” Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.” – Revelation 3:20
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First Principles: Here I Am! I Stand At the Door and Knock. If Anyone Hears My Voice and Opens the Door, I Will Come In and Eat With That Person, and They With Me
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Tagged Door, First Principles, Hear, I Am, Revelation 3:20, Voice
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Thought For the Day: There Is Something In the Nature of Tea That Leads Us Into A World of Quiet Contemplation of Life
“There is something in the nature of tea that leads us into a world of quiet contemplation of life.” – Lin Yutang
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Tagged Contemplation, Lin Yutang, Nature, Tea, Thought For the Day, World
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First Principles: National Defense Is One of the Cardinal Duties of A Statesman
“National defense is one of the cardinal duties of a statesman.” – John Adams (1815)
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Tagged Cardinal Duties, First Principles, John Adams, National Defense, Staesman
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Rights of Passage
Rights of Passage
by Michael Doyle
As just another poet by design
I would like to contest what's mine
You see, it's true that I'm not dead
But folks want to argue over words said
The count is not final in the least
Though some would provoke the beast
They're telling me what exactly was meant
As though my words were theirs, I lent
Partly yours is that what you say
As if that will ever indeed be the day
You can borrow whatever it is you want
But that hound dog doesn't hunt
Saying you know my mind better than I do
And even if that poem was about you
It is up to me to see and say what I see
As long as it is dressed up, in quiet dignity
I don't want it misrepresented in connection
Dazzling as it is in its verbal representation
None of what I've said is meant to confuse
The truth I trust is you've always been my muse
Partly yours is that what you say
As if that will ever indeed be the day
You can borrow whatever it is you want
But that hound dog doesn't hunt
Delicately laced in every sensibility
Your fingertips trace with sensuality
You are cunning in your hideaway tact
Fooling the world with your elegant act
Wishing to wake from your loving deception
Every move you make proves my exception
The rights of passage are like words read
In the make-believe world, you leave unsaid
Partly yours is that what you say
As if that will ever indeed be the day
You can borrow whatever it is you want
But that hound dog doesn't hunt
(c) November 15, 2024 Michael Doyle
All Rights Reserved
Posted in Poetry and Poems
Tagged Contest, Design, Poet, Poetry and Poems, Rights of Passage, Words
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First Principles: The Most Sacred of the Duties of A Government (Is) To Do Equal and Impartial Justice To All Citizens
“The most sacred of the duties of a government [is] to do equal and impartial justice to all citizens.” – Thomas Jefferson, Note in Destutt de Tracy, “Political Economy,” (1816)
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This statement comes down to the reasonable expectation of the rule of law and the principle of equality. The courts and all aspects of the law are to endeavor toward neutrality and transparency and remain focused on the maintenance and steady pursuit of liberty. Though the phrase rule of law has become tainted with lawfare and other abuses of the legal processes, we must remain fixed on it as an aspiration for our nation and world. Democratic processes, even in the republic, that is, the United States, cannot effect the necessary reforms needed if we do not first endeavor to base these processes on the rule of law equally and impartially.
This embodies Aristotle’s governments, established and ruled under law, not individuals’ arbitrary and capricious whims. This is to say that law should be publicly promulgated, equally enforced, and independently adjudicated. A nation’s governance must be consistent with human rights norms and standards. Adherence to the principles of supremacy of law, equality before these laws, and accountability to our nation’s laws must be maintained.
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Tagged Citizens, Duty, Equal, First Principles, Government, History, Impartial, Justice, Law, News, Politics, Sacred, Supreme Court, Thomas Jefferson
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Thought For the Day: Poetry Is the Art of Creating Imaginary Gardens With Real Toads
“Poetry is the art of creating imaginary gardens with real toads.” -Marianne Moore, poet (15 Nov 1887-1972)
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Marianne Moore was a poetess nominated for a Nobel Prize in Literature based on her use of formal innovation, precise diction, irony, and wit. Her poem Poetry was initially printed in Others in 1919. Eventually, the poem underwent four revisions. The poem is interesting because Ms. Moore states she hates poetry except that it is a vehicle for genuine expression.
If the reader would like, Poetry can be heard read here:
John Green reads Poetry | The Poetry Foundation
Never Want To Say Good Night
Never Want To Say Good Night
by Michael Doyle
The bossa nova moved us to the dance floor
With the Brazilian beat, we couldn't ignore
My plunging heart was flown in from above
Every moment spent with you calls me to love
The shine in your eyes lights my soul
With one sweet kiss, I lose control
I feel your smile as we start to explore
The reasons we love each other a little more
In your little black dress, you aim to tease
Holding me close, you were born to please
Your loving lips give a caress of my name
While my heart keeps your time all the same
Kiss me, and I will melt into your perfection
Inch by inch, I drive deep into our connection
Your play of eyes releases a glide of smooth skin
With every touch, I soar to the moon and back again
We drift away without knowing the reasons why
I heard you call my name with your breath of sigh
Falling further into our passions' fiery flames
I want to play with you; all of our love games
In your little black dress, you aim to tease
Holding me close, you were born to please
Your loving lips give a caress of my name
While my heart keeps your time all the same
Falling ten seconds to bliss, I feel my shaking knees
With your eyes, you ask me to please, tell you, please
Pulsing through my mind, I burn with your fire
Every bit of me tantalized and filled with desire
Your seductive spirit laughs in its infatuation
When we make love, we are each other's satisfaction
In this book of life, you are all I'm thinking of
I smile that you're my wife whom I'll always love
In your little black dress, you aim to tease
Holding me close, you were born to please
Your loving lips give a caress of my name
While my heart keeps your time all the same
(c) November 14, 2024 Michael Doyle
All Rights Reserved
Posted in Poetry and Poems
Tagged A Little More, Above, Aim To Please, All the Same, Always Love, Back Again, Black Dress, Bliss, Book of Life, Born To Please, Bossa Nova, Brazilian Beat, Breath, Burn, Caress, Close, Connection, Dance Floor, Desire, Drift Away, Drive Deep, Every Moment, Every Touch, Explore, Eyes, Fire, Flame, Glide, Heart, Ignore, Inch By Inch, Infatuation, Inspiration, Kiss Me, Laugh, Life, Lose Control, Love, Love Games, Loving Lips, Make Love, Mind, Moon, My Name, Never Want, Passion, Perfection, Play of Eyes, Poetry, Poetry and Poems, Pulse, Reasons, Reasons Why, Satisfaction, Say Good night, Seductive Spirt, Shaking Knees, Shine, Sigh, Smile, Smooth Skin, Sould, Sweet Kiss, Tantalize, Tell You Please, Thinking Of, Wife, Writing, Your Eyes, Your Time
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First Principles: A Wise Man Proportions His Belief To the Evidence
“A wise man proportions his belief to the evidence.” – David Hume, Section X of An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding (1748)
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In Section X of An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding, Hume argues that the evidence for miracles needs to be revised given their inherent improbability. There is a fundamental principle that critical thinking and rationality should prevail. It is wise to avoid making assumptions based on blind faith. Preconceptions and unrestrained bias often impede objective rationality. It is better to approach the world with intellectual honesty and an open mind.
Empirical data and logical reasoning based on this defeat misconception and rely on false information. Descartes held that reasoning and the deductive processes best determine what passes for knowledge and truth. Sensory experience is best to be relied on only partially. Hume’s rebuttal rests on empirical observation and holds that pure reason is limited by its nature. Many believe reconciling this divergent thinking will lead to an enlightened, rational society.
Overcoming the Adversary
Overcoming the Adversary
by Michael Doyle
I'm glad to say that I believe
In God's promise, not a devil who deceives
Life's storms come, but I have strength
Enough to last the day's length
With the Bible as my sword
I rest on the strength of the Lord
The Holy Spirit is overflowing
My joy is always growing
There's no doubt in where I'm going
My belief in God is always showing
In the confidence, there is no guessing
Each day as a believer is a blessing
Christ's blood weaves His legacy
His mighty name becomes our history
The God of all our second chances
Sees us true regardless of circumstances
Lending His light to dispel the darkness
His presence removes the world's harshness
I will not fear but to the contrary
I know my king will overcome the adversary
(c) November 13, 2024 Michael Doyle
All Rights Reserved
Posted in Poetry and Poems
Tagged Adversary, Belief, Believe, Believer, Belssing, Bible, Christ's Blood, Circumstances, Confidence, Contrary, Darkness, Day, Deceive, Devil, Doubt, Fear, Glad, God of Second Chances, God's Promise, Going, Grow, Guess, Harshness, His Light, History, Holy Spirit, Joy, King, Legacy, Life, Lord, Name, Overcome, Overflow, Poetry and Poems, Show, Storm, Strength, Sword
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Thought For the Day: The Plain Fact Is That Education Is Itself A Form of Propaganda – A Deliberate Scheme To Outfit the Pupil…With A Simple Appetite For Gulping Ideas Ready-Made
“The plain fact is that education is itself a form of propaganda – a deliberate scheme to outfit the pupil, not with the capacity to weigh ideas, but with a simple appetite for gulping ideas ready-made. The aim is to make ‘good’ citizens, which is to say, docile and uninquisitive citizens.” – H.L. Mencken
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This quote is noted in “A Second Mencken Chrestomathy,” as initially published by Mencken in 1921. The Sage of Baltimore offered this work revised and annotated nearly 50 years after his death. He called things as he saw them, and most of the time, and all of these years later, we would be hard-pressed to find him wrong in many of his pronouncements. Hypocrisy was seen as a capital offense. Mencken is not wrong in this finding.
In a sense, Mencken was a libertarian who distrusted anything that encroached on liberty. The greatest threat was called out in the way government often forces conformity. Dissent was and is to be tolerated as a necessity of thinking. Real education directs itself toward differentiating between workable bits of information serving as facts and the appearances of such facts. Public schools were and are faulty in teaching thinking over presenting information in a one-sided manner. In this manner, at its best, it is a form of propaganda meant to produce good citizens accepting of authority.
Mencken believed that people who received education stopping at the “Three Rs” were more self-reliant, cynical, liberty-loving, and willing to stand up for their individual beliefs. He was perhaps not very wrong in this view. Schools must emphasize critical thinking instead of mass producing a herd of sheep. The problems faced today require such thinking skills and will not lessen in the future. People’s ability to have notions of their own was Mencken’s goal. The world would be better off if we strove for this goal. This is how we find our way toward better lifetimes lived by all, even when some ideas disagree with our own, as they must.