I see this general argument throughout this thread, that somehow bribery is only bribery if the money goes in the the official's pocket, but that's really not w

I see this general argument throughout this thread, that somehow bribery is only bribery if the money goes in the the official's pocket, but that's really not what the dictionaries I've looked at say on the matter. Here's Merriam Webster for instance: "to influence the judgment or conduct of (someone) with or as if with offers of money or favor : to induce or influence by or as if by bribery" https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bribe https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bribe If, as the suit alleges, FB offered the government money with a condition not to press charges against their CEO, and the government took up this offer, that very much sounds like bribery, and I'd wager that the government official they negotiated with is indeed a real identifiable person who took a bribe. It doesn't seem to make much difference to the general public what the motivations for taking such a bribe are, the big problem is that there are 2 sets of rules, one for those with the ability to bribe, and another for the rest of us.