On common sense and problems
Lately I was thinking about how many problems can be avoided, or solved, if one simply has common sense. I think most of the time that's all that's needed. I don't think it is always necessary to be the most virtuous person, or the one who always does what is right, no, I don't think so, that would be perfect, but most of the time I think the only thing that is necessary is to have common sense. For example, it is not necessary to go out and clean the street, the city, etc., but simply by cleaning up after yourself and not littering any more, I think that may be enough. Or you don't have to be the best driver, but I think it would be good to start by not crossing on red lights. It is not necessary to do what is right, but if we stop doing what is wrong, I think that is a great advance. By not being part of the problem, one is in fact part of the solution.
I think people often confuse the problem with the consequences of the problem, for example, pollution is not a problem, pollution is the consequence of the high levels of waste we are generating because of consumerism, so to end pollution really the focus should be on consumerism. But at the same time, consumerism is not the real problem; consumerism is an effect of the lifestyle we are leading, of the modern mentality. We consume for many reasons, for pleasure, for comfort, but also out of necessity. I believe that consumerism plays a role in the lives of modern people. The way of life we have is artificial, it can be very stressful, very uncertain, even very boring. Consumerism tries to fill a void and to satisfy some psychological needs in people. Without consumerism many people actually live like slaves. So the problem is much more complex, but it is always about the attitude of the individual. Fix the individual, fix the human, fix the lifestyle they have, their mentality, etc., and eventually you will fix the problem. Let's remember that society is just a bunch of individuals. One have to get away from those ideas that seek to change society as a whole before changing oneself, because behind that always hides a mentality reluctant to look inward and to work on its own defects.
However, not everyone is aware of this, I think we often have trouble recognizing the consequences of our own actions, especially when these consequences are not so immediate and obvious for us to perceive them directly. If we do something wrong and don't see the consequences of that wrong deed, many times we will continue to do it, and something that often happens is that that action does have consequences, only too subtle for us to realize. For example, lie a couple of times and you may think you can lie forever without anyone noticing, but what will probably happen is that people will stop trusting you. Eventually you will only be lying to yourself.
I have a belief, if you don't do what you shouldn't, you won't fear what will happen. Because again, I believe that many of the problems that society as a whole and individuals have, can be avoided and solved if we simply had a little more common sense and stopped doing what we should not do. It is not necessary to have a perfectly structured code of conduct, but simply to be able to follow that most basic and primary sense that human beings have. It is a simple thing, but apparently because of the state and condition of the world, not very easy.
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