There you go: a popular work of not-necessarily linear fiction. All those footnotes break the flow of the narrative and yet people love the book. It's not the only example, nor is it the most out-there.

HI! I'm Joe Beats.

Say, what chance does a deceased returning war veteran have for that good payin' job, more sugar, and that free Mule we've all been dreaming of?

Now take off your shoes.

Now you can see how increased spending opportunities, mean harder work for everyone, and more of it, too! So, do yourself a favor, Joe. Join with millions of your friends and neighbors, and, TAKE OFF YOUR SHOES!

"For INDUSTRY!"

If you had actually read Marx you'd know that he avoided laying out a blueprint for an alternative system. There are multiple reasons for that: his dislike of utopian socialists, his focus on analysis & critique of capitalism, & his hegelianism come to mind right away. He tended to think that the Paris Commune got a lot of stuff right. It's true that some of the problems of the analysis negatively influenced actually existing socialism, but still, there's no plan for the Soviet state in Capital or anything like that.

You say it's easier to change corporate behaviour. Really? We have built in, direct mechanisms for changing state behaviour (voting). The market, when it even exists, is indirect at best. In any case, vast sectors of the economy -- including the one being discusssed -- are run by cartels & monopolies. Good luck changing any of their behaviour with your chump change.

The Japanese said that too: can't happen here, Chernobyl caused by incompetent Russki operators, faulty Russki design yadda yadda. Guess what? Japanese nuclear scientists/engineers & operators make mistakes, too.

The number one problem is the profit motive -- which is also a design feature of the American nukes.

There's stuff like the Pentagon's military analyst program. See

http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Pentagon_military_analyst_program

In fact, media massaging is so pervasive in the political culture that even local pols do it. Check this out:

http://motherjones.com/politics/2012/02/scott-walker-john-doe-investigation-explained

Exactly the same thing happens here. For example, while current Wisc. gov. Scott Walker was Milwaukee County Executive, his staff was busy writing posts on local newspaper sites, writing letters to the editor, etc., all in preparation for his run for higher office. Now playing in a federal investigation near me! The Walker people were incompetent enough to get caught, but who could doubt that this goes on every minute of every day here in nuestra Estados Unidos.

Putin is a putz, but America should put its own house in order.

People making under 35k do not get a free ride. They pay sales taxes, payroll taxes, property tax (directly or indirectly through rent) & various taxes-by-another-name such as car "registration", licenses & fees. These expenses are a drop in the bucket if you're a millionaire, but take a good chunk of your change if you're not.

On the other side of the equation, oligarchy insiders get a lot more out of the system than Joe Sixpack. Congress will bend over backwards for telcos & Hollywood with SOPAS and Mickey Mouse Preservation laws. And if you're a Koch, Scott Walker will make sure you never need toliet paper again. Joe Sixpack has nowhere near that level of access or influence and gets nowhere near the benefits. If he tries, he'll be tear gassed or pepper sprayed.

Finally, don't forget that when ADM or the telcos rent the machinery of state to preserve say, cartel pricing, Joe Sixpack gets to pay higher commodity prices, too. Now there's some double taxation for you.

In sum, Joe Sixpack pays proportionally more in social overhead, gets less out of the state, and suffers more for it.