Except that elections ultimately don't change the cast of characters that matter, who are either the elites pushing things to their own benefit, or the useful i

Except that elections ultimately don't change the cast of characters that matter, who are either the elites pushing things to their own benefit, or the useful idiots in place as civil servants or military. Elections are all a distraction to keep us from seeing what's permanent about the oligarchy. As Jimmy Carter says (as buffoonish as he might have been), we don't really have a functioning democracy any more in the US.