People elect representatives, and very often they aren't even given a practical choice between conservative or liberal candidates. The control the average US citizen wields over regulation borders on non-existent, not even remotely comparable to your purchasing power at K-Mart or the Ford Dealership.
The point is that people generally don't know what they want for themselves. In certain industries like aviation and medicine, products do not legally exist until they are fundamentally scrutinized for harm to humans. This idea that the average American is an informed shopper is as illusory as the average citizen not voting a straight-ticket ballot. Advertising is just about the only thing that they are proven to understand, which is why that too is regulated carefully.
The point is that people generally don't know what they want for themselves. In certain industries like aviation and medicine, products do not legally exist until they are fundamentally scrutinized for harm to humans. This idea that the average American is an informed shopper is as illusory as the average citizen not voting a straight-ticket ballot. Advertising is just about the only thing that they are proven to understand, which is why that too is regulated carefully.