Machiavellianism

From Polcompball Wiki
Jump to navigationJump to search

"Never attempt to win by force what can be won by deception."

Niccolò Machiavelli, "The Prince"

Machiavellianism also called (Political) Opportunism or Realism is a type of politics that primarily focuses on acquiring and maintaining political power from a "selfish" standpoint. In a way, Machiavellianism can be said to be an ideology focused entirely on the political concept of praxis.

It is important to note two things: Firstly that Machiavellianism is not as much the strict beliefs of Niccolo Machiavelli, but rather the recognition of the realities Machiavelli studied; and secondly that Machiavellianism can be found in any and all socio-political systems, be it feudal monarchy, democratic republicanism, corporate capitalism, a marxist-leninist one-party state and even anarchism, etc.

History

Niccolò di Bernardo dei Machiavelli more well known as just Niccolo Machiavelli was a Florentian diplomat as well as a writer and a philosopher.

Foundations

Machiavellians are not consistent ideologically. They seek to achieve a selfish goal and get the necessary power to do it.

After his exile from political life in 1512, Machiavelli took to a life of writing, which led to the publishing of his most famous work, The Prince. The book would become infamous for its recommendations for absolute rulers to be ready to act in unscrupulous ways, such as resorting to fraud and treachery, elimination of political opponents, and the usage of fear as a means of controlling subjects. Machiavelli's view that acquiring a state and maintaining it requires evil means has been noted as the chief theme of the treatise. He has become infamous for this advice, so much so that the adjective Machiavellian would later on describe a type of politics that is "marked by cunning, duplicity, or bad faith".

While Machiavelli has become widely popular for his work on principalities, his other major work, The Discourses on Livy, focused mainly on republican statecraft, and his recommendations for a well ordered republic. Machiavelli noted how free republics have power structures that are better than principalities. He also notes how advantageous a government by a republic could be as opposed to just a single ruler. However, Machiavelli's more controversial statements on politics can also be found even in his other works. For example, Machiavelli notes that sometimes extraordinary means, such as violence, can be used in re-ordering a corrupt city. In one area, he praises Romulus, who murdered his brother and co-ruler in order to have power by himself to found the city of Rome. In a few passages he sometimes explicitly acts as an advisor of tyrants as well.

Some scholars have even asserted that the goal of his ideal republic does not differ greatly from his principality, as both rely on rather ruthless measures for aggrandizement and empire.

In one passage of The Prince, Machiavelli subverts the advice given by Cicero to avoid duplicity and violence, by saying that the prince should "be the fox to avoid the snares, and a lion to overwhelm the wolves". It would become one of Machiavelli's most notable statements.

Because cruelty and deception play such important roles in his politics, it is not unusual for related issues—such as murder and betrayal—to rear their heads with regularity.

Machiavelli's own concept of virtue, which he calls "virtù", is original and is usually seen by scholars as different from the traditional viewpoints of other political philosophers. Virtú can consist of any quality at the moment that helps a ruler maintain his state, even being ready to engage in necessary evil when it is advantageous.

Due to the treatise's controversial analysis on politics, in 1559, the Catholic Church banned The Prince, putting it on the Index Librorum Prohibitorum.

Machiavelli criticized and rejected what he believed to be a perversion of Christian thought as he viewed that they celebrated humility and otherworldly things, and thus it made the Italians of his day "weak and effeminate".[19] While Machiavelli's own religious allegiance has been debated, it is assumed that he had a low regard of contemporary Christianity.

Variants

Pragmatism

WIP

Realism

WIP

George F. Kennan Doctrine

WIP


Zhou Enlai Thought

WIP

Tarcisio de Freitas

WIP

Personality

Machiavellianism is very much... Machiavellian in his behavior. Generally very manipulative and self-serving.

He is known for speaking to crowds in masks of whatever ideological rhetoric he is using to get into power. Often times, he wears masks of different ideologies.

How to Draw

Coat of Arms of Machiavellianism

Machiavellianism's design is based on the Machiavelli Coat of Arms.

  1. Draw a ball with eyes.
  2. In Blue Draw a Cross on the ball.
  3. Draw 4 needles pointing at the center of the cross.

And you're done!

Color Name HEX RGB
Blue #0000FF 0, 0, 255
White #FFFFFF 255, 255, 255


Relationships

REALISM GANG

  • Oligarchy - Nobody rules alone.
  • Illuminatism - Real power is secret power.
  • Noocracy - Cunning is Wisdom.
  • Police Statism - Key of power.
  • Stratocracy - Another key of power, which is actually more important than the previous one.
  • Mediacracy - Good for keeping power.
  • Roman Republicanism - Machiavelli loved you.
  • Bismarckism - It has been a while, my old friend. What a shame Kaiser Wilhelm let his juvenile ambition ruin what you achieved.
  • Kemalism - "If we write doctrine, we freeze and stay where we are."
  • Progressive Conservatism & Radical Centrism - I like how you counteract those annoying ideologues.
  • Dengism - It does not matter whether the cat is black or white, as long as it catches mice. Such a shame Xi became dogmatically culturally conservative and attracted an even more dogmatic crowd of fans.
  • Ingsoc - Power is an end, not a means.

Masks

  • Monarchism & Republicanism - Depending on the situation, as long as you work for and benefit me, you'll be fine. But Machiavelli liked the latter more.
  • Populism - A broad-front appeal is a good way to get into power. I don't have to live up to my promises, though.
  • Third Way - Theory should appeal to all sides of the population, for the West you are perfect today.
  • Constitutionalism - "Hi, I'm Saul Goodman. Did you know that you have rights? The constitution says you do. And so do I."
  • Liberal Socialism - You’re extremely romantic and idealistic, but you simultaneously like me?

Semi-realist frenemies

  • Maoism - I love your way of diplomacy, but your internal policy was pathetic idealism. At least your son fixed your internal policy mistakes. Zhou Enlai was, however, mega-based and created the path for your son to take over China.
  • Stalinism - You were kinda based when you reconciled with the church during World War Two and when you made agreements with capitalist corporations when you were industrializing your country, but your dogmatic policy of collectivization just ruined all of the agriculture. I still prefer Bukharin.
  • Neoconservatism - Good on you for advancing your interests regardless of who you need to support or be against, but stop it with the whole "international good guy" bullshit.
  • Kleptocracy - While I did say a prince should know how to do evil, the premise is "As far as he can, a prince should follow the path of good".
  • Aristocracy - Your problem, my "good" prince, is exactly the opposite of the former one.
  • Putinism - You were way better in the past when you had good relations with the West. Sadly, your ideological dogma and war in Ukraine shattered that. Stop associating with him and our old relationship can be rekindled. However, your policy in the Middle East is commendable, as you work with both the Zionists and anti-Zionists at the same time.
  • Islamic Theocracy - I really like some of you doing taqqiyah and i heard you using as recruitment tactics was indeed based! But you are still a filthy dogmatic theocrat!!
  • Hydrarchy - THE DREAMS OF PIRATES... WILL NEVER END! Depends. Sometimes I can hire him to do my dirty work as a privateer, which moralists fear to do. Sometimes he's just a criminal who wants to steal my stuff.
  • Tf2 Soldier - This... is a bucket.
    • Dear God...
    • There's more.
    • No!


ANTI-REALIST FREAKS

  • Satirism - STOP MOCKING ME!
  • Anti-Realism - Psycho who wants to light me on fire.
  • Ochlocracy - "For the mob is always impressed by appearances and by results, and the world is composed of the mob."
  • Anarcho-Egoism - We have a lot in common actually. Morality and dogma do more harm than good, but citizens of the state are not required to reject it, only the leadership.
  • Italian Left Communism - This is pure dogma and no praxis at all.
  • Marxism-Leninism-Maoism, Maoism–Third Worldism & Pol Potism - Maoism has just lost all redeeming qualities and jumped into the pit of pure idealism.
  • Hoxhaism - Another dogmatic ML who called anyone even slightly to the right of him a 'revisionist'.
  • Utopian Socialism - Utopian mentality is self-destructive and dangerous.
  • Trotskyism - Permanent Worldwide Revolution sounds like a dogmatic nightmare that luckily won't ever come true.
  • Theocrats - You force your dogma on everyone.
  • State Atheism - You too buddy. You're literally just trying to fight dogma with dogma.
  • Anarcho-Nihilism - While you understand that idealism should not be relied on, you chose to be a lazy doomer instead of a schemer like me.
  • Neoluddism - Why won't you work for me? I can help with your extreme environmental concerns by dealing with industrialists to eventually curb all harm to animals and to the environment. But no! You keep using your dogma to kill others just because they support development! You should be ashamed of yourself!
  • Soulism - Quit your weed-induced ideology of pure idealism and come back to reality for once.
  • Chamberlainism - I repeat what I have already said, namely that you should never let yourself be driven off-course by your desire to avoid a war because in such a case you won’t avoid it but will merely postpone it to your disadvantage.
  • Kakistocracy - Either a useful idiot at best or an obstacle to proper governance at worst.
  • Arsonism - One shudders to imagine what inhuman thoughts lie behind that mask. What dreams of chronic and sustained cruelty?

Further Information

Literature

Wikipedia

Videos

Online Communities

Notes

  1. ↑ He said that Trump helped Ukraine more than Obama and advocates for conservative America.

Citations

  1. ↑ https://jacobin.com/2021/12/democracy-populism-oligarchy-republicanism-left-right
  2. ↑ https://www.gazetadopovo.com.br/republica/centrao-o-que-e-partidos/
  3. ↑ https://www.bbc.com/portuguese/brasil-36771079
  4. ↑ In fact, Vlasov had nothing to do with the White Movement, since in the civil war in Russia he fought on the side of the Bolsheviks.
  5. ↑ The Prince, the Discourses on Livy (composed c. 1517) has been said to have paved the way of modern republicanism. It has also significantly influenced authors who have attempted to revive classical republicanism.
  6. ↑ Bo Xilai denounced his own father during the Cultural Revolution as a red guard. Decades later he took a leading role in the persecution of Falun Gong to secure support from Jiang Zemin. While pretending to be a "Maoist" to get attention from leftists he was in fact very supportive of international corporations investing in China making Chongqing a major finance center during his tenure as Party Secretary of the city. He also openly praised Henry Kissinger who considered him the future of China.
  7. ↑ Hun Sen initially fought for the Khmer Rouge but defected to the Vietnamese when it became convenient. Now he's an authcap and Cambodia has been called a "country for sale" for selling out to international corporations
  8. ↑ Putin initially attempted good relations and cooperation with NATO and EU and sided with the US during the War on Terror. He also praises Solzhenitsyn, the White Movement, and Stalin while denouncing Lenin and the Russian Revolution to get support from both the left and right at the same time.
  9. ↑ MBS is de-radicalizing Saudi Arabia and has ended funding for wahhabist organizations abroad and tries to balance relations with the US, Russia, China, and Israel. He has recently attempted to make peace with both Syria and Iran.

Gallery

Portraits

Comics and Artwork

Navigation

Retrieved from "https://polcompball.wiki/wiki/Machiavellianism?oldid=561461"