Bertrand de Jouvenel

French political philosopher who wrote On Power — the most penetrating analysis of the modern state's tendency toward unlimited expansion — and later became a founder of futures studies. His analysis of power as a self-amplifying force that uses liberation movements as instruments of its own aggrandizement anticipated much of post-WWII political theory.

Argued that power is inherently expansionary — On Power demonstrates that every historical struggle for liberation (Protestantism, democracy, socialism) ultimately increased state power because rulers consistently ally with lower orders against intermediate institutions, producing greater centralization under the banner of freedom.