Monthly Archives: February 2004

“Killing to Acquire and Secure Power, for Dummies” would be an apt subtitle for Niccolo Machiavelli’s book The Prince. Within this work, Machiavelli advocates the unrestrained pursuit of power as its own end, without allowing such paltry things as ethics to interfere. If massacring a slew of people will help one get power, one should by all means do it, according to Machiavelli. These advocacies of violence for one’s own selfish ends are not Machiavelli’s only breaks with the teachings … Continue reading →