Dictatorship, Democracy, and Development (partial reading: Invisible and Grasping Hands)

"Stationary bandits" who monopolize theft (taxation) over a territory and therefore ensure internal peace will, over time, make more than roving bandits: this "invisible hand" is the basis for autocratic state formation, as only small groups without expansionary incentives can voluntarily and among themselves create a peaceful order. The flip side of this "invisible hand" is that it is also a "grasping hand", squeezing as much profit from its people as possible and not necessarily representing their best interests.

Olson notes that social contract theories of state formation are likely ahistorical and serve to legitimize regimes that are truly just stationary bandits.