket and was freezing and I said something about wearing a coat, he looks at his WATCH for the date and said something like "it's May the 20th". Wouldn't it be common sense to look at a thermometer or walk outside to see what the temp was? In Ohio, one day can be 70 and the next can be 40 and it makes no difference if it's May or June? This was a man that is 60 plus years old. From that day forward in my mind this man has NO COMMON SENSE. HA!

My husband had no idea where to go to buy slippers. At the very least, he could have thought about where we went to get them the LAST time he needed new ones. There is lack of common sense and lack of motivation to find any LOLOL!

Dances.

eld6161 sums up what I was thinking. Common sense tells me that a municipality or neighborhood would have rules and regulations and that it is my duty to know them. Many people use ignorance as an excuse .. "no one told me X.."

A different example of "common knowledge" I thought of is that (generally if not all the time) when sports scores are listed, the visiting team is listed first and the home team is listed last. When DH and I were first dating (20 some years ago), he was surprised to learn that. He played many sports in HS and has been a sports fan all his life. I grew up in a family that liked to watch and play sports so I considered that common knowledge.

Elmer, I would call your example of the handicapped parking permit used after the original holder had died either ignorance or selective knowledge (she just wanted to keep using it). Did she think she could keep using it forever?

I was having a conversation with a young man in his early 20's about horses. He said, "I like stallions." I thought that was a little odd, and I said "Stallions??". He said, " Those are the black ones, aren't they?"

"Did she think she could keep using it forever?"

Believe it or not, I think the answer to this question is yes. "They keep sending it". The person involved is perhaps the stupidest person I've ever known. The recurring moronic incidents she blunders her way into would take hours to talk about.

marilyn c, I know you're a horse person, but understand there are many people who aren't familiar with animal terms. I'm one of them, I have no clue what a stallion is or isn't.

A stallion is a male horse. There were books and movies about "the" black stallion but mares (female horses) and geldings (castrated male horses) can also be black....which is simply a color.

I have been puzzled by 'advice' articles in our Chicago Tribune that fall into this category of "Doesn't Everybody Already Know That?" The Business section advises people to show up at their offices on time, clean and neatly groomed; work well with others; accept correction. This is news? The Real Estate section reminds that paint is a cheap way to improve a room and that you need to get bids on projects from vetted and insured providers.

Our handyman was here yesterday. He also does general remodeling. He has a client who wants to put $90K into a new kitchen...in a $350K home in an old subdivision of similar-value homes. (I have to admit that I was once saved from a lesser over-improvement in a former home by a neighbor/realtor. "You'll never recoup the expense of that expensive tile in this neighborhood.")

An article about the near-total eclipse this August reminds people not to look directly at the sun. Who, over the age of five, doesn't KNOW that?

Do not drive or walk into traffic while texting. Oh, wait. Evidently that is news.

I agree Chisue. Many things in the newspaper (I am in the Tribune area as well) and on local TV news fall into the "dumbing down the news" category that you describe.

And looking on the street at many people - -yes, apparently, they need to be told these things!

I grew up on a farm where we had quite a variety of various farm animals, including a dairy herd of about 12 or 15 cows. All of my maternal aunts and uncles lived in a big city, where they had been born and raised, so visiting us was a very 'different' experience for them. I will never forget the time one of my aunts proudly announce she knew how to tell the difference between 'boy and girl cows'. The boy cows had horns and the girls didn't. I was only about 6 or 7 at that time, but my mouth dropped in surprise. I had thought that knowing the difference was common knowledge. And it was, to farmers and their families. But to city folk? Not so much!

I still shake my head when I hear people talk about "baby cows" or "baby horses".

Rusty

I had a conversation with a young woman, early 20s, She was furious that Starbucks had to be open Christmas Day. She actually thought it was a law. I told her it wasn't. She replied, well,people have to have their coffee! She was sitting in my kitchen drinking a cup made here!

I got to the early post about "non running cars" and HAD to skip to right here to post a true story. My uncle (rip) was a wonderful man, a little eccentric and beyond cheap/frugal. He was a bit of a "hoarder" of things that someday might be "valuable". He had a large property, bordering on woodsy. He had a collection of old, frankly JUNK cars that he was gonna "do something" with at some point. I'm sure that "Counting Cars" guy would have needed CPR if he had seen them. SOOO uncle gets a notice that every car/vehicle on his property HAD to be registered... $$$. He had some excavation equipment... dug a deep trench, pushe all those old cars in and buried them! NO LIE!!

On a completely different note... schools need to be less concerned with "common core" and more concerned with "common knowledge"! I'm sure district I work in is typical suburban school. The typical HS kid cannot measure (ounces/cups/gallons, feet/inches/miles), cannot tell time on a non-digital clock. Forget adding/subtracting time or measurements with any sort of "borrowing/carrying" involved. They cannot read a map, let alone have a clue about N S E or W.

I just think that there are a lot of very ignorant and/or stupid people out there :-) I don't consider myself to be of above average intelligence but I am well-educated and know enough to ask questions of someone more knowledgeable or - gasp - actually do the research myself if there is something I need an answer to!! But it has been my experience (and I deal a lot with the general public and see it constantly on these forums) that this sort of activity is beyond the comprehension of many. Which tends to confound me, as this IS the technology age and the information is there for the asking, if you apply yourself.

I agree with the previous comment about the quality of our educational system. Apparently it is extremely lacking or the vast majority of students sleep through all their classes, as they do manage to graduate without knowing the most basic of tasks and the most common of general knowledge. Not to mention that they can't put words together to make a complete sentence or write anything other than their name. It's a shame really, as how can we continue to compete successfully on the global stage when we are overall dumber than donkeys??

When someone sends an email to a group, but meant to send it to one
person... it's common sense to ignore it (or just forward onto the
person for whom it was meant).

Not for every person (1500+) to reply ALL "please remove me from this email". Because they cause a bigger problem. sigh (update: and this one is the worst offender "PLEASE REMOVE ME TOO...second request". Duh)

Rusty -- Have you seen my true story about the city boy who went to meet his fiancee's farm family? He dropped her off and parked his car in the farm yard, then came rushing in, panting. "As soon as I got out of the car the chickens all got up on their hind legs and rushed me."

The responsibility for educating children, and most especially including common knowledge and what's needed to be a functioning adult, rests with their parents. Schools can't and don't try to cover all the bases, parents need to be actively involved. It's an important responsibility of being a parent. And far too many parents are incompetent and failures at doing this, much as are schools often failures at doing their part.

Don't misunderstand, I think too many public school systems suck, big time, and I believe the damage done to society from these failings is far greater than the damage done to the individuals concerned. It's sad but many of the problems schools face stems from having to deal with issues parents DON'T deal with. Kids come to school daily unprepared and with too much baggage - addressing these problems pulls time and resources away from the true mission of schools, providing education in academic subjects.

"I just think that there are a lot of very ignorant and/or stupid people out there"

Yes. Yes. Yes. They're everywhere.

I am on the facebook gardening page for my state. Someone asked: Do I have to cut off the dead looking branches on my rose bush?

I was mean... and I said: Only if it bothers you.

:)

Then on second thought, I deleted my comment. I thought, why...

Moni

Oh, and about education... I told my grand kids about my proposed trip around the great lakes. We looked at a map, and they said: Omi, you don't have to send us many post cards from Canada.

Oh, yeah, I had told them I would send them a card from every state I will cycle in, and they are 6 and 7 years old.

Moni

HS kids, who know EVERYTHING, right, arguing with teacher about a US map that showed plant growing zones. One especially SA girl (put your hands on your hips and start waggling your head) says... WHY can't we grow XYZ here in NJ but they can in Alaska! Teacher and I gave each other the same HUH? look?? She repeated her statement, like it should have been chiseled in stone like the rest of the gems of wisdom that came out of HER head, and included why not in NJ but in Alaska AND Hawaii. She thought that little inset that's on maps so Alaska and Hawaii can even be visible in scale was where those 2 states really are on a map/globe?? And was arguing about it?!? I'm not an expert on US geography... know E, W, S, and most of N border but not all those "square" states in the middle without names. Not a pro at world geography but do know which CONTINENT to start on!

LOL, Chisue, no, I hadn't seen that. As for chickens, it's not uncommon for a rooster to attack, and some hens have been known to, also, especially if they have chicks. But on their 'hind legs'? ? ? Oh my!

Rusty

It is so sad that so many adults, young adults, teens,
pre-teens, and young children are uneducated/uninformed about simple things
that should be part of general knowledge everyone has: how to tell time with analog clocks, how to
determine North, South, East, West directions, how to determine and take and/or
make measurements, and how to do simple math.
To my way of thinking, this is a bad reflection on both parents and
teachers, as well as govenments for doing away with so many important teaching
requirements in our public education system.

Chisue and tackycat, the people who need to see those articles don't read a newspaper anyway!

And apparently they don't read signs, notices that come in the mail 3 times each year, or the little notices that the trash collectors put on their bins telling them what can and cannot be recycled.

When I realized that my DD had made it to junior high without learning to read a map, I sat down with her and made sure she got it (this was before all the apps and devices appeared). She was considered bright and in the enriched program, but it became increasingly obvious that what I thought were basic, early grade school skills were no longer taught. "Rote learning" was bad, so she "rote learned" her math facts at home. However, she knew all about the indigenous people of our area in 2nd grade. (Anyone else remember the Iowa Test of Basic Skills that we took every year in grade school? What would our test loathing parents and teachers think of that now?) ETA: by we I mean my age group -- over sixty, mostly, I guess. I don't know when they stopped.

Edited again: I just googled the Iowa tests, it seems that they are still in use but are different? than when I was in grade school. There are even "test prep" resources for parents and students! I don't recall any extra effort ever being put in in the classroom for these tests-- because they covered very basic, universal curriculum (and I do recall map reading as a part of the test!). Reading, basic computation per grade level, spelling, grammar etc.

I went to college with a girl who "cooked" SpaghettiOs the night before so she would only have to heat them up the next day for lunch.

Presumably because it has become complicated garbage people here mail a color illustrated leaflet every spring telling what to put where. And also when the trucks are coming. I display it on my refrigerator.

Electronics driven business activities and systems in particular can be hard to keep up with but usually there is somebody that can be asked for help with these, if needed. It is curious that at the same time small children are operating cell phones and computers there appear to be a lot of people that have no idea how to look for information anywhere. Other than using a cell phone or computer to ask somebody else what the answer or solution is.

Rusty, you would appreciate then how it sets my teeth on edge to hear someone say "boy cows". No....those are bulls or maybe steers (if castrated) but cows are females, and young cows are heifers.

I agree that often young children don't get as much input learning different things as they should. It is a shame. Time wasted because they are so eager to learn and will never again be able to learn so much so quickly. Too many parents leave it all up to the school. I often wonder how much worse it might be now, with almost everyone on the internet all the time...how many little children are being neglected because their mother is busy with Facebook?

I see kids with no 'parent time'. There's no parent at home often enough to simply model the everyday stuff. We pay teachers to teach. You can hire a nanny/caregiver. *Raising* kids is the parents' job, but many are missing in action -- work, sports, social jockeying, screen time -- all of them so much easier than this 'raising' thing!

I went into a hardware store and asked a worker where I could find a tarpaulin. She looked at me funny and responded I don't think we carry any of those. When I said I couldn't believe a hardware store didn't carry tarps, she said "Oh "tarp", aisle 14, what did you call it? I never heard that word before."

It is frustrating sometimes to interact with people who may not have the same full and rich vocabulary that we do, or have not had a good education. Unfortunately, not all people have the same I.Q. What is truly tragic is when someone takes pleasure in ridiculing them or behaving in a smug or superior way. That is what I find bothersome. I do hope that in my life that I am more of a person to help others and bite my tongue when feeling impatient.

We are given two ears and one mouth to remind us to listen twice as much as we speak.

Does anyone feel sad about how many uneducated people there are in this country? And then they are unscrupulously manipulated by some in power who know that getting people worked up with key words will get them the power they crave. Makes me want to cry.

"I went to college with a girl who "cooked" SpaghettiOs the night before so she would only have to heat them up the next day for lunch."

This is hilarious! Thanks for the laugh!!

sjerin, of course people who are undereducated and/or of lower SES get manipulated and used. By politicians of both parties, by people in power of all types, even by people in their own communities. This isn't anything new.

The society I want to live in should provide some kind of safety net for those of lesser means and for those who come upon hard times. At the same time, everyone first and foremost needs to do their best to accept responsibility for themselves and their families. For those who can but choose not to do that, I won't accept that the burden should fall on me.

You're contradicting yourself. Purpose of social safety net is to keep everyone from falling through cracks. A net with holes, through which people deemed unworthy are allowed to fall is not a social safety net.

Marilyn..cute story..my 9 year old was telling his brother about a huge bull elephant..the younger said an elephant can't be a bull because only cows are bulls..haha...the older explained bull means male... cow means female and that's how elephants are refered to along with whale, buffalo and lots of other animals. .the younger said well I still think only cows can be bulls...the older boy became frustrated..I laughed out loud. Than I thought omg I taught this child this...every time we go to town and pass the farms I say ..look at the cows regardless of their gender..

Yes, raee_gw, I remember the Iowa Test of Basic Skills!! I even still have some of my scoring reports!

I was telling DH about these tests, but he (a lifelong Missourian) could not comprehend . . . . . .

I'm not sure I understand why the whole "cow" thing is so complicated. Why does there have to be 20 different words to describe one species? If we are talking about dogs we don't have to call a female dog one name, a male dog another, a spayed female something else, a neutered male dog still another name and so on and so on and so on until your head explodes. Is it any wonder someone that didn't grow up in the country on a farm is confused? I usually just say cows or cattle if I see a herd. I'm not going to go through the entire list of age, sex, etc specific names to say "there's a herd of cattle" or "look at that cow". So what is the proper single word that names one "cow" if you have no idea how old, what sex, castrated or not etc? Is it cattle? Isn't that plural? Is it bovine? I'm more confused now than when I started this post...HAHA!

I once worked with a woman who asked me if she needed a passport to go to New Mexico.

Another very nice coworker immigrated from another country but had lived here 20 years....long enough to know better. She was very forthcoming with information about her finances. I knew what she made (school system salary schedule) and she told me what her husband made...less than her. They had two boys....one out of college and one in high school.

She pulled me aside panicked one day. It seems they had purchased a home in Florida some years before as an investment. They owned a home here as well. When the economy tanked the FL home went into short sale and now they were going to garnish her wages. Well, on their salaries they had no business purchasing a second home but were enticed by the pie in the sky loans banks were making back then. They ended up garnishing her wages $500 a paycheck for three years.

Then.....some siding guy knocks on her door one day and she signs a contract. She tells me about it the next day and I, as gently as I could, tried to explain that it's not a good idea to sign anything on the spot from a door to door salesman. She then read the fine print and realized it was a ripoff. She tried to get out of it, the company hassled her and eventually she had to go to court to get out of the contract.

She decided she wanted to spruce up her house....hardwood floors, redoing the fireplace, new furniture, etc. and she told me she was going to use her 401k to do it.....wince. She didn't know she'd be paying a penalty to withdraw the $.

After that, I just smiled and nodded when she talked to me about her financial situation.

------------------------

I also know someone who spends every dime she makes. She's in her mid fifties....no savings, no 401k, misses car payments, has bad credit. She got a small inheritance and I suggested she start a 401k or Ira but instead she bought two TV's and took a trip to Europe.

Yes, there are a lot of people with no common sense.

I remember the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills and also still have some of them. I went to Catholic school but the public school kids did not take them in our area.

I attended high school for a time in a country outside the US. There was a class known as "general paper" which had to do with common knowledge/common sense things. Some of the common local knowledge was way off the radar to me, so it was interesting. Maybe such a class wouldn't be such a bad thing.

I worked with a woman who was remodeling her bathroom. She had a small, octagonal shaped window in the bathtub/shower that she needed to replace. She wanted to replace it with a stained glass window but she told me she was worried about lead poisoning from the water bouncing off the window. I can only imagine what the contractor thought when she told him that.

That confused lady who wonders why there are so many names of cows would be even more confused if she was riding in my car in dairy country. She might hear, oh look, over their are Guernseys and in the next field I see Jerseys, and then in the next lot we see Milking Short Horns, Holsteins, and a lovely, gentle Brown Swiss.

Arkansas Girl, I was raised in a beach town in So. Cal. Married a dairy farmer in NY state. You better believe I had to learn all the different "cow" things fast!

Common sense would tell you that when you are in charge of a 1 1/2 ton (or more)weapon you should not use any device that could possibly compromise your complete control of that weapon, yet millions do it every day when driving.

Our minister of justice said the other day that driving while impaired was the top cause of death on the highways in our area.

Should I write her to suggest that I heard on the media (as in "radio" ... of our national variety) a while ago that driving while impaired is no longer the main cause of death on our highways ...

... (can anyone here spell "distracted")?

I think that the imparter of the imformation was a high-level cop.

ole joyfuelled

re: cow names - I was a city kid moved to dairy country. Learned all those terms, but the hardest to remember/figure out was Polled Herford vs heifer. And with horses, the difference between a colt and a foal, colt being kind of the generic term many use incorrectly for a foal.

That definitely wasn't the limit to my ignorance about country living, that's for sure, but the folks there were equally ignorant about some of the things those of us raised in the city were more familiar with. Usually it has nothing to do with brain power, just exposure.

One of my favorite stories about common sense is a cousin who married young, with no domestic skills at all (her mother did everything for her). I was visiting and her husband went to the kitchen to get us some refreshments. He call out, "Susie, why did you put the ice cube trays in the freezer without filling them with water?" She replied, "But we didn't NEED ice cubes." She's not lived that one down.

embothrium, there was no contradiction in what I said. I want to provide help to those who, because of circumstances and other reasons, try but fall short.

There was one particular group I had in mind. Maybe not in your area, but I often will see young adults of apparently normal mental and physical health and capability who choose to live lives as vagabonds. Doing nothing but pursuing a life of panhandling and resorting to petty theft is much easier than working and being accountable to others. Those who choose to do nothing shouldn't be covered by any safety net, as far as I'm concerned.

Animal names and types? Except for animal enthusiasts and farmers/ranchers, the remaining what, maybe 90+ percent of the population (like me) will never have need to know one type or name of a horse or cow versus another. I don't consider that learning to be either common sense or necessary.

Maybe the Ice Cube gal is not as stupid as you might think. Perhaps she was only storing the trays there and didn't want to be bothered with keeping ice cubes ( that they wouldn't use) fresh and not shrinking. The trays did not take up cabinet space that way. My refrigerator has an ice maker and we never use ice cubes. I wouldn't bother to fill trays either if I had them.

I don't have my ice maker hooked up. I should as we use lots of ice, I buy tg e bags, but I store 2 empty trays in the freezer as I than always know where they are.

Lukkiirish, I also think the spag'O story is sooo funny..I'm still laughing about it. My daughter eats these nasty things all the time, last night I told her if she's going to have any today I could open and cook them so they would be ready for today...she said MOM SERIOUSLY!!!

a college-educated young woman of my acquaintance baked a ham until it exploded; she didn't know one is supposed to remove it from the sealed can