Background Quotes

Do not separate text from historical background. If you do, you will have perverted and subverted the Constitution, which can only end in a distorted, bastardized form of illegitimate government.
James Madison

Government, End, Historical

Man's unique reward, however, is that while animals survive by adjusting themselves to their background, man survives by adjusting his background to himself.
Ayn Rand

Themselves, While, Unique

In the dim background of mind we know what we ought to be doing but somehow we cannot start.
William James

Mind, Cannot, Start

I think music is the greatest art form that exists, and I think people listen to music for different reasons, and it serves different purposes. Some of it is background music, and some of it is things that might affect a person's day, if not their life, or change an attitude. The best songs are the ones that make you feel something.
Eddie Vedder

Life, Change, Music

Obviously, I come from one background, and the people that design fitness equipment have been doing it for years and years, and they know what works and doesn't work.
Lance Armstrong

Work, Design, Fitness

And in my own life, in my own small way, I've tried to give back to this country that has given me so much. That's why I left a job at a law firm for a career in public service, working to empower young people to volunteer in their communities. Because I believe that each of us - no matter what our age or background or walk of life - each of us has something to contribute to the life of this nation.
Michelle Obama

I want to state upfront, unequivocally and without doubt: I do not believe that any racial, ethnic or gender group has an advantage in sound judging. I do believe that every person has an equal opportunity to be a good and wise judge, regardless of their background or life experiences.
Sonia Sotomayor

Life, Good, Wise

We believe a renewed commitment to limited government will unshackle our economy and create millions of new jobs and opportunities for all people, of every background, to succeed and prosper. Under this approach, the spirit of initiative - not political clout - determines who succeeds.
Paul Ryan

Government, Political, Succeed

No matter the nationality, no matter the religion, no matter the ethnic background, America brings out the best in people.
Arnold Schwarzenegger

Religion, Best, America

Any active sportsman has to be very focused; you've got to be in the right frame of mind. If your energy is diverted in various directions, you do not achieve the results. I need to know when to switch on and switch off: and the rest of the things happen around that. Cricket is in the foreground, the rest is in the background.
Sachin Tendulkar

Mind, Happen, Cricket

I saw as a teacher how, if you take that spark of learning that those children have, and you ignite it, you can take a child from any background to a lifetime of creativity and accomplishment.
Paul Wellstone

Teacher, Learning, Children

I am much less autistic now, compared to when I was young. I remember some behaviors like picking carpet fuzz and watching spinning plates for hours. I didn't want to be touched. I couldn't shut out background noise. I didn't talk until I was about 4 years old. I screamed. I hummed. But as I grew up, I improved.
Temple Grandin

Remember, Young, Old

When I was trying to impress Kate I was trying to cook these amazing fancy dinners and what would happen was I would burn something, something would overspill, something would catch on fire and she would be sitting in the background trying to help, and basically taking control of the whole situation, so I was quite glad she was there at the time.
Prince William

Time, Amazing, Help

I just hope that our fans are people who are inspired by music, and just use our music as a background or inspiration for whatever it is they do.
Maynard James Keenan

Music, Hope, Whatever

I'll also tell you that five hundred thousand people will die this year of cancer. And I'll also tell you that one in every four will be afflicted with this disease, and yet, somehow, we seem to have put it in a little bit of the background.
Jim Valvano

Let a man get up and say, Behold, this is the truth, and instantly I perceive a sandy cat filching a piece of fish in the background. Look, you have forgotten the cat, I say.
Virginia Woolf

Truth, Fish, Forgotten

The discipline of desire is the background of character.
John Locke

Character, Desire, Discipline

I had a lot of trouble with engineers, because their whole background is learning from a functional point of view, and then learning how to perform that function.
Brian Eno

Learning, Whole, Engineers

I'm very proud to be black, but black is not all I am. That's my cultural historical background, my genetic makeup, but it's not all of who I am nor is it the basis from which I answer every question.
Denzel Washington

Black, Proud, Question

The one thing that unites all human beings, regardless of age, gender, religion or ethnic background, is that we all believe we are above-average drivers.
Dave Barry

Age, Religion, Human

Yeah, well I've always played comedy. My background is musical comedy theatre and that's really where my training is. As an actor, that's my training.
Christopher Walken

Training, Comedy, Theatre

I would say that although my music may be or may have been part of the cultural background fabric of the gay community, I consider myself an outsider who belongs everywhere and nowhere... Being a human being is what truly counts. That's where you'll find me.
Annie Lennox

Music, Gay, Human

I'm from a working-class background, and I've experienced that worry of not having a job next week because the unions are going on strike.
Annie Lennox

Job, Worry, Next

I have never denied my background or my culture. I have taught my child to embrace her Mexican heritage, to love my first language, Spanish, to learn about Mexican history, music, folk art, food, and even the Mexican candy I grew up with.
Salma Hayek

Love, Music, History

I speak of a clinical depression that is the background of your entire life, a background of anguish and anxiety, a sense that nothing goes well, that pleasure is unavailable and all your strategies collapse.
Leonard Cohen

Life, Depression, Nothing

I tell students that the opportunities I had were a result of having a good educational background. Education is what allows you to stand out.
Ellen Ochoa

Education, Good, Tell

Surely the President can agree with us, that theft from government is not good. I know it's bold. It's out on the edge. I know from a Chicago-Springfield background it's hard to fully grasp that honesty could be part of government.
Newt Gingrich

Good, Government, Hard

I'm not a judgmental person, so I can't comment on someone else's background.
Christina Aguilera

Someone, Person, Else

We are increasingly likely to find ourselves in places with background music. No composers have thought to write for these modern spaces, which represent 30% of our musical experience.
Brian Eno

Music, Experience, Thought

When I started making my own records, I had this idea of drowning out the singer and putting the rest in the foreground. It was the background that interested me.
Brian Eno

Idea, Making, Rest

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