"The first method for estimating the intelligence of a ruler is to look at the men he has around him."
"You must know, then, that there are two methods of fighting, the one by law, the other by force: the first method is that of men, the second of beasts; but as the first method is often insufficient, one must have recourse to the second."
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Source: Niccolo Machiavelli (2017). “The Prince”, p.55, Knickerbocker Classics
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