Roving Bandits/Stationary Bandits Poem by Richard Jarboe

There are two groups of ruthless people,
One consists of Roving Bandits,
Such as Genghis Khan.
He'd pillaged and plundered on the go,
And he got rich.
On occasion, due to climate issues,
He'd show up in China,
And if they didn't provide what he needed,
He'd pillage and plunder to get it.
The negotiations were brutal,
But China always paid,
Genghis Kahn always remained a Roving Bandit.

The second group of ruthless people,
Consists of Stationary Bandits,
In China, that would be the Emperor,
He was definitely a Stationary Bandit.
And he was a businessman.
His subjects had a modest income.
A Modest Income,
Made it possible to tax them endlessly.
He needed money for the roads,
The roads allowed his Fighting Force to move fast,
With a Fast Fighting Force he could protect his subjects FAST,
From the foreigners,
Or insurrection!
He taxed them for his protection,
And he taxed them for the road.
He created a bureaucracy to collect the money.
He was much richer than Genghis Khan.
Stationary Bandits always make more money-
Than Roving Bandits.
It isn't even close.