The main reason econ and poli sci majors are so obsessed with Sun Tzu and especially Macchiavelli is that the actual good sources on realpolitik are Mao and Lenin and that's considered too dangerous for them, so they get the safe stuff, the utterly nihilistic and immoral Borghia bootlicker and the "archers are kinda good for killing at a distance" drivel instead of having State and Revolution on their reading list.