“[H]ow dangerous it is for a republic or a prince to keep the minds of their subjects in a state of apprehension by pains and penalties constantly suspended over their heads.”*
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*Machiavelli, Niccolo. The Complete Works of Niccolo Machiavelli: Thoughts of a Statesman, The Prince, The History of Florence, The Art of War, Diplomatic Missions, and Discources ... (6 Books With Active Table of Contents) (Kindle Locations 21740-21741). Kindle Edition.
Niccolò di Bernardo dei Machiavelli ...; 3 May 1469 – 21 June 1527) was an Italian diplomat, philosopher, politician, historian and writer who lived during the Renaissance. He is best known for The Prince (Il Principe), written about 1513.[5] He has often been called the father of modern political philosophy and political science.[6] For many years he served as a senior official in the Florentine Republic with responsibilities in diplomatic and military affairs. He wrote comedies, carnival songs, and poetry. His personal correspondence is of high importance to historians and scholars.[7] He worked as secretary to the Second Chancery of the Republic of Florence from 1498 to 1512, when the Medici were out of power. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niccol%C3%B2_Machiavelli
For this blogger's view about ideas of expediency attributable to Machiavelli see: https://dejavu-times.blogspot.com/2014/02/niccolo-mockiavelli.html | Aleksandr Isayevich Solzhenitsyn ... (11 December 1918 – 3 August 2008) ... was a Russian novelist, philosopher, historian, short story writer, and political prisoner. One of the most famous Soviet dissidents, Solzhenitsyn was an outspoken critic of communism and helped to raise global awareness of political repression in the Soviet Union (USSR), in particular the Gulag system. | From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aleksandr_Solzhenitsyn