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Originally Posted by T&F
I have however would suggest that if the main parties aren't selling anything people want to buy they shouldn't be expected to buy it and hope for the best.
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In fact if you look at the opinion polls you will find in the United States that most people are against nuclear proliferation, would like a peace deal in the middle east and would like to see concerted action on global warming and thought they were voting for it. The government has done the opposite of this, so people aren't even getting what they think they are voting for.
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In all systems of government minorities get trodden on. Their views are not given credence because there are not enough of them to cause trouble when ignored. The sad reality is that our current systems of government in the first world offer very little choice to anyone. They are not designed for that, they are designed to maintain stability and allow the accumulation of wealth. Which they seem to do very well.
However I still fail to see why the average person should not make the best of a limited set of choices. Perhaps that is not very idealistic of me but all the idealism in the world won't change reality in the short or even medium term. Thus even if one is striving admirably to find a better way there is no logical reason not to "participate" in the current system while it exists, even though the gain may only be marginal.
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Now Achilles if you will climb down off your high horse and look seriously at the reasons why the 2 party system is killing US democracy we can perhaps have a discussion. I would point out that the system is heavily weighted in the main 2 parties favour. Secondly there is action to actively discourage certain sections of society from voting through bizarre voter registration schemes. Furthermore the massive intervention by big business in campaign funding and promotion means that any party even considering standing for the interests of people rather than big business would be run out of town. The influence of the media is another case in point.
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It would seem no discussion is warranted as I agree with you entirely. It seems I am simply more willing to advocate participation in the current system while we await the arrival of a better one.