“If they would rather die, they better do it and decrease the surplus population.”

Fuckin’ hell, fiction is a warning not a guide, you filthy-rich absolute cockwombles.

At least some of it comes from outdoor workers being darker from sun exposure and then cultures associate “dark = laborer.”

There are several (very simplified) factors:

• the parties in power won’t fix voting so others can join in proportionally
• the parties in power are mostly guided by the wealthy (often via corporate influence), just with slightly different flavors
• many of our citizens are one or more of poorly educated, uninformed, radicalized, and selfish
• the wealthy tend to support policies that keep them wealthy and the electorate controllable