Tony
As part of his RE homework, my nephew has to write an essay about Good vs Evil. I would like to help him and, having been a disciple of your teachings for some time, I turn to you for guidance on the following burning question:
Which of the following sins is the more detestable, loathsome AND perhaps unpardonable:
(a) five spot mortaring
(b) decking.
Yours with a mad gleam in the eye :wink:
George
Guide us, O great teacher Tony.....
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TonyMcC
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Ethical Paving, eh? That's a new one for me!
I think the seriousness of the offence, and the subsequent severity of punishment, depends somewhat on the background of the sinner. If these heinous crimes were perpetrated by a DIY'er, then the sin of Spot Bedding could be partly excused on the grounds of ignornace, while the use of decking could be put down to a serious lack of taste, or perhaps a mild mental disorder brought about by a chemical imbalance in the brain. However, if a Contractor was to be found guilty of either of these crimes against the landscaping industry, then the consequences should, and would, be far more serious.
Construction of a deck by a Contractor has only one known line of defence; that of being compelled to do so by the client. In such cases, it would be expected that any contractor with a shred of integrity would walk away from the job and refuse to participate in such foul deeds, but then, some jobs incorporate decking as a minor component, and the contractor faces the prospect of losing a much larger, and prestigious job of real paving if they refuse to construct the deck.
But when it comes to spot bedding, there is absolutely no acceptable defence. It is wrong with a capital W. It is an abomination, a crime against common sense, and, along with partial haunching of edge courses to a block pavement, is one of those crimes for which a damn good boot in the 'nads is fully warranted!
Any competent contractor knows that spot-bedding is for poncey tv presenters who want to look as though they know what they are talking about. They know that being caught partaking in a bit of "behind the Brew Cabin" spot bedding on a building site would have them dismissed immediately, and they'd face the humiliating prospect of having lesser trades, such as Brickies and Chippies, laughing at them! If they were lucky, and fully repented their ways, they might, eventually, be allowed back on site as a hod carrier or iron monkey (scaffolder), but their days as a member of the most prestigious of trades would be over, and never again would they know the joys of buttering flags or screeding sand.
I know this may seem harsh to those of you outside the trade, but we do have our standards to uphold! :)
I think the seriousness of the offence, and the subsequent severity of punishment, depends somewhat on the background of the sinner. If these heinous crimes were perpetrated by a DIY'er, then the sin of Spot Bedding could be partly excused on the grounds of ignornace, while the use of decking could be put down to a serious lack of taste, or perhaps a mild mental disorder brought about by a chemical imbalance in the brain. However, if a Contractor was to be found guilty of either of these crimes against the landscaping industry, then the consequences should, and would, be far more serious.
Construction of a deck by a Contractor has only one known line of defence; that of being compelled to do so by the client. In such cases, it would be expected that any contractor with a shred of integrity would walk away from the job and refuse to participate in such foul deeds, but then, some jobs incorporate decking as a minor component, and the contractor faces the prospect of losing a much larger, and prestigious job of real paving if they refuse to construct the deck.
But when it comes to spot bedding, there is absolutely no acceptable defence. It is wrong with a capital W. It is an abomination, a crime against common sense, and, along with partial haunching of edge courses to a block pavement, is one of those crimes for which a damn good boot in the 'nads is fully warranted!
Any competent contractor knows that spot-bedding is for poncey tv presenters who want to look as though they know what they are talking about. They know that being caught partaking in a bit of "behind the Brew Cabin" spot bedding on a building site would have them dismissed immediately, and they'd face the humiliating prospect of having lesser trades, such as Brickies and Chippies, laughing at them! If they were lucky, and fully repented their ways, they might, eventually, be allowed back on site as a hod carrier or iron monkey (scaffolder), but their days as a member of the most prestigious of trades would be over, and never again would they know the joys of buttering flags or screeding sand.
I know this may seem harsh to those of you outside the trade, but we do have our standards to uphold! :)
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GalleyRat
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Brilliant response, Tony, and its certainly given the lad some food for thought. In fact, he’s started doing a bit of research and has found that most of your rules for ethical paving have been set down in the Bible for a long time.
On the pernicious effects of constructing decking, Jeremiah 10 verses 3-5 says:
+++++"For the customs of the peoples are false: a tree from the forest is cut down, and worked with an ax by the hands of an artisan, people deck it...... they fasten it with hammer and nails so that it cannot move. Their idols are like scarecrows in a cucumber field, and they cannot speak; they have to be carried, for they cannot walk."+++++
Hmm, perhaps this is a comment on the ludicrous overreaction of the punters when their grotesquely made-over gardens are revealed to them on camera
On the proper relaying of paving flags that have been spot bedded, Leviticus 14 vs 42 has the following to say:
++++".....and they shall pour out the dust that they scrape off without the city into an unclean place. And they shall take other stones, and put them in the place of those stones; and shall take other mortar."+++++
And on the difference between the immediately obvious mistake of messily wet-pointing paving joints, against brushing in a dry mix which crumbles later, 1 Timothy 5 makes the following observation :
+++++" The sins of some men are conspicuous, pointing (to judgment), but the sins of others appear later."++++++
Yea, Tony, you are a great teacher.
Yours with too much time on his hands (evidently):wink:
George