Author: Rev. Joe Dirt

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Chinese factory suicide a good thing?

I’m still trying to get my mind around this.   Mattel has had to recall a million or so toys because of lead paint.   I heard on the radio that the plant manager from the Chinese factory responsible for putting the lead paint on the toys committed suicide.

A gentleman in the business segment of the morning NPR news show was commenting on the suicide story.   He said it was fairly common in Japan and Korea for business executives to commit suicide, but not very common in China.   He felt that this was possibly a good thing.   It might mean the Chinese were caring more about the quality and the safety of their products, and possibly a little less about the bottom line  at the expense of everything else.

This is about the time my head starting spinning, or maybe that was from getting out of bed too fast.  Continue reading “Chinese factory suicide a good thing?”

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I can die a happy man

I birdied 18 at Normandie Golf Course in St. Louis.  It is a 243 yard par 3 from the blues.  The hard part for me is that it is next to a busy street on the the left.  That street is not protected from the golf course, and I so want to hit snap hooks on that hole for some strange reason.

Today the blues tees were back a bit, making it around 250 yards. I put a driver to within 7 or 8 feet and made the putt.  Rest of the round sucked, but that made up for it.

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Ten Commandments for Politicians

I’m trying to come up with ten commandments for politicians. This is a far as I have gotten:

  1. First, do ye no harm
  2. The majority rules, not the dollars
  3. Ye live in a glass house, act accordingly
  4. Thou shall avoid in all ways the trough of the lobbyist
  5. If it looks like pork, if it oinks like pork, if it sizzles like pork, vote ye not on it
  6. Remember ye that Squealor was not right, “All animals ARE equal, but some and no animals are more equal than others.” This includes politicians and government officials.
  7. Usufruct – Remember ye that we are but Stewards for those that come after us, as those who came before were Stewards for us.
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Congressional Pay Raises

I was utterly shocked to see that Congress is considering voting itself a $4,400 pay raise.

If it based on merit and what they have accomplished, it ought to be a negative pay raise.

When Congress gets us out of Iraq, brings real ethical reform to Congress, and does something about illegal immigration, and then they can give themselves a pay raise.   Until then they should suffer like the rest of us with declining buying power.

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What I Believe

A friend recently asked me to write about what I believe for a religious studies class she was taking at her local Catholic church.   I believe she asked as she knows that I am a little ways from center in my beliefs. 

I came across the following quote that seems to summarize my beliefs:

We believe in the formless and eternal Tao, and we recognize all personified deities as being mere human constructs.  We reject hatred, intolerance, and unnecessary violence, and embrace harmony, love and learning, as we are taught by Nature.  We place our trust and our lives in the Tao, that we may live in peace and balance with the Universe, both in this mortal life and beyond.  ~~~~ Creed of the Western Reform Taoist Congregation Continue reading “What I Believe”