Latest Posts
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Dangerous Euphemisms
One thing reading Confucius does to a person is make them aware of language and how it is used to evade responsibility or distract attention away from uncomfortable realities. Rather like George Orwell, really. This comes… Continue reading
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Prison
Here’s a depressing thing: U.S. Prison Population Sets Record Associated Press Friday, December 1, 2006 A record 7 million people — one in every 32 U.S. adults — were behind bars, on probation or on parole by the… Continue reading
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Speaking of the Confucian Mind….
I often worry that the tone of this blog is too critical. I find myself playing the scold, using Confucianism or Taoism to complain about this or that happening in China or the US. I do not have… Continue reading
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Here We Go Again
Dave, over at Peking Duck, posts about a new book entitled, The Confucian Mind: A Historical and In-Depth Look at Asian Culture and Psyche. I know it is not fair to criticize the book before you read it,… Continue reading
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No Justice, No Harmony
The Chinese Communist Party is still doing wrong by Chen Guangcheng: BEIJING, Nov. 27 — The retrial of a blind legal activist kicked off in eastern Shandong province Monday, but not without some of the same courtroom tumult… Continue reading
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Why Bush Persists In Failure
Mencius knows: When you attempt something and fail, always turn back to yourself for the reason. Rectify yourself, and all beneath Heaven will return home to you. (125) Bush seems congenitally unable to do this, to… Continue reading
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Names Matter
I have hit on this point before but feel compelled to return to it today, especially in light of the flurry of news stories about calling the Iraq crisis a "civil war." It seems that various media outlets… Continue reading
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A Taoist Thought For Those Traveling Today
You can know all beneath heaventhough you never step out the door,and you can see the Way of heaventhough you never look out the window. The further you explore, the less you know. So it is that a sage knows… Continue reading
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Modern Love: Learning the Limits
A sad yet beautiful column today by Wendy Paris. It is sad because it chronicles her two miscarriages. She had waited to try to have children, waited for her career to take shape, for her relationships to sort out,… Continue reading
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Did Chuang Tzu Make A Will?
The short answer is "no." Chuang Tzu almost certainly did not make a will because he knew that when his life ended he would be swept back into the limitless Way and that his worldly loved ones and… Continue reading
The Useless Tree 