It is a true observation of ancient writers, that as men are apt to be cast down by adversity, so they, are easily satiated with prosperity, and that joy and grief produce the same effects. For whenever men are not obliged by necessity to fight they fight from ambition, which is so powerful a passion in the human breast that however high we reach we are never satisfied.
Niccolo MachiavelliWisdom consists of knowing how to distinguish the nature of trouble, and in choosing the lesser evil.
Niccolo MachiavelliYou have to be a prince to understand the people, and you have to belong to the people to understand the princes.
Niccolo Machiavelli