Unfortunately many people who are totally fed up with this country's two-party system and its Tweedledum and Tweedledumber candidates tend to vote for a third party that at least comes close to representing what they want. But the chances of a third party garnering enough votes to actually elect someone are slim to none, as we have seen. You try to point that out to some folks and the mulish response you often get is that while I am admittedly voting for what they agree is the lesser of two crooks, they are keeping their integrity pristine and pure by voting for the good guy, even though they know he doesn't have the chance of a snowball in a pizza oven. Piss-poor tactics when it practically guarantees that you're going to wind up with the crookeder of two crooks.

This isn't the only system. There are countries that have several parties, and their laws require that there be proportional representation in their governments. This means that to accomplish something they have to coalition-build and compromise, so nothing can go too radically wrong. There is also preferential voting, where you rank the candidates; if your first choice doesn't garner enough votes, your vote goes to your second choice, and so on.

I'm sort of fond of the system they used in ancient Athens. They chose their public officials by lottery from the citizenry at large. And it behooved their officials to behave themselves, because at the end of their term in office, they were judged by a jury of 501 citizens and held accountable—either praised and honored, or ostracized (lost their citizenship for a period of time, or sometimes permanently, and often had to go into exile).

Democracy doesn't necessarily mean voting in elections or majority rule. There are lots of variations, and it's still democracy (government by the people). Democracy isn't just "making the world safe for American business." But since the present system serves the established special interests quite well, the chances of its being changed and improved in any way are practically nil. So you have to do what you have to do. Vote for the lesser of two weevils, even if you have to hold your nose while you do it.

Sad, but true.

Don Firth