Monica Lewinsky quotes:

+1
Share
Pin
Like
Send
Share
  • I think probably the qualities that I look for in a man are somewhat different than they were before I became a public person, but not that much different. I think that, sort of, the element of trust is certainly much bigger for me, but the other things that - the other qualities, intelligence and kindness and sense of humor, those things.

  • I did though at least expect him to correct the false statements he made when he was trying to protect the Presidency. Instead, he talked about it as though I had laid it all out there for the taking. I was the buffet and he just couldn't resist the dessert.

  • I know I will never have an affair with a married man again.

  • Overnight, I went from being a completely private figure to a publicly humiliated one. I was Patient Zero.

  • And I felt sorry, and I have felt bad about what happened.

  • I was Patient Zero. The first person to have their reputation completely destroyed worldwide via the Internet.

  • She has slimmed down since the height of impeachment, her thick blow-dried hair as shiny as Russian sable and her creamy cleavage, as historic in its own way as Mount Rushmore, was quite wonderful to behold.

  • I, myself, deeply regret what happened between me and President Clinton. Let me say it again: I. Myself. Deeply. Regret. What. Happened.

  • I tried to walk a line between acting lawfully and testifying falsely, but I now recognize that I did not fully accomplish this goal and that certain of my responses to questions about Ms. Lewinsky were false.

  • So it was sort of an odd time because I had been hired, but my paperwork hadn't gone through. So I worked as an intern during the government shutdown, as an intern, but I already had a job.

  • I voted Republican this year; the Democrats left a bad taste in my mouth.

  • I certainly know that this relationship could not have continued the way it did, when I was at the Pentagon and the president was obviously at the White House, without Betty.

  • I've been told by the prosecutors and by my own attorneys I should go to law school. I guess I have a knack for it.

  • I've always really been a romantic at heart, and I have always wanted kids, and I think the idea of sharing your life with the right person is amazing, actually.

  • Well, it was actually - I brought the idea of doing a documentary to HBO back in 2000, when there were some press reports sort of were bandied about that there were going to TV movies based on some of the books that were out.

  • Sure, my boss took advantage of me, but I will always remain firm on this point: it was a consensual relationship. Any 'abuse' came in the aftermath, when I was made a scapegoat in order to protect his powerful position,

  • He could have made it right with the book. But he hasn't. He is a revisionist of history. He has lied.

  • When I think of the person that I thought was Bill Clinton, I think he had genuine remorse. When I think of the person that I now see is 100 percent politician, I think he's sorry he got caught.

  • I have spent the past several years working so hard to just move on, and to try and build a life for myself.

  • I mean, there was a portion, of course, that I think, when I look back now, that there was a portion of what attracted me must have been the awe of him being a powerful man in this environment, not to take away from who he is as a real person.

  • I'd be lying if I said I wasn't angry some days. But I really have worked hard to put a lot of the anger and disappointment in the past.

  • I don't have the feelings of self-worth that a woman should have... and that's been the center of a lot of my mistakes and a lot of my pain.

  • At one point, I actually, ironically, thought I might go into criminology and work with the FBI.

  • I mean, I felt terrible. And in the beginning, I mean, I was completely devastated. I mean, can you imagine the kind of guilt that you would feel, and the responsibility?

  • I'm an incredibly lucky girl. For someone who has made some very foolish mistakes and had some tough lessons to learn very quickly, I am still incredibly lucky.

  • So I think it's - what was important to me is that I found that I can't change the fact that people already have made an opinion about me. But I don't think that should stop me from trying to correct some of the misperceptions that are out there.

  • Well, for me, really, I think it was I wanted to try and clear up some of the misperceptions that were out there and fill in some of the historical gaps.

  • We talk a lot about our right to freedom of expression, but we need to talk more about our responsibility to freedom of expression. We all want to be heard, but let's acknowledge the difference between speaking up with intention and speaking up for attention

  • I chose to not wear a wire and tape people. I chose to not get immunity until - were accepted, whatever - until the independent counsel's office was comfortable with what I said was the truth.

  • I lost my public self, or had it stolenIn a way, it was a form of identity theft.

  • Getting and keeping my immunity became very important to me. For I needed to take care of myself and my family. No one else was worried about me.

  • I try to make very careful decisions about what I choose to do, and it's - I know that unfortunately one of the misperceptions about me, I think, is that I'm sort of a moth to the limelight.

  • I was enamored with him. And I was excited. And I was enjoying it.

  • I think anybody who really knows me knows I'm not a media hound and knows that I'm really sort of trying to do the best I can with the situation that I found myself in.

  • But, clearly to me, what I've come to see is that that happened because I didn't have enough feelings of self-worth. So that I didn't feel that... I was worthy of being number one to a man.

  • I was worried about my mom more than I was worried about the president. And then I was worried about the president, and then I was worried about myself.

  • And understandably so, that when you're in legal jeopardy, you really cannot put yourself in a position to open yourself up to the media.

  • Anyone who is suffering from shame and public humiliation needs to know one thing: You can survive it...you can insist on a different ending to your story. Have compassion for yourself. We all deserve compassion, and to live both online and off in a more compassionate world.

  • As far as our culture of humiliation goes, what we need is a revolution. Public shaming as a blood sport has to stop.

  • As painful and destructive as they are, the hateful comments allow us to map the underlying beliefs of many people in a way we've never been able to before. It's almost as if all of the negativity and misogyny needs to come to the surface so we can fully understand what it is, and how deep it goes, before we can begin to shift it. Of course, I wish it weren't there.

  • Be mindful of clickbait - sensational stories designed to humiliate. Click with compassion.

  • Building a more compassionate society is going to be a bilateral exercise between individuals and the brands that represent their aspirations, their values and their truths. People make brands. If people are compassionate, brands will be compassionate in return.

  • Changing behaviours begins with evolving beliefs.

  • Constructive criticism is legitimate, but when it escalates to vitriol, it affects us all, because celebrities and influencers are part of the collective consciousness.

  • Do you want me to answer that?

  • Feeling alone and unseen can intensify the experience of being harassed, shamed, or bullied.

  • He ended it. He just said he didn't - he - well, what he said was that he didn't feel it was right, and you know, I mean that's - because he ended it, he'd probably have to be the one to answer that.

  • I felt like a piece of trash. I felt dirty and I felt used and I was disappointed.

  • I was brought up with lies all the time... that's how you got along... I have lied my entire life...

  • I would feel a little awkward because of my connection with politics.

  • I'm going to the White House to get my presidential kneepads.

  • I'm kind of known for something that's not so great to be known for.

  • I'm probably the only person over 40 who does not want to be 22 again.

  • It's time to burn the beret and bury the blue dress.

  • I've learned not to put things in my mouth that are bad for me.

  • Let's acknowledge the difference between speaking up with intention and speaking up for attention.

  • My creativity comes from an unhoned place, if 'unhoned' is a word....

  • Online we have a compassion deficit

  • People who know Clinton knew the guy has a real problem keeping his hands off women.

  • Public humiliation is a commodity and shame is an industry,

  • Some people are born great and some have greatness thrust upon them

  • The jokes that take my last name and equate them to a sex act ... is a really cruel thing to do.

  • The more shame, the more clicks; the more clicks, the more advertising dollars.

  • The most potent thing we can do is to bring more compassion online.

  • There is a very personal price to public humiliation, and the growth of the Internet has jacked up that price.

  • To mock at a soul in pain is a dreadful thing.

  • Try and have neutral compassion toward the perpetrator. Step outside the sting of the incident and realize that this person is trying to erase their own inadequacy or unhappiness by transferring it to you. It won't make the incident go away, but it's one thing you can do to reduce the pain.

  • When you see anyone being targeted, support her or him with a positive comment or emoji.

  • Women need to support other women, not cut them down. And that goes for recognizable women too.

  • You can insist on a different end to the story.

  • Public shaming is a blood sport that has to stop.

+1
Share
Pin
Like
Send
Share