“Shake the hand that feeds you.”

“You can't shake hands with a clenched fist.”

George V of the United Kingdom (1865–1936) King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India

“The proverb warns that, 'You should not bite the hand that feeds you.' But maybe you should, if it prevents you from feeding yourself.”

Thomas Szasz (1920–2012) Hungarian psychiatrist

“… you cannot shake hands with the Devil and not get sulphur on your sleeve.”

Nancy A. Collins (1959) writer

“He could shake your hand and stab you in the back at the same time.”

Hunter S. Thompson (1937–2005) American journalist and author

“It was evident to Elias Tate that this was the government. First they shake hands with you, he thought, and then they murder you.”

Philip K. Dick The Divine Invasion

“Step up and shake the hand
Of someone you can't stand,
You can tolerate him if you try!”

Tom Lehrer (1928) American singer-songwriter and mathematician

“And Pontiff, pretty Pontiff
Can anyone shake your hand?
Or is it just that you like uniforms
and someone kissing your hand”

Lou Reed (1942–2013) American musician

“There are times when parenthood seems nothing more than feeding the hand that bites you.”

Peter de Vries (1910–1993) American editor and novelist

“Don't shake the hand of reality with one finger.”

Eli Siegel (1902–1978) Latvian-American poet, philosopher