Technology

the political system and the economic system are intertwined

Sure, but that overlap should be as small as possible while still ensuring a competitive market.

late stage capitalism

Socialists and other related academics have been throwing this term around since WW2, and every couple decades they move the goalposts. It's little more than a scary story they tell to convince people to go along with their authoritarian ideas. It's really not that different from Hitler blaming Jews for all of society's problems, just with a socialist flavor instead of a fascist one.

The truth is that wealthy people need the working class to buy their stuff, and buying their stuff increases the workers' standard of living. Standard of living has been rising pretty consistently in developed countries, especially those with relatively free markets.

Yes, wealth inequality is growing (which is a problem), but that doesn't mean the poor are getting poorer. Quite the opposite in fact, if you look at the data, people of all economic classes are better off year over year.

A lot of the problem is self inflicted IMO. The process goes something like this:

1. People demand change
2. Politicians talk to big players in industry
3. Big players propose solutions that seem to fix the problem
4. Surprised pikachu when the changes largely entrench the big players and raise the barrier to entry for competitors

And then we have the corrupt two party system where most representatives don't have much actual competition for their seat, as long as they have more funding (conveniently provided by helpful lobbies from 3). The longer a rep stays in office, the more they tend to listen to the big players.

It's not impossible to fix the problems, we just need to stop trying to use government to solve everything. Government works best when it's simple, special interests love complexity, so we should simplify the law so it's easier for people to tell when they're getting screwed.

For example, the IRA is an incredibly simple retirement program. You open an account at a brokerage or bank for free and then buy stuff, and taxes are either up front or upon withdrawal. Some brokerages are cheaper than others, so you can shop around for the features and costs you want. The 401k is incredibly complex, and because it's negotiated by employers, a lot end up being expensive for customers (e.g. mine has a 0.10% asset fee on top of fund fees), all because financial institutions want a cut. The plan is selected by HR, and employees don't get a choice other than participate or not. Taxes are complex because Turbo Tax wants to keep their customers. And so on.

Here's a quote from the author of my favorite book:

Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.

• Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

The problem isn't with corporations, they're largely a constant. The problem is with government getting bloated and losing the plot because everyone tries to use it to solve their pet problem and the net winners are the lobbies.