> I'm with you, but given that I have no control over any of them

We all have a little bit of control over at least housing and transport. Local politics determine land use, and municipalities in the US have consistently voted for more car dependency (leading to more expensive transport) and limited housing construction (leading to more expensive housing).

Local politics aren't really paid attention to, which results in any amount of participation and influence having a relatively large impact compared to state or federal politics.