I don't have a lot of the Stainless Steel Rat books, (I have four) but the ones I remember best are "A Stainless Steel Rat is Born" and "The Stainless Steel Rat Gets Drafted." Jim DiGriz becomes a criminal mainly because he's bored. The universe is basically a utopia. Government is basically a force of nature, neither good nor evil. It simply *is*, and the vast majority of the populace have safe (and to Jim, very dull) lives.
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