… is from page 211 of David Friedman’s indispensable 1973 book, The Machinery of Freedom; it occurs in the context of his discussion of contemporary American politics:
It seems more reasonable to suppose that there is no ruling class, that we are ruled, rather, by a myriad of quareling gangs, constantly engaged in stealing from each other to the great impoverishment of their own members as well as the rest of us.
