In this increasingly complex world, our notions of common sense may not be as clear as we would like.  By the time we understand intuitively how things should work, technology moves on and produces a new world with new frames of reference, diminishing our confidence in basic principles and values that we once considered obvious.

It used to be that society and its basic principles changed little over centuries.  Now society changes a lot even in one decade.  Change is driven by technology and is accelerated by the catalyst of greed.  Television ratings improve when crude or oversexed programming outpaces its cultural consequences.  We are momentarily amused by men and women behaving badly, while the constant portrayal of misbehavior gradually erodes society to lower and lower levels.

"Living together" before marriage and casual attitudes toward family responsibilities are particularly troublesome as parents struggle to maintain basic connections with their young-adult children.  Fatherhood has become an optional activity for fathers, leaving a void in men's hearts to the point that millions have been moved by something called Promise Keepers, to the dismay of those threatened by a return by men to natural roles of fatherhood.  Yet parental forms of social dismay are only one part of our modern disconnect with common sense.
 

While what Paine taught about government in his book Common Sense is still valid today, it does not provide us with enough insights to address our many, more complex problems without some additional help.  In addition to common sense problems with government, there is often lack of modern versions of common sense in complex social issues, which are increasingly impacted by rapid changes in technology.  Indeed, there is even a lack of common sense applied in modern technical fields such as the space program and in the nuclear energy field, arenas in which we might think that the application of common sense "is a given."

The healthcare industry has its own culture, one that fascinates us so much that it makes good programming for television. There is enough cultural overlap to interest us but not enough to make the lack of realism apparent.  Similarly, police and military cultures lend themselves to the creation of captivating television stories and to profitable movies.  Our fascination with television and movie versions of different cultures is facilitated by the producers' technical abilities to exaggerate or simplify pieces of the culture as needed to hold the audience's attention.  In terms of common sense, however, it is easy for us to be misled and to misunderstand what actually constitutes common sense within the cultural situations being portrayed.

But this is about common sense, not about television or any specific cultural environment.  Indeed, just about every modern profession has its own culture or set of rules and expectations.  To the extent that modern professions are impacted by technology, they can have immature or distorted cultures either in fact or as perceived by outsiders.

It just happens that the modern television culture distorts and chips away at reality as needed to achieve viewer ratings and profits.  Technidigm-2000 provides a 12-element framework or paradigm that serves as a tool for each of us to deal with the confusion that surrounds many of these many distorted cultures that technology enables within our modern human culture.  Even as we refuse to let go of our favorite television show, Technidigm-2000 helps us put into better perspective.
 

Not knowing accurately what the common sense aspects of an issue are results in our not applying common sense. Anyone who has dealt with the U. S. government for very long already knows that common sense is not always applied or even considered.  Moreover, there may be instances where it is applied but that it is not apparent due to the complexity of the situation.  Sometimes the solutions to technical issues are counter-intuitive.  Thus, it makes sense to always assume for most important problems that we do not yet have enough information to make a good decision.

With a lack of information, it is easy to make the wrong decisions regarding counter-intuitive issues, and we do not even know in advance which issues are counter-intuitive.  When we add the modern focus on economy and competitiveness, we can lose our self confidence and just sit back while others have their way.  Our lack of confidence and lack of action leave us at the mercy of the most vociferous among us, often those who are not even aware of the information shortfall.  Such people are the least likely people to be able to solve modern problems efficiently and effectively, but they often end up running town hall and most of the rest of government and society.  Technidigm-2000 turns all of this around!
 

While I can not grant you an increased portion of common sense, I can provide a "framework" or "paradigm" within which you can organize and exercise your own common sense.  More importantly, once we all understand the 12-element framework, we will better understand each other and better communicate with each other.

The 12 elements are collectively referred to as Technidigm-2000. "Technidigm" is short for technical paradigm, and the 2000 indicates the year in which the paradigm will have replaced (with your help) the current, wayward notions of common sense.
 

To those who want to hurt you, Technidigm-2000 feels like a sharp sword. To those who want to help you, you can explain the 12 Technidigm-2000 concepts in about 10 minutes.  After all, it is only common sense!