The fact is that a man who wants to act virtuously in every way necessarily comes to grief among so many who are not virtuous.
Niccolo MachiavelliYou have to be a prince to understand the people, and you have to belong to the people to understand the princes.
Niccolo MachiavelliAll who contribute to the overthrow of religion, or to the ruin of kingdoms and commonwealths, all who are foes to letters and to the arts which confer honour and benefit on the human race (among whom I reckon the impious, the cruel, the ignorant, the indolent, the base and the worthless), are held in infamy and detestation.
Niccolo MachiavelliSo long as the great majority of men are not deprived of either property or honor, they are satisfied.
Niccolo Machiavelli