1) They take deposits
2) They make payments
3) They charge fees
4) They make loans

How exactly do they differ from a bank? If it walks like a duck and talks like a duck.....

As everyone dumps CS education in favor of marketing and MBAs. And selling used cars.

OK. I was joking. I really blame Obama.

I blame Islam!

It is much harder to love someone when you realize one day they gave you a virus. ;)

"You get discounts on other goods and services."

So that is what you call CEO perks, bonuses, and severance pay.....

Most of what you complain about is due to insufficient tax revenue or due to Congressional attempts to actually interfere with good governance and good stewardship. As the other poster said, move to a country without a strong government such as Somalia or Mexico. Just watch out for the gangs, militias and death squads. A few taxes are a low price to pay for the benefits of civilization.

"Corporation demand the right to sell your personal information for the benefit of others"

Fixed that for you. Remember, civilizations have long existed and thrived without corporations. The last few hundred years are an anomaly.

Is there a word for that even? Where you pay somebody and they unwelcomingly shag you? Only thing I can think of is "taxpayer."

Nah. I don't know your situation but I get, or have received; roads, schools, fire protection, cheap food, clean water (unheard of in many places in the world), airports, railway travel, national parks, national forests, state forests, public parks, heavily subsidized university education, cleaner air, cleaner water, and public libraries. By pooling my tax money with others I we use our combined cash to create a civilization. Which is why I hate tax cheats and dodgers, they are parasites.

And they don't even kiss you first.

Moderated 'insightful'? Seriously? To me it is blindingly obvious.

private cash only transactions.

Well, you cannot buy stocks directly, just derivatives which I do not trust. You could directly lend or invest in a company there but the cash out mechanism can be highly restricted. So good luck with that.

face it. tech has the shelf life of fresh fruit.

1) Honestly, who doesn't? Everyone is biased. I am just telling you how I judge how people will integrate with my team. I have a rubric. Most people have some bias, e.g. 'no girls allowed', but try to hide it or are in denial.

2) but there actually is not enough information to appropriately judge
There never is. I can only look at resumes, references, and any public postings. How well a person *really* performs is only shown over a matter of time. But there have been time when I was not as critical as I should have been and it blew up in my face. My gut said 'no' but my brain rationalized things. I then spent 90% of my time dealing with a troublesome employee or team member. By the way it cuts both ways. I use the same method when interviewing employers.

3) The guilty verdict would come down, before the defendant even got to made their case repudiating all the apparent "evidence" from the prosecution.
If you want to find out what a person is really like observe them in unguarded moments. Not the front they put up. That is how you screen out sociopaths.