Personal Choice Quotes

The present predicaments of Africa are often not a matter of personal choice: they arise from a historical situation. Their solutions are not so much a matter of personal decision as that of a fundamental social transformation of the structures of our societies starting with a real break with imperialism and its internal ruling allies. Imperialism and its comprador alliances in Africa can never develop the continent. ~ Ngugi Wa Thiongo

A person may use his fundamental right to communicate whatever he likes, but the people like his point as per their personal choice only and not necessarily that which is always fundamentally right. ~ Anuj

Disconnecting from one's community is a personal choice, of course, but it ends up having social implications ["The Basement," The Awl, Feb 5, 2015]. ~ Ariana Kelly

I think it would be great if everybody could be out. But it's such a personal choice. People have to do it at their own speed. I respect that. ~ Don Lemon

The Old Soul is more inclined to be a lifelong learner, constantly feeding his thirst for insight through his own persistent efforts. His learning has not been forced into him through education or learned out of obligation, but has been absorbed out of curiosity and personal choice. ~ Aletheia Luna

Political risk is hard to manage because so much comes down to the personal choices of policymakers, whether prime ministers or heads of central banks. ~ James Surowiecki

There is a lot of opposition. You will experience it. But the joys that come from the study, more than compensate for the opposition, in my opinion. It's a personal choice. ~ Frederick Lenz

I do not agree that NIMBYism is wrong morally. I believe that NIMBYism is wrong ethically. It's a personal choice. ~ Chicken John

Yet the personal choice to smoke is ... the same kind of choice as the driver who downed the beers, and then the telephone pole. - Open letter from the tobacco industry, 1988 ~ Siddhartha Mukherjee

It wasn't that she necessarily wanted to "socialize" at the bonfire, but she wanted to broadcast to the general population that her antisocial behavior was a personal choice not a sentence to social leprosy. ~ J.D. Stroube

My collections are a reflection of my personal style and interests. All the textiles, fabrics and patterns are of my personal choice. ~ Ashley Purdy

For love to flourish there has to be trust. Promises don't matter as much as
personal choice. ~ Ann Aguirre

I think that, honestly, people's censorship issues are personal but I disagree with most of those personal choices that I see others make. I watch television and there's a grotesque amount of violence on almost every show. And I think my dirty brand of humor is far less destructive to a child's mentality. ~ Seth Rogen

Life is exactly what you make it; it can be a heaven or hell; it's all up to you. ~ Steven Redhead

My take on the indigent is that some are there because of temporary setbacks, some by default, and some for lack of an alternative. Some are needy, some are off their meds, some have opted out, some have been ousted from facilities where they might be better served. Many are there for life and not always by personal choice. Alcoholic, addicted, aimless, illiterate, unmotivated, unskilled, or otherwise unable to prosper, they sink to the bottom, and if they're down for any length of time, they lose the capacity to climb back out of the hole into which they've fallen. If there's a remedy, I don't know what it is. From what I've seen of the problem, most solutions perpetuate the status quo. ~ Sue Grafton

Critics of the global warming agenda are motivated ... by a love of freedom and civil liberties. They want a discussion based on logic and facts that will address any problems without depriving us of liberty and personal choice. They do not want to sacrifice our way of life based on fears of an unproven theory. After all, the loss of liberty is a greater cause of alarm than global warming. ~ Deneen Borelli

Why become enlightened? Why join the military? Why get married? Why cross the ocean? It is a personal choice. There is something in a person that draws them to the light. ~ Frederick Lenz

He seemed like the type that kept people at arm's length, maybe out of arrogance or maybe from personal choice- either way, I wanted to know him so that those eyes were narrowed and focused solely on me. ~ R.S. Grey

Choice and perception are closely linked. They are unique, personal and emotional. ~ Fennel Hudson

I was brought up Catholic. I'm lapsed. From the age of three I was with the nuns. Now I'm an atheist. ~ Paul Bettany

The person who hurt you
who raped you or killed your family
is also here. If you are still angry at that person, if you haven't been able to forgive, you are chained to him. Everyone could feel the emotional truth of that: When someone offends you and you haven't let go, every time you see him, you grow breathless or your heart skips a beat. If the trauma was really severe, you dream of revenge. Above you, is the Mountain of Peace and Prosperity where we all want to go. But when you try to climb that hill, the person you haven't forgiven weighs you down. It's a personal choice whether or not to let go. No one can tell you how long to mourn a death or rage over a rape. But you can't move forward until you break that chain. ~ Leymah Gbowee

Mrs. Bonneville never buckled her seat belt, even though it was required by state law; an ardent libertarian, she opposed government meddling in all matters of personal choice. ~ Carl Hiaasen

Trust cannot, in the real world, be just a matter of personal choice. ~ David Amerland

Sure smokers have made personal choices. And they pay for those choices every day, whether sitting through an airline flight dyingfor a smoke, or dying for a smoke in the oncology wing of a hospital. The tobacco companies have not paid nearly enough for the killing. ~ Anna Quindlen

Freedom with poverty meant more to me than money without personal choice ~ Kamal Al-Solaylee

Choice is the mortar that binds together the things that make us who we are. ~ Fennel Hudson

In a certain sense, all true leaders are heroes. Heroes are ordinary people who are given being and action by something bigger than themselves ... Each of us must make the personal choice to be a hero or not, to be committed to something bigger than ourselves or not, to go beyond the way we "wound up being" and have the purpose of our lives and our careers be about something that makes a difference or not, in other words, to be a leader or not. ~ Werner Erhard

Some changes we can control, but we find that many things are inseparably wired into the life we share in local, national, and global communities. For example, the healthy lifestyle you are determined to live and take to be a personal choice of which you have control, is heavily influenced and limited by the culture and industries of the communities you belong to. ~ Ilchi Lee

Choices are our choices so I am not taking away anyone's personal choice, but we run into difficulty when we're having choices made for us rather than making our own. ~ Robert Moss

I heard this old country guy say once, "I think you decide pretty early on how happy you're going to be, and then you just go on and be it." But I don't think that's the case for a lot of people. For a lot of people, for a lot of the people I met in the bin, I think personal choice has very little to do with it. ~ Robert Goolrick

No memory is anything more than a personal choice. ~ Chuck Palahniuk

You marry out of free will. If I marry, it will be from a personal choice, not some social compulsion or norm. ~ Sonam Kapoor

No limits are set to the ascent of man, and to each and everyone the highest stands open. Here it is only your personal choice that decides. ~ Martin Buber

In this martial world dominated by men, women had little place. The Church's teachings might underpin feudal morality, yet when it came to the practicalities of life, a ruthless pragmatism often came into play. Kings and noblemen married for political advantage, and women rarely had any say in how they or their wealth were to be disposed in marriage. Kings would sell off heiresses and rich widows to the highest bidder, for political or territorial advantage, and those who resisted were heavily fined.

Young girls of good birth were strictly reared, often in convents, and married off at fourteen or even earlier to suit their parents' or overlord's purposes. The betrothal of infants was not uncommon, despite the church's disapproval. It was a father's duty to bestow his daughters in marriage; if he was dead, his overlord or the King himself would act for him. Personal choice was rarely and issue.

Upon marriage, a girl's property and rights became invested in her husband, to whom she owed absolute obedience. Every husband had the right to enforce this duty in whichever way he thought fit--as Eleanor was to find out to her cost. Wife-beating was common, although the Church did at this time attempt to restrict the length of the rod that a husband might use. ~ Alison Weir

Nothing could do that to them, that's what they used to whisper as they sat on the back stairs, in the dark and the dust, as if desire were a matter of personal choice. ~ Alice Hoffman

Happily ever after doesn't just happen because you've found the love of your life. Happiness is a personal choice. ~ Tracie Sage

Politics is not only about personal choice. That one also needs to take into consideration what the people want because in the end, they are the ones who decide. ~ Paul Kagame

Luck is opportunity met by preparation - and to be prepared or unprepared is a personal choice. ~ Neal Boortz

I'm being driven crazy by people who are obsessed with limiting the scope of government, but feel perfectly free to demand that government get involved in women's most personal choices. ~ Gail Collins

Whenever we talk about darkness and light, the terms seem so abstract that many consider the answers to be found in meditation and yoga, but I'm here to tell you that the answers are in the books you will never read, waiting all your life in the libraries you ignored and the bookstores you didn't visit. I'm here to tell you as well that you are your own Satan and evil can't possibly interfere more in your life than what you're already doing to yourself by remaining ignorant. Until you choose the light, darkness is your personal choice, and there's no reason to feel any empathy for you. ~ Robin Sacredfire

A happy marriage is a personal choice. The same way you decide to GET married? It's the same way you decide to STAY happily married! ~ Ngina Otiende

You can look back at your past misfortune with two points of view; both will impact the person you become. You can dwell on yesterday's adversity and stay idle where you are, defeated. Or, you can recognize the hardship for what it was, learn from it and move onward…unconquered. Being a victim or a victor is a matter of personal choice. ~ Jason Versey

We believe that if you put in place the mechanisms that allow for personal choice as far as Medicare is concerned, as well as the programs in Medicaid, that we can actually get to a better result and do what most Americans are learning how to do, which is to do more with less. ~ Eric Cantor

Whether one eats a cat or not is a personal choice, and I don't want to sway anyone one way or another. But if you do, there is one obvious cooking tip: Always remember to remove the bell from the cat's collar before cooking. ~ Mike Royko

How fair is it to judge a person based on his sexual preferences, or their 'otherness'? As long as a person is not 'harmful' for others or not violating the rights of others, I think we need not be bothered about their personal lives, whom they love or whom they marry. It is a personal choice. I think the most important thing about a person is his or her 'humanity', kindness, selflessness not their 'sex life' (only as long as he or she is not violating the rights of others or causing harm to others).
It is entirely a disgrace on humanity to 'discriminate' a person solely based on their 'otherness'.
I am surprised to see how the society stands against or make fun out of 'gay' people, who are totally harmless, ignoring the 'human' in them, but feel 'OK' with 'rapists', 'sex maniacs', 'prostitution' and 'sexual violence against women and children' occurring in Sri Lanka every day. ~ Ama H. Vanniarachchy

An authentic coaching relationship gives the client personal choice and control. ~ Michael J. Marx

French existentialism is an unhelpful philosophy in which to couch modern feminism: born from the ravages of the Second World War, it is a cynical, individualistic school of thought that posits the self and personal choice as the measure of life's entire meaning. ~ Naomi Wolf

Condoning and condemning are both wrong for the same reasons: they refuse to take seriously the integrity of the other person, and to accept the fact that personal choice has personal consequences; they refuse to accept children as persons in their own right and not just extensions of the parent; and they refuse to take seriously the promises of God, to believe that God is capable of bringing good out of evil, healing out of suffering, peace out of disorder, resurrection out of crucifixion. They refuse to believe in Jesus Christ. ~ Eugene H. Peterson

I like all kinds of comedy. I like comedy that doesn't talk about real beliefs or serious thoughts, but then I also like the stuff that does. I think it just depends. It's a completely personal choice. ~ Maria Bamford

Our main problem is deciding how to spend this one and only precious life that we have been gifted...
Shall we spend it trying to look good - trying to create the illusion of being better, stronger or smarter than others, or of having power and control over people and life's circumstances?
Or shall we let go and humble ourselves - so we can truly taste life, enjoy it, share it, own it and fully appreciate it?
Its a very personal choice. Let's choose wisely! ~ Jose N Harris

Charity, if you have the means, is a personal choice, but charity which is expected or compelled is simply a polite word for slavery. ~ Terry Goodkind

Morality, for all the conditioning to which the human mind has been and is subjected, is always a personal choice in the last analysis. ~ John Christopher

Farm to table is a personal choice. ~ Tom Douglas

The basic problem is that most Western countries have privatised the next generation. Having children tends to be regarded as a personal choice rather than a social good. ~ Tony Abbott

We believe in personal choice, rather than society dictating how we must live our lives. ~ Mike Peters

We did not choose to believe that personal choice is the highest human virtue. Rather, we were taught, formed, forced to believe nothing is important in life other than that which we have personally chosen. The irony is that the belief that nothing is important in life other than that which we have personally chosen is a belief that we have not personally chosen! The supermarket and shopping mall have been our school. ~ William Henry Willimon

Forgiveness is above all a personal choice, a decision of the heart to go against the natural instinct to pay back evil with evil. ~ Pope John Paul II

There is a growing revolution in the field of human consciousness, as a quest for deeper meaning at the personal level emerges. This book has been written as a contribution to the evolution of human consciousness, seen through the eyes of both practitioners and clients. ~ Peter Smith

The terrible thing, the almost impossible thing, is to hand over your whole self
all your wishes and precautions
to Christ. But it is far easier than what we are all trying to do instead. For what we are trying to do is to remain what we call "ourselves," to keep personal happiness as our great aim in life, and yet at the same time be "good. ~ C.S. Lewis

Let's focus on how we can take someone who is being poorly educated in an American public school and how they are poorly trained for a job, and put in place those opportunities for them to get that education, give their parents choice in education, make it real for them. ~ Michael Steele

This is the oath of a Knight of King Arther's Round Table and should be for all of us to take to heart. I will develop my life for the greater good. I will place character above riches, and concern for others above personal wealth, I will never boast, but cherish humility instead, I will speak the truth at all times, and forever keep my word, I will defend those who cannot defend themselves, I will honor and respect women, and refute sexism in all its guises, I will uphold justice by being fair to all, I will be faithful in love and loyal in friendship, I will abhor scandals and gossip-neither partake nor delight in them, I will be generous to the poor and to those who need help, I will forgive when asked, that my own mistakes will be forgiven, I will live my life with courtesy and honor from this day forward. ~ King Arthur

Freedom of choice is possible. Life is going to unfold however it does: pleasant or unpleasant, disappointing or thrilling, expected or unexpected, all of the above! What a relief it would be to know that whatever wave comes along, we can ride it out with grace [p. 35]. ~ Sylvia Boorstein

The domestic violence policy has been given to our players. My personal view is there's no place in our society for it. I think, especially with the emphasis and education that's out there now, let's hope better light will be shined on this area. ~ Mike McCarthy

When your watch gets out of order you have choice of two things to do: throw it in the fire or take it to the watch-tinker. The former is the quickest. ~ Mark Twain

It's harder to reveal sides of yourself that make you vulnerable but it's another muscle that can be developed and one that I think is worthwhile. That said, everyone finds their style. It's personal. ~ Ted Alexandro

Every moment we have, we end up spending it together. Like gravity is pulling us into each other's orbit and there's no choice but to either collide or keep rotating around each other. ~ Karina Halle

The only thrill, even of a common thriller, is concerned somehow with the conscience and the will; it involves finding out that men are worse or better than they seem, and that by their own choice. ~ G.K. Chesterton

At every turn, while he was investigating the background for his study of Thomas Nashe, he would encounter the Church - what Chesterton called (another book title) The Thing. It was everywhere. At one point, he later told me (and he was never very specific just when that point occurred), he decided that the thing had to be sorted out or he couldn't rest. Either it ws true, or it wasn't. Either the entire matter was true, all of it, exactly as the Church claimed, or it was the biggest hoax ever perpetrated on a gullible mankind. With that choice clearly delineated, he set out to find which was the case. What came next was not more study, but testing.

The matter had to be tested - on its own terms: that is, by prayer. He told me that the principal prayer that he used was not some long or complex formula, but simply, "Lord, please, send me a sign." He reported that, almost immediately, not one but a deluge of signs arrived. And they continued to arrive unabated for a long time. As to just what the signs consisted in and what happened next, well, some things must remain private. The reader may deduce the rest from the fact of his conversion. ...
-- Eric McLuhan, introduction ~ Marshall McLuhan

Those in the west who dismiss the repressiveness of laws against women in countries like Iran, no matter how benign their intentions, present a condescending view not just of the religion but also of women living in Muslim majority countries, as if the desire for choice and happiness is the monopoly of women in the west. ~ Azar Nafisi

Oh you will die and soon
because you made the
choice to fall in love."
~Asher Lake ~ Shawn Reilly

Early in To Kill a Mockingbird, Jem refuses to come down from the tree house and eat breakfast because his father won't play football for the Methodists. Atticus goes out to invite Jem in to eat, but Jem refuses. Atticus doesn't get into a long discussion. He has made his offer and quietly walks away when Jem stubbornly declares he will not come down. 'Suit yourself,' says Atticus simply. He can rest easy because he's done his job as a loving father, and if Jem decides to go hungry, that's his choice. The wise father knows when to walk away and leave well enough alone.

As a teacher , I wish I had realized this early in my career, but at least I know it now. Whether I deal with administrators, parents, teachers, or students, I have my answer. ~ Rafe Esquith

Circumstances made me the theatrical personality I am, which many people believe is also a part of my personal life. ~ Bela Lugosi

What about those yogis who can lie down on a bed of nails, then arise, streaming blood, then stop the flow of blood from each wound individually with the power of their minds? Isn't frailty often a choice? ~ Sarah Manguso

Liberal Democracy is all about extending choice. Give people the option to decide their retirement age, and you immediately extend their freedom in a very significant way. ~ Charles Kennedy

I am trying to imagine under what novel features despotism may appear in the world. In the first place, I see an innumerable multitude of men, alike and equal, constantly circling around in pursuit of the petty and banal pleasures with which they glut their souls. Each one of them, withdrawn into himself, is almost unaware of the fate of the rest….

Over this kind of men stands an immense, protective power which is alone responsible for securing their enjoyment and watching over their fate. That power is absolute, thoughtful of detail, orderly, provident, and gentle. It would resemble parental authority if, fatherlike, it tried to prepare charges for a man's life, but on the contrary, it only tries to keep them in perpetual childhood. It likes to see the citizens enjoy themselves, provided that they think of nothing but enjoyment. It gladly works for their happiness but wants to be sole agent and judge of it. It provides for their security, foresees and supplies their necessities, facilitates their pleasure, manages their principal concerns, directs their industry, makes rules for their testaments, and divides their inheritances. Why should it not entirely relieve them from the trouble of thinking and all the cares of living?

Thus it daily makes the exercise of free choice less useful and rarer, restricts the activity of free will within a narrower compass, and little by little robs each citizen of the proper use of his own faculties. Equality has prepare ~ Alexis De Tocqueville

My childhood beliefs became so much a part of me that even today I find myself automatically living by a personal standard of conduct which can only be explained as resulting from my religious training. ~ Robert Vaughn

I was working in Chicago, in theater and in commercials and anything that anybody would let me do. When I moved to L.A., I had made a choice to be a character actor, meaning that I wanted to become somebody else. That's what attracted me to becoming an actor in the first place. ~ Janina Gavankar

The God understood as a father figure, who guided ultimate personal decisions, answered our prayers, and promised rewards and punishment based upon our behavior was not designed to call anyone into maturity. ~ John Shelby Spong

Your choice of armor was your intellect. ~ Alanis Morissette

The day my father came to claim me, my mother did not wish for me to go. 'She is a girl,' she said, 'and I do not think that she is yours. I had a thousand other men.' He tossed his spear at my feet and gave my mother the back of his hand across the face, so she began to weep. 'Girl or boy, we fight our battles,' he said, 'but the gods let us choose our weapons.' He pointed to the spear, then to my mother's tears, and I picked up the spear. ~ George R R Martin

The only thing I collect is art. I collect it because I like looking at it. A lot of it is really personal stuff that my friends have made, paintings that my husband's mother made, and things that I bought. I buy abstract art on eBay, and I buy some outsider art on eBay, or what is called folk art, I buy a lot of. I have a lot of professional art work as well as more stuff my friends' kids make. To have a wall of art to look at, I feel really surrounded by love, because so much of the work is related to my friendships. ~ Kathleen Hanna

When a leader keeps personal ego in check it builds the confidence and self-esteem of others. ~ Ken Jennings

I was as big as I have ever been. I had a personal trainer and was working out. I was feeling good. I was muscular. I had never weighed more than 155 pounds. ~ Marc Wallice

What if the 'brutal thunderclap of halt' takes the form of the choice, Dishonesty or insanity? ~ Colin Wilson

Did you really think you could quit?" He moved closer, his steps slow, purposeful. "Just fax me a damned piece of paper and I'd be forced to let you walk away from me?"
"You don't have a choice." Lydia swallowed the lump in her throat and moved around the chair. Putting furniture between them seemed like a smart idea. "I quit, end of story."
"The hell it is," he growled as he stopped and crossed his arms over his chest. "I've given you space, Lydia, but it's time we talk."
"There's nothing to say."
He pointedly glanced at the chair and quirked a brow. "Afraid, little Lydia?"
Afraid of her own ability to keep her hands off him, yeah. "You don't scare me, Dane. You'd never hurt me."
"Then quit acting so skittish and come here. ~ Anne Rainey

I think the place fed me completely. Not only was I in Uganda, but I was around many people who had a personal relationship with Idi Amin. I was eating the food constantly. I was culturally hanging out with the people. You can't help but absorb the energy, and try to get inside the culture. ~ Forest Whitaker

It's easy to run to others. It's so hard to stand on one's own record. You can fake virtue for an audience. You can't fake it in your own eyes. Your ego is your strictest judge. They run from it. They spend their lives running. It's easier to donate a few thousand to charity and think oneself noble than to base self-respect on personal standards of personal achievement. It's simple to seek substitutes for competence
such easy substitutes: love, charm, kindness, charity. But there is no substitute for competence. ~ Ayn Rand