What are politicians for?

Me: Something disparaging about John Prescott and the dilution of building regs.
Loved One: Something to the effect that in his opinion I do little but yabber. Rather than criticise I should get out there and do something.
Me: But I can't. I can't be a prime minister, a deputy prime minister, a police person, the vandals responsible for the state of our roads, the English Cricket Board, the President of the United States, a Sun-reading SUV driver, &c&c. I am only as enormously multi-talented as I am because I conserve those talents. Dissipate them in all these roles, not forgetting the &c&c, and even that huge reservoir might be exhausted.
Loved One: Give it a rest.
But I think I have a point. What is the point of politicians? Like flies, slugs, bouncers, curb-crawlers, pornographers, wheel clampers and the alcopops industry, they clearly have a role. It's just that in Britain's post-Democracy the role has to be redefined.
I think politicians represent us - not in the old sense, clearly; but they stand for us in our greed, selfishness, hypocrisy, aggression, and all the other less admirable aspects of human nature. They stand for us, and we can look at ourselves, and say what we are willing to put up with, because that way we'll get bigger, nicer, more things; and what we really find a bit icky. Like for instance, hi-res TVs; and torture. And if enough of us think torture may be going a bit far, and we say so, then we might get some new politicians. Then we can look at ourselves in a new light, and see how we're getting on.