I kind of disagree with the education part of it this argument.
Education is neither helpful nor not helpful towards common sense.
The governments and education systems have everyone thinking in a problem/reaction/solution; and there lies my problem: reaction.

As the animated movie Robots put it, "See a need, fill a need." No reaction, just action; problem/action to fix.

Education has removed common sense form its curriculum and many people, that I have observed, with their PhDs lack common sense. If life doesn't fit in to what their schooling taught them, something is wrong.
My profession deals with students and professionals all the time.

As I've blasted some of them before with this, "Just because you're in university/have a degree/are a doctor doesn't make you smart; merely following what instructions you've been given."

To be smart? well I can't go to the dictionary for a definition; here are the first 6:

1. to be a source of sharp, local, and usually superficial pain, as a wound.
2. to be the cause of a sharp, stinging pain, as an irritating application, a blow, etc.
3. to feel a sharp, stinging pain, as in a wound.
4. to suffer keenly from wounded feelings:
5. to feel shame or remorse or to suffer in punishment or in return for something.
6. to cause a sharp pain to or in.

Also the rest of the definitions have nothing to do with intelligence; which is now making me rethink that phrase to use another one instead:
"Just because you're in university/have a degree/are a doctor doesn't make you [intelligent]; merely a follower of instruction."

I've been through school and have a degree, but I realised mid way through it was all for naught. When I started asking the professors life questions related to their topics of profession, they lacked any idea about the correlations or real life responses.
I caught the education system with its pants down and now it's almost fully disrobed; they're not even trying to "smarten up".

I don't want to rant, I fear I may have too much already.

Nice post except for the push for universal/global/blanket education. What we need more of is through education common sense.