{"quotes":[{"text":"Loving, of enemies is another dogma of feigned morality, and has besides no meaning. It is incumbent on man, as a moralist, that he does not revenge an injury; and it is equally as good in a political sense, for there is no end to retaliation; each retaliates on the other, and calls it justice: but to love in proportion to the injury, if it could be done, would be to offer a premium for a crime. Besides, the word enemies is too vague and general to be used in a moral maxim, which ought always to be clear and defined, like a proverb. If a man be the enemy of another from mistake and prejudice, as in the case of religious opinions, and sometimes in politics, that man is different to an enemy at heart with a criminal intention; and it is incumbent upon us, and it contributes also to our own tranquillity, that we put the best construction upon a thing that it will bear. But even this erroneous motive in him makes no motive for love on the other part; and to say that we can love voluntarily, and without a motive, is morally and physically impossible.Morality is injured by prescribing to it duties that, in the first place, are impossible to be performed, and if they could be would be productive of evil; or, as before said, be premiums for crime. The maxim of doing as we would be done unto does not include this strange doctrine of loving enemies; for no man expects to be loved himself for his crime or for his enmity.Those who preach this doctrine of loving their enemies, are in general the greatest persecutors, and they act consistently by so doing; for the doctrine is hypocritical, and it is natural that hypocrisy should act the reverse of what it preaches. For my own part, I disown the doctrine, and consider it as a feigned or fabulous morality; yet the man does not exist that can say I have persecuted him, or any man, or any set of men, either in the American Revolution, or in the French Revolution; or that I have, in any case, returned evil for evil.","author":"Thomas Paine","tags":["american-revolution","crime","dogma","enemies","feigned-morality","french-revolution","hypocrisy","injury","intention","justice","love","love-thy-enemy","loving","maxim","meaning","morality","motive","persecution","preach","premius","proverb","revenge","vague"],"id":4846,"author_id":"Thomas+Paine"},{"text":"Life is a process during which one initially gets less and less dependent, independent, and then more and more dependent.","author":"Mokokoma Mokhonoana","tags":["adage","adages","adolescent","adolescents","adult","adulthood","adults","africa","african","ancient","aphorism","aphorisms","axiom","axioms","child","children","dead","death","deep","dependence","dependent","develop","developing","development","dictum","dictums","epigram","epigrams","existence","four-stages-of-life","funny","gnome","gnomes","grandparent","grandparents","grow","growing","growth","humor","humorous","humour","immortal","immortality","independence","independent","infant","infants","insightful","life","made-me-think","make-you-think","maxim","maxims","mortal","mortality","newborn","newborns","old","old-age","old-age-home","old-age-homes","phase","phases","philosopher","prepubescent","process","profound","proverb","proverbs","provoke-thought","quotation","quotations","quote","of-the-day","quotes","retire","retired","retiree","retirees","retirement","satire","satirical","satirist","satirists","saying","sayings","senile","senility","south-africa","south-african","stage","stages","stages-of-life","teenage","teenager","teenagers","thought-provoking","thoughtful","young","youth","youths"],"id":6452,"author_id":"Mokokoma+Mokhonoana"},{"text":"This is the only truth in the world that was necessary yesterday, is necessary today, and will continue to be necessary tomorrow: be conscious of now.","author":"Kamand Kojouri","tags":["adage","aware","awareness","awareness","consciousness","fleeting","kamand","kamand-kojouri","kojouri","life-philosophy","maxim","meditate","meditation","mindfulness","moment","motto","necessary","now","philosophy","power-of-now","present","present-moment","quote","temporary","time","today","tomorrow","transient","truth","yesterday"],"id":7663,"author_id":"Kamand+Kojouri"},{"text":"The world economy would collapse if a significant number of people were to realize and then act on the realization that it is possible to enjoy many if not most of the things that they enjoy without first having to own them.","author":"Mokokoma Mokhonoana","tags":["adage","adages","africa","african","aphorism","aphorisms","axiom","axioms","buy","buyer","buyers","capitalism","childfree","childless","collapse","communism","consumer","consumerism","consumers","credit","debt","deep","democracy","dictum","dictums","economies","economy","enjoy","epigram","epigrams","funny","gnome","gnomes","humor","humorous","humour","insightful","karl-marx","made-me-think","make-you-think","marxism","materialism","maxim","maxims","own","ownership","philosopher","profound","proverb","proverbs","provoke-thought","quotation","quotations","quote","of-the-day","quotes","realization","realize","satire","satirical","satirist","satirists","saying","sayings","selfish-selfishness","socialism","socialist","socialists","south-africa","south-african","thought-provoking","thoughtful","world-economies"],"id":25717,"author_id":"Mokokoma+Mokhonoana"},{"text":"A truly compassionate man gives a poor woman a portion of his meal before he eats, not after he has eaten.","author":"Mokokoma Mokhonoana","tags":["adage","adages","aphorism","aphorisms","axiom","axioms","compassion","compassionate","deep","dictum","dictums","dustbin","dustbins","eat","eating","epigram","epigrams","food","garbage","garbage-can","garbage-cans","gnome","gnomes","hobo","hobos","homeless","humor","humour","insightful","leftovers","made-me-think","make-you-think","maxim","maxims","meal","meals","philanthropist","philanthropists","philanthropy","pity","poor","portion","poverty","profound","proverb","proverbs","provoke-thought","quotation","quotations","quote","quotes","rich","satire","satirical","saying","sayings","sincere","sincerity","sympathetic","sympathy","thought-provoking","thoughtful","trash","trash-can","trash-cans","truly"],"id":26095,"author_id":"Mokokoma+Mokhonoana"},{"text":"Most sane human beings who are over the age of six usually act or react not as per what they genuinely feel or really think but in accordance with the expectations of those around them.","author":"Mokokoma Mokhonoana","tags":["act","adage","adages","africa","african","aphorism","aphorisms","axiom","axioms","believe","conform","conformity","deep","dictum","dictums","epigram","epigrams","expect","expectation","expectations","feel","feeling","feelings","funny","gnome","gnomes","human","human-being","human-beings","humanity","humans","humor","humorous","humour","insane","insanity","insightful","made-me-think","make-you-think","mankind","maxim","maxims","people","person","philosopher","profound","proverb","proverbs","provoke-thought","quotation","quotations","quote","of-the-day","quotes","sane","sanity","satire","satirical","satirist","satirists","saying","sayings","south-africa","south-african","think","thought-provoking","thoughtful"],"id":35272,"author_id":"Mokokoma+Mokhonoana"},{"text":"Unless they are off duty, no matter how wide it is, and even when it is sincere, a smile seems fake if the job description of the person who is smiling includes smiling.","author":"Mokokoma Mokhonoana","tags":["adage","adages","aphorism","aphorisms","axiom","axioms","cashier","cashiers","client-service","costumer-service","customer","customers","deep","dictum","dictums","epigram","epigrams","fake","gnome","gnomes","humor","humour","insightful","job","job-description","made-me-think","make-you-think","maxim","maxims","off-duty","on-duty","profound","proverb","proverbs","provoke-thought","quotation","quotations","quote","quotes","satire","satirical","saying","sayings","smile","smiles","smiling","teller","tellers","thought-provoking","thoughtful","work","working"],"id":39002,"author_id":"Mokokoma+Mokhonoana"},{"text":"An expensive coffin does not decrease the deceased’s chances of going to hell.","author":"Mokokoma Mokhonoana","tags":["adage","adages","afterlife-hereafter","aphorism","aphorisms","axiom","axioms","casket","caskets","coffin","coffins","dead","death","deep","denial-of-death","devil","dictum","dictums","epigram","epigrams","evil","funeral","funeral-parlor","funeral-parlors","funeral-parlour","funeral-parlours","funerals","gnome","gnomes","god","heaven","hell","humor","humour","insightful","made-me-think","make-you-think","materialism","materialistic","maxim","maxims","poor","poverty","profound","proverb","proverbs","provoke-thought","quotation","quotations","quote","quotes","religion","religious","rest-in-peace","rich","riches","rip","satan","satire","satirical","saying","sayings","show-off","sin","sinner","sinners","thought-provoking","thoughtful","wealth","wealthy"],"id":39761,"author_id":"Mokokoma+Mokhonoana"},{"text":"Just like how most if not all poor boys look up to and aspire to someday be rich men, most if not all underdeveloped and developing countries look up to and aspire to someday be developed countries.","author":"Mokokoma Mokhonoana","tags":["adage","adages","africa","african","aphorism","aphorisms","aspiration","aspire","axiom","axioms","boy","boys","capitalism","capitalistic","carbon-emissions","carbon-footprint","civilization","countries","country","deep","develop","developed","developed-countries","developed-country","dictum","dictums","economic-growth","economics","economies","economy","emission","environment","epigram","epigrams","first-world","funny","gdp","global-warming","gnome","gnomes","gnp","gross-domestic-product","gross-national-product","growth","humor","humorous","humour","industrialization","industrialized","industry","insightful","look-up-to","made-me-think","make-you-think","man","maxim","maxims","men","ozone-layer","philosopher","pollution","poor","poverty","profound","progress","proverb","proverbs","provoke-thought","quotation","quotations","quote","of-the-day","quotes","rich","riches","role-model","role-models","satire","satirical","satirist","satirists","saying","sayings","second-world","south-africa","south-african","third-world","thought-provoking","thoughtful","underdeveloped","underdeveloped-countries","underdeveloped-country","wealth","wealthy"],"id":45750,"author_id":"Mokokoma+Mokhonoana"},{"text":"More often than not, expecting to lose weight without first losing the diet that made the weight loss necessary is like expecting a pig to be spotless after hosing it down while it was still rolling in mud.","author":"Mokokoma Mokhonoana","tags":["adage","adages","africa","african","anorexia","anorexic","aphorism","aphorisms","appetite","axiom","axioms","bmi","body-fat","body-mass-index","cheat-day","cheat-days","clean","deep","dictum","dictums","diet","dietician","dieticians","dietitian","dietitians","epigram","epigrams","exercise","exercises","fat","fatty","food","funny","gnome","gnomes","gym","gymnasium","health","healthy","hose","humor","humorous","humour","ingredient","ingredients","insightful","lean","lose-weight","made-me-think","make-you-think","maxim","maxims","mud","muscles","muscular","necessary","necessity","obese","obesity","overeat","overeater","overeating","overweight","philosopher","pig","pigs","profound","proverb","proverbs","provoke-thought","quotation","quotations","quote","of-the-day","quotes","recipe","recipes","roll","rolling","salad","salads","satire","satirical","saying","sayings","shred","shredded","skinny","south-africa","south-african","spotless","sugar","sugary","thought-provoking","thoughtful","underweight","watch-what-you-eat","weight","weight-loss","weight-to-height","weightlifter","weightlifting","workout"],"id":45938,"author_id":"Mokokoma+Mokhonoana"}],"pagination":{"page":1,"page_size":10,"total":86,"pages":9,"next":"?page=2\u0026page_size=10"}}