John Médaille, St. Augustine on the Liberal State

It seems to me that this is a perfect description of the modern liberal state and its conception of law and economics. The idea of virtue in general, and the specific virtue of justice in particular, have been exiled from our notions of politics, law, and economics. But a political order divorced from justice can only be about power; a legal order divorced from justice is merely a contradiction; an economic order divorced from justice is always on the verge of collapse (as ours is.)

I think the modern liberal state is able to maintain a mixed constitution because of its size -- it is both an oligarchy and a democracy, two deviant regimes in Aristotle's classification. Both the wealthy and the masses must be satisfied, and it is a delicate balance which must be maintained.