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Kind of ironic given that Aetna is largely responsible for the elimination of the public option from the Affordable Care Act. Thanks again Joe Lieberman https:

• harryh 10y ago
  If you think a ~$100,000 a year to a politician (plus another couple million to some other politicians) is largely responsible for the rules that govern how 20% of our economy functions you are quite mistaken. There are huge economic and political forces at work that render Aetna's tiny expenditure irrelevant in the grand scheme of things.
  • georgemcbay 10y ago
    I'm no expert in this at all, but I do know a number of people who work in government and across the board they are all of the opinion that most people would be shocked if they knew just how cheap it was to buy major influence, even at the national level.
    • harryh 10y ago
      There are people that are experts and they generally agree that the effects of political contributions are much smaller than is generally believed by the public.
      • georgemcbay 10y ago
        Unless you cite some credible sources, this is just a case of dueling anecdotes.
  • random28345 10y ago
    > If you think a ~$100,000 a year to a politician (plus another couple million to some other politicians) is largely responsible for the rules that govern how 20% of our economy functions you are quite mistaken. cough https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyright_Term_Extension_Act https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyright_Term_Extension_Act cough That was purchased pretty cheaply, and industries affected by copyright(books, movies, music, software, software) are a decent chunk of the economy.
    • harryh 10y ago
      The average member of the public doesn't care at all about copyright terms so policy in that area is much more susceptible to this sort of thing. The average member of the public cares a great deal about their health insurance so policy in this area is much much less susceptible to influence with small political donations.