Government and Paradox

The end of the Tao Te Ching seemed to focus a lot on government. Unlike most of the text, it was very clear and straightforward. The whole book was written with paradoxes. The paradoxes made the book a riddle, and made the text somewhat confusing at my first glance. For example:
"In the pursuit of learning, every day something is acquired.
In the pursuit of Tao, every day something is dropped." (Chapter 48)

At the end, Lao Tzu focused on the qualities a leader should have to rule in a successful type of government. I think he took special care in making this section very clear so that the next leader that read the Tao Te Ching could understand quickly what he needed to know.
"When the country is ruled with a light hand
The people are simple.
When the country is ruled with severity,
The people are cunning." (Chapter 58)

This was very clear for me. It didn't take me very much to decode the meaning of what Lao Tzu said. I also think that he wanted to prove that he could be an excellent leader. Like any other political candidate before the elections, he was showing his ideals to convince people. If he had been a political candidate, he would have my vote. His ideas are logical and wise. Because of the wisdom he uses with his ideas, I infer that Lao Tzu was a leader. To have such a clear idea of what an ideal leader would be, he must have experience. I doubt the Tao Te Ching was political propaganda. For me it was special feature, because he drifts a little away from the Tao.

In the end the Tao Te Ching was a guide to reach the Tao. The way Lao Tzu wrote left me with the impression that only people that really wanted to follow the Tao could understand it. If you really don't want to learn anything from this book, you could read it once and forget about it. If you really want the full meaning, you can spend time and actually learn something. You don't have to want to follow the Tao to learn something useful from the book. It also helped me to develop a skill in reading comprehension because there are hidden meanings behind every word. I actually enjoyed this reading better than the Bible and the Analects. This is a book that everyone should read.