Season 3 Podcast 140 The Road to Power, Machiavellian Pragmatism, Rule # 13, The Common Defect in Man

Machiavellian Pragmatism, Rule #13, The Common Defect in ManFrom Machiavelli’s Book, The Prince, I have extracted 40 rules suggested by Machiavelli on how to gain power and how to hold power. In my series, the Road to Power, I show how the politicians today is using the rules of Machiavelli to take over our government destroying our democratic republic and replacing it with socialism and the New World Order. I use the term pragmatism to mean do whatever works. Let me remind you that Rule Number 1 is “In the actions of men, and especially of princes, from which there is no appeal, the end is everything.”  In other words, the ends justify the means regardless of truth, justice, morality, decency, fairness, law, courtesy, kindness, mercy, or truth. Though I consider Rule Number 1 to be the governing rule of Machiavellian Pragmatism, the other thirty-nine rules are merely chronological as they were suggested in the Book. The numbering is my own, not Machiavelli’s. It is my opinion that Machiavelli himself did not invent the rules. He was an astute observer of history; particularly political history and he simply described the methods the tyrants of his time used successfully. He pointed out those who succeeded and demonstrated why they succeeded. Machiavelli himself was ambitious and wrote the book to gain favor with the ruling princeAs with the other rules, Rule 13 is number 13 merely by chance. That is why I do not follow the chronological order.  I also don’t follow the chronological order because it is not convenient. People do not break rules in order. I am not even suggesting that the guilty parties are familiar with Machiavelli’s book, the Prince. I think the Machiavellian rules come by predatory instinct and that Satan is the author.  Satan is the father of lies and the Machiavellian rules are based on lies. Truth is not relevant in any ruthless climb to power. When someone believes that the ends justify the means, then anything that works is acceptable. Machiavellian pragmatism is behind all political ambitions that disregard truth. Machiavellian Pragmatism demonstrates that power is the primary goal of the left, though either party or any politician or other ambitious climber that uses Machiavellian Rules is guilty of putting power before anything. Machiavellian Pragmatism is ruthless in achieving its goals and has been practiced down through the centuries on many levels.Though I assigned the number, in the words of Machiavelli,  Rule number 13 is this:“It is a common defect in man not to make any provision in the calm against the tempest.” (Nicolo Machiavelli, The Prince)3 RONMany climb to power on the necessities of others. In the Mafia, loan sharking is a common example. They find a person who needs money badly but who cannot go through legitimate means; therefore, they go to a loan shark who charges exorbitant interest. The Mafia, noted for taking advantage of those who are desperate is notorious for collecting on the loans through threats of violence and even murder. But outside organized crime we see examples of people taking advantage of those who are desperate. We see it in car sales, in real estate sales, we see it pawn shops, we see it in quick loans borrowed against forthcoming salaries at exorbitant interests. Las Vegas could not survive without gambling addicts; drug cartels could not survive without drug addicts; cigarette companies could not survive without smoking addicts, but the list is continuous. Many get rich on the misery of others. Does anyone even know the number and variety of scams operating daily to catch people unawares?