What do you think of this quotation by Lord Shang from 400 B.C. in China?

Question

"Now those who seek office and rank,never do so by means of agriculture and war,but by artful words and empty doctrines.
That is called wearying the people."
"If there is no procrastination in the in creating of order depraved officials having no opportunity of gaining private profits".
He means they avoid work and military service.

You are in the box seat to get this one Fancy.

Answer 1

He's talking about every freeking politician that ever ran for office since George Washington.

Answer 2

sounds like he is talking about modern politics.

It reminds me of HLMencken's famous statement about American Politics:
When a candidate for public office faces the voters he does not face men of sense; he faces a mob of men whose chief distinguishing mark is the fact that they are quite incapable of weighing ideas, or even of comprehending any save the most elemental — men whose whole thinking is done in terms of emotion, and whose dominant emotion is dread of what they cannot understand. So confronted, the candidate must either bark with the pack or be lost... All the odds are on the man who is, intrinsically, the most devious and mediocre — the man who can most adeptly disperse the notion that his mind is a virtual vacuum. The Presidency tends, year by year, to go to such men. As democracy is perfected, the office represents, more and more closely, the inner soul of the people. We move toward a lofty ideal. On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their heart's desire at last, and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron.

I think Mencken is somehow describing how we ended up with Bush.

Answer 3

He sounds like a monarchist.

Shang Yang believed in the rule of law and considered loyalty to the state to be above that of the family. - Lord Shang

Maybe more of a fascist.

Answer 4

I don't know about agriculture, but I could name a fellow who has sought to consolidate his power by making citizens fear replacing him with a better leader because of a war.