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You know what, I really like Facebook… it lets me keep in touch with friends and relatives and I can advertise my book for free. 🙂 It serves a purpose but lately I swear I’m getting dumber by the day reading it.
I don’t claim to be the smartest person in the world… hell not even the smartest person in the room. But I do believe I possess common sense. What is common sense? How does one cultivate or obtain common sense? Can it be taught? Is it in the genes?
I’ve seen incredibly brilliant book smart people who have no common sense at all. I have seen some people who are not so book smart have some good common sense, maybe not in all facets of life but ya’ know, whatevs. How is this? Is it all on the parents? Trial and error? IQ?
Well, here is my attempt to give a common sense tutorial.
I’ll start it out with some tough love…
If you believe everything you read on Facebook… YOU ARE A FUCKING MORON!
Sorry it had to be said. Consider it an intervention.
Even if it’s information on a cause you hold dear to your heart, don’t take things you read as gospel. Just because it is in a graphic made in Photoshop, doesn’t make it so. I’m really sad that some of my friends that I thought were pretty intelligent will re-post things with such gusto and fervor as a Bolshevik at the Revolution. You want it so badly to be true that you don’t even fact check.
I submit to the people, Exhibit A…
Click on the link and read the Snopes.com investigation results. Even if you hate Obama, really do you think this would happen? Well, yea you probably do… but that’s just dumb. Sorry.
I submit to the people Exhibit B…
Um, I think this would be reported by major news agencies if it were true. It has not. Unless you are a conspiracy theorist and believe that all news media are fakes and frauds and hiding the TRUTH. I’m sorry, I may lose friends but here goes…
I have worked in the media for years. I have been a reporter and a journalist. I still do something investigative work freelance style. I am not beholden to anyone. I research all angles and sides. I work with tons of people who are reporters, journalists, producers, news directors. There is no conspiracy to withhold the truth. Yes, from time to time people use language that may put a certain slant on things just like Fox News, just like MSNBC. But it’s just usually how the reporter views the story. I will admit though, that even in large news agencies there is a HUGE lack of fact checking in lieu of having an exclusive. The news cycle is immediate and 24 hours now, no time to check facts. Hence things like “40 people killed in house fire”, two hours later – ” no one killed in house fire, 4 people injured”. But you all re-Tweet the first headline don’t you?
But it doesn’t mean you have to be a fucking moronic mouth breather and believe everything you see and read! Take a deep breath and collect all the facts. Try to use common sense. (would a Nigeria prince really want me to help him hide his fortune… really?) Don’t re-Tweet or re-post a stupid ass graphic until you’ve looked it up. And if you still feel the need to re-post than well, I guess we don’t have much in common and I can’t help you to have rational thought. I love you all even if you do believe gullible is in the dictionary. 🙂
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