Not so much the pessimistic view as the paranoid view. If
the secret government men that REALLY control it all exist (be they
Illuminati,
Freemasons,
dirty commies, whatever), then voting really CAN'T change the system.
Then again, mass advertising has become so effective that the truly
intelligent,
educated voters (i.e., the small
minority) can't change the system anyway. Maybe we all should start advocating
revolution.