The Princes and Princess

Niccolo Machiavelli (1469-1527) can’t be all bad.. Niccolo offered his short treatise, "The Prince" to Lorenzo the Magnificent of Florence, Italy with these introductory words: "Take this my little gift, in the spirit I send it and if you read it diligently you will discover in it my urgent wish that you reach the eminence that fortune and your other great qualities promise you." Though often misunderstood inspiration for the misled, "The Prince" still offers good advice. Obama and McCain, Biden and Palin take note. Machiavelli warns that "There is nothing more difficult to take in hand , more perilous in conduct, or more uncertain in its success, than to take the lead in the introduction of a new order of things." He also reminds politicians that "When neither their property nor their honor is touched, the majority of men live content." And to the American voters, Niccolo also offers sage advice: "God is not willing to do everything, and thus take away our free will and that share of glory which belongs to us." Remember, it is up to citizens to responsibly choose their representatives and leaders. The grave site of Machiavelli reminds us in Latin: "No elegy is equal to such a name." He who has advised princes (and an occasional princess) over time, certainly warrants consideration. "The Prince," says a Professor who appreciates Niccolo’s work, goes on "insisting to whoever will listen, on the necessity of gesturing toward history and the human community and toward a future whose darkness it has so brilliantly illuminated over the centuries."