this was a line that made me stop and think too.
it reminded me of an time I heard one such bureaucrat reject the term 'politician' and then proceeded to call himself an "elected official."
Joel Salatin is amazing. I remember once in my university town, people bought raw milk from another state and had it shipped as it's illegal in my state. Some officials found out and smashed every single bottle. I assume the people got in trouble too. Absolutely ridiculous. Nothing to do with protecting people. All about control.
No, they're protecting people, alright: them, their families and friends at our expense. The Social Contract™️ is just the spell they cast on the sheep around us to get away with it.