#pretence

The Chinese art world does not exist. In a society that restricts individual freedoms and violates human rights, anything that calls itself creative or independent is a pretence. It is impossible for a totalitarian society to create anything with passion and imagination. ↗

— Ai Weiwei

#art #art world #calls #chinese #create

The war on Iraq was a disaster, clearly carried out under false pretences. ↗

— Joe Wilson

#clearly #disaster #false #iraq #out

I love the idea of spies in love. How would it work between two people who were so programmed to lie and be suspicious, who have a whole life based on pretence? ↗

— Tony Gilroy

#between #how #i #i love #idea

Civilization is a conspiracy. Modern life is the silent compact of comfortable folk to keep up pretences. ↗

— John Buchan

#comfortable #compact #conspiracy #folk #keep

In all highly civilised communities Pretence is prominent, and sooner or later invades the regions of Literature. ↗

— James Payn

#communities #highly #invades #later #literature

In England, literary pretence is more universal than elsewhere from our method of education. ↗

— James Payn

#elsewhere #england #literary #method #more

Give immediate instruction to all your posts in said territory, under your direction, at no time and on no pretence to hoist, or suffer be hoisted, the English flag. ↗

— Zebulon Pike

#english #flag #give #hoist #immediate

If we can but prevent the government from wasting the labours of the people, under the pretence of taking care of them, they must become happy. ↗

— Thomas Jefferson

#care #government #happy #labours #must

Malice can always find a mark to shoot at, and a pretence to fire. ↗

— Charles Simmons

#find #fire #malice #mark #pretence

Church was doing what he often did when dropped - lying on his back with all four legs in the air, pretending to be dead in order to induce guilt in his owners. ↗

— Cassandra Clare

#cat #church #city-of-lost-souls #humor #pretence