Why would you want to become a cog in a machine when you can build your own? Many people run for office thinking they can change the fundamental culture entrenched around them. But then they realize that there are so many existing systems safeguarding the status quo, that one person can't do it. You'd need to hire a whole new administration. Instead, what if organizations would contract with one another for services…
What machine should each of us, individually, build? How will it function in a world where an overwhelming majority of people view their government (broadly) as legitimate? Why is someone in office necessarily a "cog" rather than someone with agency and the ability to influence the machine's overall direction?