Some recent travel experiences reminded me of a passage from Machiavelli’s Discourses, an intermittent companion of mine these past few weeks. The quote appears in I.17 and contains several related ideas which we will comment on.
Some Impressions On Travel In Central America (Podcast)
This podcast was recorded several days ago but I was only now able to upload it. In it we talk about some impressions gained from brief visits to Panama, Costa Rica, Colombia, Nicaragua, Guatemala, and Mexico.
Some Requirements For Political Stability
In recent weeks I have had a chance to visit for a short time a few of the republics in Central America: Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Panama, Colombia (South America, but close enough), Guatemala, and Mexico. I have been trying to upload a podcast I recorded on the subject, but internet connections are so slow that I will have to wait a bit more on that; the upload times are just too long. I’ve been posting photos on my Instagram account for those who are interested in seeing them. Continue reading
Machiavelli’s Three Key Concepts
If a political scientist were asked who might be the most misunderstood writer of political theory, he would probably have the name of Machiavelli high on his list. To his name have been ascribed sinister motivations and calculated duplicity; and unscrupulous cherry-picking of his quotes has fashioned him into an ogre in the popular mind.
A Retreat Can Spur Creative Energy: Machiavelli’s Letter To Francesco Vettori
Sometimes being away from the fray and the fracases of life can allow us to compose our thoughts and regenerate our spirits. This has the effect of spurring the creative soul on to higher amplitudes of output. We forget just how distracting it is for the mind to be bombarded with invasive stimuli; and while periods of withdrawal from the fray should not be permanent, they can, in the right doses, provide just that right proportion of flint and steel to spark great works.
Through The Panama Canal
I am on a ship that will transit through the Panama Canal tomorrow. For me this is a big moment: to be able to see one of the great engineering marvels of the world; to experience the incarnate will of one of my idols, President Theodore Roosevelt; and finally, to see the natural tropical beauty of the Canal Zone. All these things are on my mind as I write these words.
Harry Truman’s Presidential Retreat In Key West: Thoughts And Observations
A couple days ago I had a chance to tour the vacation retreat of former president Harry S Truman. The experience prompted some thoughts and observations on the value system of our current political elites.
Video Review Of “On Duties” Translated By Quintus Curtius
Today Mr. Andrew Vittoria released a very detailed and cogent You Tube video review of my On Duties. Readers seeking an in-depth and reasoned commentary will no doubt find this video useful. I have embedded the video below.
Seek It, And It Recedes; Ignore It, And It Comes To You
The biographer Ibn Khallikan relates the following anecdote about a man named Abu Amir Orwa Ibn Uzaina, a scholar and poet who died around A.D. 736. Not much is known of his life except that he was a member of the Iraqi tribe of al-Laith. It illustrates the importance of not chasing things in life too much. From personal experience I can attest to this principle’s soundness. When I was younger, there were times when I would try too much to chase things or control events.
The Ship Of Aeneas: A Unique And Mysterious Vessel
In life and in history, there are a great many things we do not know, and will never know. Corporeal images recede slowly into the mist: some to return, some to glimmer faintly without revealing tangible form, and some never to be seen again. It is the way with things.
Quintus Curtius 
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