Popular belief is not a defense for ignorance. Just because the practice of lobbying is misunderstood by the public does not render it illegal or wrong.
> highly undesirable to the regular guy
On the contrary, the “regular guy” (whatever that is) has many interests, and most, if not all of those interests, engage in some form of lobbying, even if that is just a letter or email sent to your legislators. The “regular guy” benefits greatly from many of these lobbying efforts: the American Cancer Society lobbies so that the “regular guy” gets cancer less often and has more choices in responding to it. As I shared in another part of this thread, warning labels on cigarettes are (partly) a direct result of their lobbying work.
Plus, the “regular guy” can just engage in lobbying. So your point makes no sense.
> It is your choice to focus on the language instead of the phenomenon
Really, did you read anything I wrote? Maybe about the part where I registered as a lobbyist myself and became an expert on FPPC filings? I gave a TED talk about it, actually.
> I am lucky I have been afforded […] sway
Well it sure seems to me that you are a “regular guy” on hckrnews. Or are you a titan of industry incognito? A maharaja of some kind? If not, please refer to your own argument about you being a “regular guy” and yet sustaining the ability to “sway” government “workings.”
You are essentially proving my point as a byproduct of your weird brag here.
> though I do not [sway the government in my favor]
Well that is nice of you but everyone else does all the time. So you should, too. It’s a little strange to ask for honor points for not engaging in what you just described as corruption.
> This HN discussion […] the naive […]
Truly! I can’t believe people walk the earth whom think the American Cancer Society or American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals are somehow evildoers. Wild thing to argue