[deveac]

>we found exactly where the buck stops - not with the supposed head of the free world, but with the practically invisible collection of people and corporations that work behind the scenes to operate the puppets we vote for.

This is an absolutely crushing truth that often makes it difficult to not just disengage completely. This frightens me because a disengaged populace is precisely what allows this type of behavior to flourish and expand.

As I get older, I find I have to increasingly give myself silent pep talks to "stay in the game."