the Brain drain

The league of Common sense has been living on Facebook for the last few years. But when there is something to say, it has come back to base.

I meet many people in the course of my work. And as an author I ask them one simple question.
Do you read?
the answer is 6 out of 10 NO.

No time is the one that crops up quite often, but the biggest factor and answer is that I can't read.
This is not a joke. The people I meet are from all walks of life, various socio-econonic groups and ages and yet Australian education has let them down. Or they have failed to grasp the basics that the education has offered them.
 Although I have encountered some in the older demographic that can't read,
it is always said with a longing of what might have been. The younger generation say it with a laugh and a giggle.
What is missing? What has happened to the education system that we are producing illiterate people who don't seem to care that they go through life without the knowledge to read and process what they read, for comprehension is part and parcel of that knowledge.

I am surprised at the number of people that don't, can't, read. I see it and hear it all the time. And there is not one ounce of shame attached to the pronouncement. The world revolved around reading, texting, tweeting, Facebooking. How can one navigate life without the basic knowledge. It is through pictures. U tube, snapchat, instagram, etc. Now the manufacturers have put out instructions without words...just pictures in simple format for the new generation.

.Perhaps it is the 'everyone's a winner' school programme. You get a star for just showing up.
I know my own grandchildren get a ribbon for participation in sports day. Where is the striving to be first when you know you will get a reward for eating your lunch.

The illiterate generation is spreading to their offspring. Fidget spinners hold more of the allure than a book. How can it be that kids will spin a toy than try to achieve something. ..anything. Of course the latest fad has always been available. We had click clack balls, but there was a level of skill involved in them, as with yo-yos, kites, knucklebones, marbles etc. Where is the problem solving, the skill involved with a fidget spinner.
Is this level of unintelligent behaviour a ploy to keep the population happy and ignorant.
Where is the thought process. Where is the passion, the life, the seeking of knowledge?

Reading is something that sets us apart. It gives us ideas, spreads information and makes us question. Without the basics, the population can and will be spoon fed any idea and it will be accepted as a truth. Life's subtleties will be hidden from view.
The world is flat and we will all fall off if something isn't done to fix the problem.

Research on bras and the lack of...

It seems in this research article
Fifteen years of research reached an uplifting conclusion last week for French scientist Professor Jean-Denis Rouillon, a man who has positioned himself as an expert in the perkiness of the female breast. 

read 

Jean Hannah Edelstein take on the research HERE

The League of Common sense only has one thing to say.
What would a man really know about wearing a bra?

I know the research is about the level of droop sans bra over the years, but honestly, for someone who has breastfed for over  40 months...thats over 3 years, the droop is inevitable.

Surely they could find something more edifying to research...or is it just a man thing?

Dog sense

It seems dogs don't have a lot of smarts sometimes.

Where I live there is a gate with bars and this swings into a larger gate so when they are both operating you can pull something wide down the dock.
Most of the time people just push the green button to use the smaller side or swipe the key. The door is sprung to close.
this morning a woman with a dog swiped to come in, but the dog slipped through the bars first. Not a problem.
She walked thru and the dog went back outside thru the gate. The gate shut.
woman on the inside/dog on the outside.
So she opened the gate and went out to get him and coax  him in and he went through the bars again.
dog on the inside/woman on the outside.
she swiped her key to  get in and ...the dog went on the outside.
dog on the outside/woman on the inside.

It was getting ridiculous. So as pack master the woman opened the gate and ran after the pet, scooped him up and carried him inside.
He looked at her like
What is all the fuss about.

the business plan

I like bikes. So when I see a bike shop I usually go in and have a look. And this is what I did at a local bike shop.

And this is the tale the proprietor told me.

She has a new folding bike for sale at $250.00. That is a good price for an alloy bike 6 gears.

I  paid 500.00  So I said to the owner who is a bright young woman...

"How can you sell them so cheap"

Well...it seems Supercheap auto have a folding bike for 149.00 and she just can't compete and so has to sell her $500 stock for half price. Now her quality is superior but market forces what they are ...well you get the picture.

It is a shame. Perhaps we as consumers should support the small business. Quality over price? Its a hard ask, but common sense.

Perception is everything

Picture this.

At the local shopping centre there is Coles and there is a small independent green grocer. The Green Grocer doesn't sell much in the way of variety. The produce is in  baskets and of the fill a bag variety. Carrots for $2.00. Potatoes for $2.00 etc
It boasts local.

Now what do I see, but the proprietor of the Green grocers coming out of Coles with bags of shopping and in the bags were carrots @ $1.20 a bag.

Even is she wasn't going to do a swifty and sell them at a profit it is not a good look. I commented as much and a passer-by remarked on the same line.
Is this just another example of gouging the Australian public?

Common sense says you would do it after 5pm when your own shop is closed....if nothing else to allay any suspicions.

Getting the instructions right DIY

I just purchased a wet and dry vacuum cleaner.

So the instructions read.

When using the appliance, make sure that no hair, clothing or members are drawn in.
?  Is there a secret club I don't know about. Vacuum suckers united.

Do not use in a damp environment.
?
But is for sucking up water. How can I comply

Make sure the appliance is not plugged into the power mains.
What the?

Wear protective clothing and gloves.
I'm not going to vacuum up the Fukushima tea room, just my floors.

Never use the appliance if you are tired.
Obviously it is not intended for a work a day woman/man.

And here I was thinking vacuuming was as easy as putting the kettle on.
Perhaps I should leave it to the professionals.

warning the public about cigarettes

So here is the thing. 

If the Australian Government wants to stop people from smoking by putting pictures of the consequences on the packets then... Shouldn't they have those very packets on show most of the time for all to see?

Currently packets of cigarettes in shops must be covered by curtains, doors, drawers or away from the public view. The league thinks that if you really want to make an impact you should have them on show. Make big posters, tell the world, the public, those who might just want to take up smoking what they will have to endure.

To make something clandestine, furtive and a little bit wrong only encourages those who wish to "buck the system, seem like a rebel or be anti-establishment.