  We review the conceptual structure of the Landauer theory of electron
transport in the light of quantum kinetics, the orthodox framework for
describing conductance at all scales. In a straightforward analysis, we assess
popular claims for a rational link between Landauer theory on the one hand, and
orthodox microscopics on the other. The need to explicitly include inelastic
(dissipative) carrier relaxation is key to any well-posed microscopic model of
open-system mesoscopic transport.
