What is a lie? For example is it a lie if a commercial for fast food only shows thin people eating, or Bill T. Williams drinking malt liquor, or beautiful people without acne using Clearacil?

Good questions to debate, though I don't have the energy to write an entire thesis on it. Short answer: No, those are not lies. Plenty of skinny people eat fast food (they just don't eat mass quantities of it), people understand what a spokesperson is, and beautiful people use clearicil (though it would be a lie if they claim something that wasn't true--like fast food is healthy). The information about fast food is readily available to the public. What is frightening is that herbal/vitamin/health products (thanks to my Senator Hatch who is owned by them) do not have to back up their claims. There is nowhere to find out if slimquick, for example, can cause health problems or even does what it claims to do. Personally, I would love it if there were warning labels on every burger, and there might be, if those lobbies were no longer allowed to give large campaign donations.

The US has 4% of the world's population but consumes 25% of its resources. Is marketing partially responsible? Or not? Why?

A very small part, perhaps. Mostly, it is wealth. No-one ever talks about the percentage of the world's resources other wealthy nations consume. What about Dubai? As the developing world gets richer, we will see our number shrinking and their's increasing.

Professional lobbyists and full time lobbying organizations, certainly have a right to lobby. But is it good for our system?

I can't answer that. I want to be able to have lobbyists for things I believe in, like clean energy and education. I hate that there are lobbyist for things I don't believe in, like fossil fuels and factory farms. Again, money buys access. If we take the money out of the equation, things will be different.

What about where they aren't giving monetary contributions, but instead do research and write position papers to make life easier for politicians? Is it good for our political system?

No, but I can guarantee you that those research and position papers would not get a second look from your Senator if the playing field were made even (public financing). There are brilliant interns who would fight to do that work for free. It is money gives GE the edge over them.