See some of these (like the chip bag) are so harebrained that you're just like "surely that doesn't work right" but it just makes you wonder how many times something like that does work, happens often, and we just didn't hear about it.

One person doesn't just randomly decide to take thousands or more of cash and give it to someone because "maybe it'll work or maybe my life will be ruined", it's a risk, but significantly less of one if you know it's been done before. They're not robbing convenience stores for rent money out of desperation, they're bribing people to change public policy that overrides the public because of their own beliefs or agenda because they think they can get away with it. And who knows how often they do.