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Excused Quotes

On being let off the hook — or not.

These excused quotes examine the line between a fair exception and a hollow excuse, from a kneeling custom lifted only for those excused from doing so, to a warning that weak excuses for not reaching out ring hollow. It's a theme rooted in duty and honesty.

If time is money, it seems moral to save time, above all one's own, and such parsimony is excused by consideration for others. One is straight-forward.

Quotes by Theodor W. Adorno

But if, on the other hand, we should be justified in rejecting it, if there testified on oath, then, supposing our rules of evidence to be sound, we may be excused if we hesitate elsewhere to give it credence.

Quotes by Simon Greenleaf

What kind of pupil was I? Well, I was a swot, but I was allowed to be without any ill effects by my contemporaries because I was excused from games due to my asthma. So being a swot was something...

Quotes by Peter Higgs

We could talk, act, and dress funny. We were excused for socially inappropriate behavior: 'Oh, he's a programmer'. It was all because we knew this technology stuff that other people found completely mystifying.

Quotes by Kent Beck

Action Quotes

We are all busy. It's easy to find excuses for not reaching out to others, but I imagine they will sound as hollow to our Heavenly Father as the elementary school boy who gave his teacher a note asking that...

Quotes by Joseph B. Wirthlin

A Gorean slave girl in the presence of a free man or woman always kneels, unless excused from doing so.

Quotes by John Norman

The show originally started out as a ten hour mini-series. We shot two hours and then were excused for a while, for no apparent reason. Things went very quiet for a time and then a few months later we were...

Quotes by Gil Gerard

The wrongful arrest of tens of thousands of British Muslims after the September 11 attacks can be explained by the very poor intelligence the police had, and, just possibly, excused by the fact that a terrorist action in Britain linked...

Quotes by Geoff Mulgan

No day passes without a Democratic politician, a left-wing commentator, or, if I may be excused a redundancy, a left-wing academic labeling Republicans and conservatives racist.

Quotes by Dennis Prager

Back Quotes

I believe that the president should be excused from some of the burdens of ordinary citizenship while serving in office. This is not something I necessarily thought in the 1980s or 1990s. Like many Americans at that time, I believed...

Quotes by Brett Kavanaugh

I must be out of it, but I don't know any good journalists who have excused Clinton's problems.

Quotes by Ben Bradlee

Frequently Asked Questions

What does "excused" mean across these quotes?
It covers being formally exempted from a rule or custom, as well as the more everyday sense of offering an excuse for inaction — the quotes explore both the fair and the flimsy versions of being let off the hook.
Why do these quotes criticize excuses for not reaching out to others?
One quote compares weak excuses to a child's implausible note to a teacher, arguing that convenient reasons for avoiding others often sound as hollow to a higher standard as they do to common sense.
Is there a legal or formal angle to these excused quotes?
Yes — one references being excused from strict rules of evidence under oath, showing how the word applies to formal exceptions in law and testimony, not just personal behavior.
Do any quotes defend making excuses as reasonable?
One frames saving time, even one's own, as excused by consideration for others, suggesting that some self-interested choices can be justified when they also serve other people.
What other topics complement excused quotes?
For more on responsibility and honesty, see our Being and Action collections.

Other lines question when courts or people should be excused from strict rules of evidence or conduct. For more on responsibility and conviction, browse our Action and Believe quotes.