經典科幻文學:《宇宙盡頭的餐館》第28章

Chapter 28
The major problem – one of the major problems, for there are several – one of the many major problems with governing people is that of whom you get to do it; or rather of who manages to get people to let them do it to them.
To summarize: it is a well known fact, that those people who most want to rule people are, ipso facto, those least suited to do it. To summarize the summary: anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job. To summarize the summary of the summary: people are a problem.
And so this is the situation we find: a succession of Galactic Presidents who so much enjoy the fun and palaver of being in power that they very rarely notice that they’re not.
And somewhere in the shadows behind them – who?
Who can possibly rule if no one who wants to do it can be allowed to?

第二十八章
你想統治人，主要的問題——主要的問題之一，因爲有好幾個主要問題——主要的問題之一就是你想統治的是什麼人。換句話說就是，你能找到什麼樣的願意受你統治的人。
總結：有一個衆所周知的事實，即，最想統治別人的人正是最不適合統治別人的人，原因就是他想統治別人。總結的總結：如果有準非常希望擔任總統，那麼，無論如何不能把這份工作交給他。總結的總結的總結：人真麻煩。
所以纔會出現這樣的情況：連續多年，銀河系總統都把注意力過多放在享受大權在握的樂趣和別人的奉承啦，以至於他們極少注意到自己手中其實並沒有什麼真正的權力。
權力隱蔽：總統們身後的陰影中的某個地方。
如果任何希望統治別人的人都無能，那麼，他們怎能肩負起統治別人的重任呢？