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> Amazon is a rational company and acts in its own interest. The politicians we elect act in Amazons interest. So we are to fault for this. When I was young, I

> Amazon is a rational company and acts in its own interest. The politicians we elect act in Amazons interest. So we are to fault for this. When I was young, I was told that even in totalitarian societies, you got to vote. There might be one name on the ballot, but you got to vote. People refuse to vote 3rd party for fear of throwing a vote away, yet only corporatist candidates will fly under D or R. Voting for different Ds or Rs won't change anything. The passage you quote is merely one small illustration of regulatory capture, a normalized form of corruption.

SyzygistSix 5y ago
>yet only corporatist candidates will fly under D or R Not true. Non-corporate candidates run in the primaries all the time. No one votes for them or even bothers to show up, despite the early voting periods most states have. Texas has 10 days of early voting. My state has 20.
- nescioquid 5y ago
  US political parties are essentially private organizations; that they hold elections to determine their candidates is a not terribly distant change. In any case, they are not obliged to be impartial in the process. But to vote in a primary, you need to be a partisan. So even if the parties were perfectly impartial in this process, all you've managed to show by "no one votes for them" is that Ds and Rs select for corporatist candidates.
  - SyzygistSix 5y ago
    But they don't, especially on the local and state level. They may fund their favorites but outright socialists and communists can and do run in the Democratic primaries, to say nothing of progressives and Greens. And if I was in a district that had closed primaries where one party routinely wins, I would definitely register for that party. It doesn't mean anything.
    - nescioquid 5y ago
      Be as contrary as you like, but you haven't addressed my point; in fact, you seem to be just ignoring it. I'll let you have the last word.

SyzygistSix 5y ago

>yet only corporatist candidates will fly under D or R Not true. Non-corporate candidates run in the primaries all the time. No one votes for them or even bothers to show up, despite the early voting periods most states have. Texas has 10 days of early voting. My state has 20.

nescioquid 5y ago
US political parties are essentially private organizations; that they hold elections to determine their candidates is a not terribly distant change. In any case, they are not obliged to be impartial in the process. But to vote in a primary, you need to be a partisan. So even if the parties were perfectly impartial in this process, all you've managed to show by "no one votes for them" is that Ds and Rs select for corporatist candidates.
- SyzygistSix 5y ago
  But they don't, especially on the local and state level. They may fund their favorites but outright socialists and communists can and do run in the Democratic primaries, to say nothing of progressives and Greens. And if I was in a district that had closed primaries where one party routinely wins, I would definitely register for that party. It doesn't mean anything.
  - nescioquid 5y ago
    Be as contrary as you like, but you haven't addressed my point; in fact, you seem to be just ignoring it. I'll let you have the last word.