“There are only two cases in which war is just: first, in order to resist the aggression of an enemy, and second, in order to help an ally who has been attacked.”– Montesquieu
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First Principles: There Are Only Two Cases In Which War Is Just: First, In Order To Resist the Aggression of An Enemy, and Second, In Order To Help An Ally Who Has Been Attacked
Posted in First Principles
Tagged Aggression, Ally, Attacked, Enemy, First, First Principles, Help, Montesquieu, Resist, Second, Two Cases, Ukraine, WarJust, Willy Joseph Cancel
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Thought For the Day: Every Actual State Is Corrupt. Good Men Must Not Obey Laws Too Well
“Every actual state is corrupt. Good men must not obey laws too well.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)
Posted in Thought For the Day
Tagged Actual, Corrupt, Every, Good Men, Law, Obey, Ralph Waldo Emerson, State, Thought For the Day
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Thought For the Day: Difficulties Are Meant To Rouse, Not Discourage. The Human Spirit Is To Grow Strong By Conflict
“Difficulties are meant to rouse, not discourage. The human spirit is to grow strong by conflict.” – William Ellery Channing
Posted in Thought For the Day
Tagged Conflict, Difficulties, Discourage, Grow, Human Spirit, Meant, Rouse, Strong, Thought For the Day, William Ellery Channing
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First Principles: Every Child In America Should Be Acquainted With His Own Country
“Every child in America should be acquainted with his own country. He should read books that furnish him with ideas that will be useful to him in life and practice. As soon as he opens his lips, he should rehearse the history of his own country; he should lisp the praise of liberty, and of those illustrious heroes and statesmen, who have wrought a revolution in her favor.” – Noah Webster, On the Education of Youth in America, 1788
A Life Lived Publicly
A Life Lived Publicly
by Michael Doyle
We walk through life briskly
Thinking thoughts ironically
About a life lived publicly
When it cannot be lived privately
There are eyes most everywhere
As the cameras blink and others stare
It only works if we live comfortably
With the feeling we're all family
Comically, we process our secrets
With joked punchlines and no regrets
Life is incomplete and imperfect
There is no time for regrets
We keep on breaking down walls
In between waiting for the calls
Trying our best to breakthrough
To the other side of me and you
There in the honesty and tenderness
Are the moments lived in kindness
When we can forget the need to hide
And all of those things we do for pride
Somewhere between the comedy and confession
There is an authentic profession
Of all the wrongs we know we've done
Learning we'll never be the perfect ones
Silently brooding like The Thinker come to life
We find our peace in the midst of the strife
One bit blending into that proverbial next
Meshing into a life lived as it all connects
Failed sentences seek endings in their pause
Times like these should be against the laws
Too many cycles of contrite deflections
As our thoughts are caught in reflections
Of the echoed chambers of our own minds
All the things we reached for are left behind
There's a weirdness in the too much truth
It's been here since our days of youth
Speaking softly we sort this as if routine
The problem is we've not a clue what it means
Deep thoughts are no one's true foundation
It's the questions not the answers of confrontation
That lead us to the next thing that we'll say
Wishing that maybe we could pray it all away
This group therapy hugs its way into session
Whispers like madmen huddled into concession
That maybe the only way through this is surrender
Finding toughness in learning to be tender
The world offers its love accented in asterisk
Then wonders why we aren't vulnerable enough to risk
Shrouded in the secrets of the word despite
Wishing for one moment to make everything right
Closed eyes open and find that we're all still here
The tears that flow are exceedingly sincere
(c) April 27, 2022 Michael Doyle
All Rights Reserved
Posted in Poetry and Poems
Tagged Alright, Asterisk, Authentic Profession, Blend, Breaking Down Walls, Breakthrough, Briskly, Brood, Calls, Cameras, Comfortable, Comically, Concession, Confession, Confrontation, Connects, Deflection, Despite, Done, Echoed Chambers, Everywhere, Eyes, Failed Sentences, Family, Feeling, Forget, Foundation, Group Therapy, Honesty, Hugs, Imperfect, Incomplete, Ironic, Kindness, Laws, Learn, Life, Means, Minds, Moments, Need To Hide, No Time For Regrets, Other Side, Pause, Peace, Perfect Ones, Poetry and Poems, Pray It All Away, Pride, Private, Process, Public, Punchlines, Reflection, Regrets, Routine, Say, Secrets, Session, Shroud, Silent, Sincere, Somewhere, Stare, Still Here, Strife, Surrender, Tears, Tender, Tenderness, The Divine Comedy, The Thinker, Think, Times, Truth, Vulnerable, Wait, Walk, Whispers, Works, Wrongs, Youth
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Thought For the Day: Peace Is Not the Absence of Conflict; It Is the Ability To Handle Conflict By Peaceful Means
“Peace is not the absence of conflict; it is the ability to handle conflict by peaceful means.” – Ronald Reagan
Posted in First Principles
Tagged Ability, Absence, Conflict, Handle, Peace, Peaceful Means, Ronald Reagan, Thought For the Day
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First Principles: The Battle, Sir, Is Not To the Strong Alone; It Is To the Vigilant, the Active, the Brave
“The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone; it is to the vigilant, the active, the brave.” – Patrick Henry
…Repeated Ukraine to Russia….
Posted in First Principles
Tagged Active, Alone, Brave, First Principles, Patrick Henry, Sir, Strong, Vigilant
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Open Declaration
Open Declaration
by Michael Doyle
The cross is not a decoration
It is an open declaration
Of how much love the Father brings
These are the lessons of the hymns we sing
Looking carefully at all that we see
What brings happiness, what brings misery?
Staring out bored for the longest
Seeing what we need the strongest
A hit and miss sense of conversation
Still seen in our observation
Cultivating the goodness of the plan
Living life in loving God's command
There are experiences to live through
Learning from the things that we do
Moving out beyond the timberline
With nowhere to live but to shine
It's not to be contrary
But let's let God be our sanctuary
Speaking out these words of power
We'll find our finest hours
(c) April 26, 2022 Michael Doyle
All Rights Reserved
Posted in Poetry and Poems
Tagged Carefully, Contrary, Conversation, Cross, Cultivate, Decoration, Experiences, Finest Hours, God's Command, Happiness, Hit and Miss, Hymns, Learn, Lessons, Live Through, Living Life, Love, Misery, Nowhere to Live, Observation, Open Declaration, Plan, Poetry and Poems, Sanctuary, See, Shine, Sing, Stare, Strong, The Father, Timberline, Words of Power
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First Principles: The Liberties of A People Depend On Their Own Constant Attention To Its Preservation
“The liberties of a people depend on their own constant attention to its preservation.”
Posted in First Principles
Tagged Attention, Constant, First Principles, Liberties, People, Preservation, Their, William Henry Harrison
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Thought For the Day: Everyday Language Is A Part of the Human Organism and Is Not Less Complicated Than It
“Everyday language is a part of the human organism and is no less complicated than it”. – Ludwig Wittgenstein, philosopher (26 Apr 1889-1951)
Posted in Thought For the Day
Tagged Complicated, Everyday, Human Organism, Language, Ludwig Witttgenstein, Not Less, Part, Thought For the Day
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