Plantinga Chapter 3

Plantinga addresses topics like total depravity and common grace in his third chapter--topics which I want to address here. I want to start by saying I am not trying to be confrontational, however, I do want to get my thoughts and reasoning out for total depravity and common grace.
On the matter of total depravity: I believe that all of mankind is totally depraved, meaning they are incapable of doing ANY good work in the sight of God apart from the grace of Christ. In saying this, I know many will have an issue with this because it means that the unbeliever cannot do any good work. What about those unbelievers that give their lives for another or all of the really “good” people that are unbelievers? Am I saying that there works are not good? From my human perspective I would be inclined to say that their actions are good, because from my point of view, they are good things. However, I believe that we have to consult scripture in this matter, not just trust how I feel their actions should be viewed. Romans 3:12 states “All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one." Also, Isaiah 64:6 says, “All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away.” I cannot see any other way to interpret these verses except literally. This means that every human, even the greatest person ever to walk the earth, no matter how good they may seem, is incapable of doing any righteous, good thing in God’s sight apart from Christ.
Is this fair? No, it does not seem fair to say this at all, because I know some really good, unbelieving people—people who are better than I myself am. But it is not up to me to determine what is fair. Although I do not like this concept, I have studied it and cannot come to any other conclusion.
The subject of common grace I will only lightly touch on. I think that Psalm 73 really touches on this issue of “the blessings” God gives the wicked. In Psalm 73:1-16, Asaph is crying out to God in confusion, wondering why the wicked always seem to be so prosperous, and why God would give them so much. In verse 17, he says he finally understood when he entered the sanctuary of God, and realized the final destiny of the wicked. In the end, they will be judged. The problem I have with saying that grace is given universally is this—if a gift is given, and it is not used properly or the unbeliever does not thank God for it, they have sinned. God, who is all knowing, knows that when He gives the unrighteous this gift, they will sin because they do not glorify Him for it. Perhaps from my perspective, just as with Asaph, I can say it appears as though the wicked are blessed. However, is a gift that ultimately will be counted against the wicked really a gift then? I can’t believe that it is.