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Sunday, April 29, 2012

Machiavelli's Evil Genius

I'm currently re-reading Machiavelli's The Prince and I have to admit, Machiavelli is kind of a genius. (Maybe an evil genius, but that's beside the point). 

I particularly like his belief that assassinating one's enemies are necessities imposed on a prince (or perhaps a princess? Empress? Pharaoh?) because the prince would run the risk of losing power if those enemies weren't killed. 

"A man who wants to make a profession of goodness in everything is bound to come to ruin among so many who are not good.

Here, here! 

 (Says the writer who has assassinated many a character). 

He also points out that sometimes a prince absolutely has to do something evil out of political necessity, but so long as people benefit, they won't get upset. 

 (I'm assuming he means the people still alive, not those beheaded, burned, or tortured to death). 

Anyway, I'm sure Hatshepsut and Theodora would be pleased to hear Machiavelli's justifications. Based on his criteria, they both made excellent princes. 

*insert evil laugh*