2001, Sofia, Bulgaria Chris Myrski
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Contents Of Section "For Journals"
Essay on the common sense
About the turn to the left
How much has to win a company in order to have
no
gain?
Our people again hoarded goods by higher prices
Too good is not good!
Are we free, or on the contrary?
Political gratitude
Neo-Malthusianism, or rational judgment
Myths about democracy
About the ownership and its future
Just
in
justice
In ovo e veritas
Oh, 'manci, 'manci -pation!
What we want to tell the world?
In Bulgaria everything is quiet
Political parties in Bulgaria
About the degradation of morality
Is it possible moderate communism in Bulgaria?
Essay on the common sense — II
... new for journals
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ESSAY ON THE COMMON SENSE
*
[ * This material is entirely different from the other things in the book and is left with retrospective purposes, but see also the P.S. at the end. ]
Relatively recently I heard one old anecdote, that the socialism was a "
victory of all progressive forces over the common sense
". Not absolutizing this questionable opinion one should not forget also the popular wisdom that in each joke there is some truth, so that let us try to find whether in this case, really, some truth exists.
The notion "common sense" usually is taken for primary and non definable. It means something deeply inherent to the human nature, instinct about reasonability when there are not enough data and methods provided for taking of the decision, motivation on the level of
not hampered by education
ordinary human individual, at the level of children's primitiveness of reasoning. If we want to be more exact we must add that this is definition of the author acquired on the basis of ... his common sense.
Each society, however, imposes layerings to this notion, creating in this way some norms of coexistence. As far as the interests of individual always enter, in one or another degree, in contradiction with the interests of society, it is possible that the needed
behaviour
of the average member of society contradicts to the common sense. When there are several strata, groups, or classes, under the term average member of the society must be understood the averaged value for each of these groups. Anyway, I don't intend to revise the historical materialism, I just want to say that the more exact the norms of behaviour for the greater part of society agree with the common sense, the more natural these people perform their duties to the society. Inasmuch as the main goal of each society (its ruling part) is to
preserve
(as long as possible) this society, and the common sense of each of its members is characterized with unavoidable egoistic trend, then the decision received on the path of least resistance is in this, the society to require norms of behaviour maximally close to the common sense of each individual.
1.
Let us begin with
simple examples: about the unnecessary prohibitions
.
We were used to seeing often enough in our country inscriptions like "No admittance" or "Show the pass without reminder" and similar examples, but this on places where this is not necessary. As far as everybody knows that the order is formal nobody respects it and does not require the passes (with exception of pair of days in the year, when there is the next "activity action" of some chief or other). Variation of this situation is when the main entry is guarded, but along with it there is some hole in the fence, which everybody can learn if he wishes. It is naturally, if something is forbidden, to know by whom, why, and what will be the consequences of not sticking to the order, but it is not at all always such the case in Bulgaria. The result is that that one, who includes in his moral codex the rule "the more impudent wins", he usually wins indeed.
Another variance can be seen in many of our apartment complexes. It is generally known that the footpaths, more often than not, are not made there, where the human flow is the biggest. Instead, though, to make them where they are needed, we put signs, set wire fences, or invite the general public to watch who goes through the lawns. The result, of course, is zero.
Similar is the situation also when in the corridors or foyer where the people usually smoke cigarettes, instead of to put metal baskets or take some other measures for preventing of fire, or for bettering of ventilation, they just put sign "No smoking". In the result people again smoke there, but extinguish the cigarettes on the floor or where only possible, increasing in this way the danger of fire and the pollution around.
Not much different is the situation with the mandatory examination sessions in the universities. It is invented a complicated system establishing when a given student can appear for the exam
