Beam Me Up, Scotty!: Machiavelli never said "the ends justify the means", which is a mistranslation. His exact quote is "si guarda al fine", which should be translated to "one must think of the final result" in regards to the ultimate effect a prince's words and actions have on his image.
Ironically, Machiavelli would likely disagree with the statement "the ends justify the means". Machiavelli cares very much about the means. If a prince were to choose a means which would anger his populace, then it would invoke hatred from his populace, which Machiavelli considers to be the absolute worst position for a prince to be in. If you limit "the means" to means that would actually lead to the desired end, though, it's a moot point — those means aren't opposed on grounds of morality or justice, but on grounds of function — namely, that overly cruel means don't function.
The closest he ever gets from saying that is in Chapter XVIII: A prince should only be concerned with conquering or maintaining a state, for the means will always be judged to be honorable and praiseworthy by each and every person, because the masses always follow appearances and the outcomes of affairs, and the world is nothing other than the masses.
Similarly, the line is "It is far safer to be feared than loved if you cannot be both", not "It is better to be feared than loved". Also, there's that whole "avoid being hated" thing that everyone seems to forget. The surrounding context makes it clear he's not saying "murderous douchebags are strong, beloved nice guys are weak". It's more like "how much people love you is more up to them, how much people fear you is more up to you, so if you have to pick one, pick the one you have the most control of, but don't turn into The Caligula, for Chrissakes".
