Simple wisdoms are practical, daily useful things. that stand up as reasonable on their own merit. They need not be taken on faith. They need no intricate scientific proof and no high technical schooling. Their value is accessible to common people.
The situation
People have different noses, hair, skeletal structure, body fat, motor and muscular skills, they also have different mental skills. Some may be more or less adept at spatial relations, mathematics, memory recall, or deduction.People judge ot
hers on the basis of physical or mechanical skills, on their ability to test well or poorly, on their popularity or wit. They will make estimates of their own skill in these areas. But they will never concede to another better judgment. Yet, in schools, churches, families, there is no curriculum, no catechism, no Dr. Spock book by which to train the next generation, much less hone the skills of the current one.
Why is this a problem?
Science has put the power to damage in the hands of any who care to learn the mechanics of its operation–be they zealots, the earnest but misguided, the demented, or the merely ignorant. Today this is important now that a good iron strongbox is no longer enough to protect our valuables and a door with iron bolts can no longer protect our families. We are in a race upon which our personal futures depend.
What can be done?
Survival depends upon inoculating ourselves, our friends, and our enemies with the consciousness to understand that an individual’s own self—interest rests upon a handful of simple wisdoms and the processes those ideas encourage.