翻译 A prince will also be well thought of when he is a true friend or an honest enemy, that is, when, without any hedging, he takes a stand for one side and against another. It is always better to do this than to stand on one’s neutrality; because if two of your powerful neighbors come to blows, they are either such people that you have to fear the winner, or they are not. In either case, it will be better for you to assert yourself and wage open war; because, in the first case, when you don’t take sides, you are bound to be the prey of the winner, to the pleasure and satisfaction of the loser.