Commonsense Lesson

People who read my posts - take a moment to help me out and try this experiment in learning. Keep in mind, Commonsense is intended to balance two things: complexity/depth AND readability. Like any discipline, not everyone can do it and from the outside it may seem different.

Find your favorite post and practice ruminating on your reaction to it. Pick a topic that interests you or that you have experience with. Take time and think to yourself before responding: Do I really know how much experience the writer has? Do I really know what he is intending to write? Is philosophy like any discipine and those outside have a hard time guaging the extent of the process? Am I really the right person to critique or compliment this post?

Take time - especially if you normally do not - and consider what you experience when you create something in your discipline and someone outside of it comments. Do they help because they are not biased? Do they assume things? Are they aligned with the complexity contained within the effort?

Consider even your own direct experience at home or work - what is it like looking for feedback and what do you expect and receive from various people?

Are you of the opinion that inexperienced observers can add objectivity or do they often write in an over-confident manner?

Pick a post that inspires you in some way and then think about all of the above and then write your reaction, analyzing the post and yourself at the same time.