Disobey n:To celebrate with an appropriate ceremony the maturity of a command
Interpretation
Disobedience can be seen as a form of recognition of authority and its boundaries.
Ambrose Bierce's definition of disobeying a command suggests that such actions are not merely acts of rebellion but are also celebrations of an individual's maturity in understanding the implications of commands. It highlights the complexity of obedience and authority, suggesting that true maturity involves discerning when to comply and when to challenge established norms.
In practice
This quote can be used in a leadership seminar to discuss the balance between authority and independence.
PALM, n. A species of tree . . . of which the familiar "itching palm" ("Palma hominis") is most widely distributed . . . . This noble vegetable exudes a kind of invisible gum, which may be detected by applying to the bark a piece of gold or silver.
Human nature is pretty well balanced; for every lacking virtue there is a rough substitute that will serve at a pinch--as cunning is the wisdom of the unwise, and ferocity the courage of the coward.
Indigestion: A disease which the patient and his friends frequently mistake for deep religious conviction and concern for the salvation of mankind. As the simple Red Man of the Western Wild put it, with, it must be confessed, a certain force: 'Plenty well, no pray; big belly ache, heap God.'
NOUMENON, n. That which exists, as distinguished from that which merely seems to exist, the latter being a phenomenon. The noumenon is a bit difficult to locate; it can be apprehended only by a process of reasoning - which is a phenomenon.
PARDON, v. To remit a penalty and restore to the life of crime. To add to the lure of crime the temptation of ingratitude.
Kiss. n. A word invented by the poets as a rhyme for "bliss".
May God us keep From Single vision and Newton's sleep.
Both in thought and in feeling, even though time be real, to realise the unimportance of time is the gate of wisdom.
There is nothing like the sight of an old enemy down on his luck.
Self-denial is the test and definition of self-government.
Ask an impertinent question and you are on the way to the pertinent answer.
A person who has experienced something is almost always far more expert on it than are the experts.
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